Who are you and what do you want?

When someone asks you to introduce yourself, what do you say?

I identify myself as a wife and a mother. It is always the first thing I think of when asked about myself. When I was working in IT, I found I needed to deliberately plan a different response when interviewing for new positions. Interviewers would often start by asking me to tell them about myself. They wanted to know what my technical skills and background were. But it never came naturally for me to talk about that.

Who am I? What do I want?

I am a wife and a mother. I want to help people to a more peaceful and joyful life.  I want to help people figure out what makes them happy....what warms their hearts....what fills them up. I want to help people find joy in their everyday life.

For you it might be making sure that people have things in place to protect them in case of an emergency, helping people save enough to retire, cooking delicious food, or helping businesses create an online presence.

Do you know what it is that brings you joy? Does what you do for a living fill you up? Even if your day job is not your passion, you can find ways in your daily life to pursue it. You can offer your talents in a volunteer capacity. You can help your friends and family. You can add the things that you are passionate about into your daily routine.

If you are one of many people who don't know what your passion is, I can help. Life coaching is a great way to discover who you are and what you want. Don't spend any more time letting life pass you by.

Blessings,
Kara

When my son was very small, he used to love to draw and tell stories on paper. Every Christmas his Auntie would give him a ream of paper and pencils or crayons or something. He looked forward to it every year! 

When I looked at the scribbled on pieces of paper lying all over the house, I didn't see the beauty. I thought he was just scribbling and throwing the paper aside.

One day I asked him about it. For him, each of those papers was a story. He would start with a character he drew, and then as he made the story up in his head, he would "act out" the story on the page.

Each one of those scribbles was a story. It was his imagination at work. It was a creative expression.

Creative expression is a great way to practice self-care! Someone else must have recognized this too, as there is a huge market for adult coloring books! The benefit of creative expression is disconnecting from the stressors of life, being in the moment, and creating something beautiful. Our breathing slows down and we start to relax. It allows our bodies to rejuvenate.

Creative expressions can be all kinds of things. It can be painting, coloring, writing stories or poetry, drawing, playing music, baking or cooking, playing with hair or doing makeup, building model airplanes, sewing.... the list is limitless! Whatever sparks your creativity!

Blessings,
Kara

Survival Mode

Our need for self-care isn't always intuitive. We often don't think about our need when we are in the midst of a difficult situation. It requires reflection and intentionality. Oftentimes we are in survival mode and find it hard to think about anything other than the crisis in that moment.

When we are in survival mode we tend to fall back on our old habits. It is so much easier to coast and rely on past learned behavior because doing anything else requires energy and intention. When we are in crisis mode we tend to go into auto-pilot because we are physically and emotionally depleted.

That is precisely when we need to take a step back, take a breath, and remember that YOU matter too. 

Practicing self-care needs to become a regular activity. We need to practice it every day so that when we are in crisis, we don't have to think about it. We just do it. And when we take care of ourselves in the midst of a crisis, we will find that we have more resources to deal with the situation. We have clearer thoughts, more creative ideas, more stamina and endurance.

Taking care of ourselves actually benefits everyone around us! Seriously! It is not selfish! It honors our relationships with our family, with our children. It says they are important; that we care enough about them to fill ourselves up so we can be there for them.

Practice taking care of yourself everyday so that when you go to auto-pilot, that is what kicks in.

Blessings,
Kara

Balance

Stress comes in all kinds of shapes and sizes. It is not always the difficult things in life that create stress. For instance, my son and his wife and son came to visit from across the country last week. My grandson is only 3 months old. It was the most amazing thing to have them with us for a week!

When they come home we want to spend every possible minute together and end up staying up way too late LOL! Our time together also includes traveling to visit with extended family, and having our other children home as well. All of this means a (wonderful) change in routine.

Since I work from my home office I am accustomed to spending most of my day alone. As I am getting older I enjoy my alone time more and more. And I don't realize how important it is to me because it just is what it is.

But when that time gets interrupted my body is aware. My muscles tighten, I am exhausted (of course, staying up late contributes that that too!) and I find myself getting quieter and bringing my world in a little closer.

This is when it is important to practice some extra self care. I took a nap. I read a favorite book. I talked to my sister. All of these things have helped me to feel more like myself.

Self care is important in any situation. It is not just for when things are difficult or upsetting. It is for creating and maintaining balance. Try to incorporate it into your everyday life.

Blessings.
Kara