It's been 3 years, if you count 2020 as one, since humanity had to navigate through the pandemic. We all learned a lot, about the world, how both big and small it is, about the importance of our communities, the foundational groundwork of families and most importantly, OURSELVES.
I call it the year of release to transition, where we take a good look at what is left over from the process of acceptance, adaptation in order to redesign our lives onward. Although many people have returned to some level of normalcy, many of us still need to let go of residual that no longer serve us as we continue to evolve.
Wins and Shares of 2022
In July 2022, I graduated from the Nutritional Therapy Association in their Nutritional Therapy Practitioner Program. I pushed through 10 months of intense accelerated learning that covers a vast array of topics related to how to support the body's innate wisdom to thrive. With the proud addition of NTP behind my name, I was eager to see where my education and experience would take me in aiding those who choose a more holistic approach towards a better healthful state.
However, Life has a different agenda for us. It's been a longtime wish from the teen to have his drum practice room cleared out of extra storage so he can have a space to hone this music and create. So we started the purge in late summer. Everyone was on board, sorting and letting go of memories tied materials, which probably was hardest for me. I mean, the boys are growing up and it's a bitter sweet thought for a mom to accept. The process continued to the tween's bedroom and the family was feeling really proud of our work. But apparently, our decluttering efforts were not enough, as the Universe sends a message via a flood in our home. If you've ever dealt with emergency water damage before, you know it's rarely minimal thing. Fans and dehumidifiers blasted 24/7 over the Thanksgiving long weekend which we were planning to host.
So I took this as a sign to review my new practice timeline and do a little more soul searching and this is what I learned. I went into the NTA program with the mindset of a 42 years old with the focus of giving back to my IBD community because of my personal experience with Ulcerative Colitis. Why 42? Because I was diagnosed with UC at that age. I'm grateful that I've been remission since 2016, from diet and lifestyle change. But in reality, I dismissed the years of growth since my diagnosis to acknowledge that now I am really a 50+ women riding my waves towards the menopause phase.
So with that realization, I drew some similarities between what we had to endure through with the pandemic and the menopausal transition that all women has to go through. Of course, one is much more drastic than the other, nevertheless both are processes we must be patient to navigate in order to reach a new level of understanding. According to (Hill, K. 1996) " By 2030, the world population of menopausal and postmenopausal women is projected to increase to 1.2 billion, with 47 million new entrants each year" That's a lot of women! And yet, we're often quietly trudging forward with mood swings, disrupted sleep, lowered self esteem with changing body image, fluctuating body temperature and a whole list of discomfort. Does that sound familiar?
If you've read up to here, we might more in common to talk over. Feel free to shoot me a message with your experience.
How to move forward from feeling paralyzed
Let me tell you, that sense of unsettlement wore me down and sent me into the trap of comparison; that thief of joy. So I paused and listened to my inner voice instead of imagining how other practitioners are working. How do I really want to reach my people? That's when it dawned on me, in this season of my life, I want to be with women who are open to explore the beauty of patience and the power of perseverance. I was once a faster and further person, I wanted things done yesterday, but as I process the changes I'm shifting my Moto to " Slowly can be the fastest way to where we want to go". To quote Brent Brown in her podcast interview with Tim Ferriss, I am realizing that " I’m ( resonating to being ) a slower, closer kind of a person" (Ferriss, 2020, 01:05:04)
Why do I want to embrace the slower approach?
One word. Impatience. Because we've had to lean on the use of technology much more in order to pivot our lives through the pandemic. The instant gratification nature of the techno beast feeds into the stress loop of "what's next" which can trigger our fight or flight response easily. Me included. While we push ourselves closer to burn out too often, our bodies will sacrifice the proper functions of our non-emergency systems like digestion and immune to reroute energies to help us flee from any danger, actual or perceive. I'll talk more on that in another post.
My approach will not be everyone, there'll be no quick fixes, but I've seen dramatic improvements after clients commit to implementing simple lifestyle habits. And when that happens, we'll celebrate wins big and small together.
Consider this
What if, slower take us to results faster. Stepping back to access your current picture of health, and slowly, lovingly nurture you back to a sense of safety and trust so your body can thrive and shine at your best.
So what would our work look like?
Instead, what I will deliver is, looking at your bioindividuality and follow your pace. Imagine us on a road trip with you in the driver seat and me as you co-pilot. Together, we will explore and navigate. We'll create strategies built on small steps that suits your life, towards lasting changes. Are you with me?
If any of what I shared above resonates with you, I look forward to connect and learn about your reasons of improving your health.
Please contact me via email hello@healmeinthekitchen.com with the word "change" in the subject line. And don't forget to follow me on social media, I look forward to hear your story and how it'll inspire more meno sisters in their journey.
I wish you glowing health in the new year,
xoxo Astrid
Reference
Hill, K. (1996). The demography of menopause. Maturitas, 23(2), 113–127. https://doi.org/10.1016/0378-5122(95)00968-x
Ferriss, T (Host). (2020, February 6). Striving versus Self-Acceptance, Saving Marriages, and More. (No. 409) [Audio podcast episode]. In The Tim Ferriss Show.
https://tim.blog/2020/02/06/brene-brown-striving-self-acceptance-saving-marriages/