A New Perspective on Pain

Three years after major abdominal surgery to relocate a compressed renal vein as a result of a rare syndrome named after the Nutcracker for its “nutcrackering” or clamping down effect on my vein and 125 hours of transformational life coach training later, I successfully managed my cyclical pain without Western medicine this month! This is a big feat for me on so many levels. I’m no longer dependent on pills as my savior when I’m in pain. This summer I’ve been focusing on prevention and self-care before the pain hits, which involves whole-life changes and new healthier habits the whole month long, not just when I’m in pain. I have significantly reduced my intake of:

• gluten because of its connection with inflammation which is known to cause more pain
• soy because of its ability to increase estrogen in the body which increases blood flow and when you have residual varicosities from the Nutcracker Syndrome, excess estrogen is not your friend
• corn due to its links with inflammation and consequently increased allergies, which I’m learning are most likely a result of my body being so inflamed over a long period of time
• sugar—especially refined—because of its connection with greater inflammation in the body as well—this one is especially challenging for me and one I could reduce even more with greater discipline and practice
• dairy, which I had already reduced quite a bit due to gastrointestinal discomfort that started over 10 years ago but which I sometimes still doctored or put a bandaid over with a Lactaid pill
• caffeine because it constricts blood vessels and raises tension levels which can result in increased pain

It’s a big undertaking and that’s why I think it’s been possible for me because of my life coach training. Of course I trained to coach others but I also reap the benefits, and taking on major life changes like this are beginning to seem much more manageable with experience and the tools I’ve learned. I am also incorporating suggestions that my naturopath made a long time ago that I finally feel like I can take on and by adding these self-loving activities into my week, I build up my resilience to stress and my response to pain comes from a calmer place. I remember to breathe through it and not resist or tense up. Through quick morning meditations, lymphatic dry brushing, Epsom salt baths, walking barefoot on the beach, and massage and acupuncture, I am beginning to find regular ways to ground myself into the moment, into gratitude, into trusting. It makes a big difference. It also helps me consider that pain is in our lives for a reason; it’s a messenger and I’m grateful for its message to focus on showing my body move love and dedicate time to improving my health and well-being.

Blogging From The Beach

This last year has been quite a year for changes. I changed jobs twice, my mom had a serious medical emergency, we moved again, we lost a dear friend to cancer, and I became certified as a life coach. Many ups and downs but a lot of lessons learned about resilience and perseverance. Patience and trusting. 

These past few months--really this past year--I haven't been as dedicated to my writing. Sometimes I think I might even be blocked. Creativity has flown in other ways though, through collage and photography mainly. I also miss creative movement. But I have done a lot of nature walking. 

Survival mode only gets you so far, and then you have to take time to regroup and focus on thriving again. So this afternoon I'm revisiting one of my favorite sights by the sea. Where I began my journey into blogging about wellness 2 years ago this very month.

In celebration of these past two years, I know I must be gentle with myself for all the beautiful and challenging changes in my life. I trust that as I bounce back from each change, my rebound grows even stronger and quicker and I can get back to feeling grateful for being alive.

And I pray that through this gratitude for life, my faith in my own inner-resilience will expand and blossom. As will my ability to trust in the inherent goodness of this amazing universe.

In a way, our day-to-day lives are like looking through a rolled up piece of paper and only seeing a very tiny piece of the greater, more expansive universe that makes up our lives. And at the same time, we can experience the most awe-inspiring beauty in that tiny piece which is our right-here-right-now moment that we're living in. Of course not all moments will be filled with that much wonder and beauty but the more we accumulate and take notice of, the better and more joyful we'll feel. 

You can almost imagine those art posters that were popular awhile back that were actually made up of very tiny pictures which created a beautiful larger picture as your view got wider. That's kind of like our lives, huh? I trust that the bigger, more expansive and beautiful picture is truly made up of these tiny beautiful and resilient/challenging moments that make up our lives. It helps put things in perspective and also helps give meaning to the everyday moments we live each day. Every moment matters and forms a tiny part of the greater picture of our lives. Even the ugly moments matter. They may not feel very pretty right now but with a little distance, they'll help form the most amazing image. No judgment, just tiny pieces of our painting that we call life.