Rewired Book Tour- The Art Of Loving Yourself Unconditionally.

I am honoured to be part of the ReWired Blog Tour- 17 bloggers from around our precious globe spilling the beans on self-love, healing body and mind and celebrating LIFE.

Want more details so you don’t miss out on the juicies- Sign up here.

Loving ourselves can be pretty easy at times, especially when life is going good, when we are not feeling challenged it’s easier to stay in that space of love for others and for ourselves, but when things get bumpy how much love and compassion do you show to yourself?

Many of us have grown up, especially in Ireland always putting everyone else first, with the concept of loving oneself being tightly knit to selfishness, so loving yourself can be a heck of a stretch for most, with feelings of shame and guilt arising for actually putting yourself first.  But what if for just a moment you could start to imagine what it would be like to love the most important person in your life, unconditionally, warts and all.  What if you could LOVE YOU, and I don’t just mean like, I mean love!

My journey has thought me this lesson, and I recognise the difference when I’m side tracked or when I’m taking care of me, because let’s face it we take care of the people and things we value and love.  When I’m side tracked, the road gets a little bumpy, my self-care routines which contribute so greatly to my well-being slip further down my to do list, and I feel disconnected.  On the flip side, when I take the time to nourish myself I am a different person, I am the person I want to be- and that doesn’t mean that challenges don’t appear, but it does mean that they are effortless to overcome, and this is why self love is essential in living a fulfilling life.

So I encourage you to notice how you can love yourself just a little more, what acts of kindness can you take today to support your body, mind and soul to harmonise and celebrate your amazing life?

The following self-care practices are vital for me to stay grounded and feel connected, they contribute so much to me loving myself, and as a result loving my life.

1.       Routines keep me grounded.  My daily self-care routine consists of a spiritual practice of yoga, meditation & mantra, a walk in nature (unless the puddles are too deep) and an afternoon nap- All ESSENTIAL to my well-being.

2.       Energy is like currency- I get to choose where I shop.  I carefully choose how and where to spend my precious energy.  Setting boundaries and learning to say a guilt free ‘NO’ will be a precious gift to yourself.  But be warned it takes a little practice to move past the feelings of guilt.

3.       Manage and minimise stress.  As someone diagnosed with several chronic health conditions it is essential for me to minimise the amount of stress in my life, some days it doesn’t exist, but other days provide the potential for overwhelm.  When these busy days arise I simple ask the question ‘is this supporting my wellbeing?’, sometimes the answer is yes, in that I want to complete a project, other times it’s a hell no, so it gets cleared from my schedule.  

4.       Build your bedtime routine.  Sleep is a vital time when your body restores and replenishes itself and is a key to prevent burnout.  Begin to build a supportive routine, and remember what you see, hear, experience and think about just before bed is what you will marinate in- so choose wisely. Use a guided relaxation (like this free sweet dreams deep relaxation), to help you drop into a space of stillness, practice gratitude, have a bath, connect with your breath, you will know what works best for you.

5.       Create a life worth living.  Start dreaming, and I suggest dreaming BIG.  Then start investing in your dreams, gather your supporters and start inching towards your dreams, knowing that every decision you make that connects you with your dream is a step closer.  Become aware of the feeling of blissful excitement as your dreams start to unfold, because I promise you when you nurture you, you will have FAR more to offer the world.

If your still lost and not sure where to start take a moment to reflect on how you love and care for the most important person in your life? How does it look, what do you do? Now place yourself in that place, and start doing it for YOU.

Yesterday’s blog from Danielle Hughes from Earth Wisdom Teachings explores 5 steps to support your self love  and Rebecca Mc Keon share waking up to your own magnificence tomorrow.

If you would like to read more about Audrey’s Michel's book Rewired Life click here for your free chapter.

With Love,

Laura x

Restoring A Sense Of Balance.

It’s now the middle of January, and if you’re anything like me you’ll be glad to get back to a routine which supports your being on every level- physically, emotionally, energetically and mentally.  I am glad to see the back of the Christmas sweeties, as like a magpie, I am drawn to their twinkling wrappers and the sugar hit that follows.  But I have recognised that this year more than ever, that certain habits which I found myself falling into over the Christmas festivities did not serve me.

Over the years I have recognised how similar we all are, so I reckon if I’m feeling the aftermath of Christmas there is a high possibility you are too, so I've put together 5 suggestions to empower you to take care of your body and get it back to its optimum functioning level.

So now I ask the question I found myself pondering over Christams “What if you could do a few simple things which could help to restore your sense of connection and balance in your life, would you?”  I have included a few suggestions of simple changes which can have a BIG impact, and are part of my normal (outside Christmas) routine.

I would encourage you to carve out some time in your day, and by that I mean commit to 10, 20, 30 minutes of me time each day- making it non-negotiable, and then using this time in a way that truly benefits YOU.

I strongly believe it’s essential to look after our physical body first to enable us to actually be present to the changes we would like to make.  For example if our physical body is out of kilter it’s almost impossible to think clearly and find the motivation to implement lifelong changes.

So the following changes are recommendations to get you back on track after the festive season.

1.     Get Organised.  It’s very difficult to implement changes if we are flying by the seat of your pants, so identify what it is that you want to change and make a list of what / when you will do this.

2.     Get moving. Our lymphatic system does not have a pump to move the toxins in our body, so when you move so do the toxins.  Simple changes like getting off the bus a stop or two early, or going for a quick walk at lunch will make a big difference.  Don’t forget that exercise releases endorphins (the feel good hormone) so not only are you helping your physical body but your mental well-being.   

3.     Hydration.  Drink 7 – 8 glasses of water each day, and by water I do actually mean water, but if this will be too challenging and you want to supplement some water with herbal teas (do check their caffeine content, as not all herbal teas are as healthy as you might think).  Staying properly hydrated will keep your body functioning at an optimum level, preventing constipation, sluggishness and helping to detox your system after Christmas.

4.     Get to bed earlier.  Allow time so you have the opportunity to sleep for 7 to 8 hours each night, Ayurveda believes that sleeping between 10 pm & 2am is the best time to enable your body to restore and replenish itself. Put a bedtime routine in place that enables you to wind down and fall asleep easily, such as switching off the tv earlier, taking a bath, stretching your body- you will know what works best for you.   

5.     Become more aware of what you’re eating and aim for a more balanced diet- we all know the foods we ‘shouldn’t’ eat, yet an 80% / 20% approach makes our tasty treats and the focus of a balanced diet more achievable.  Whilst on your 80% try to eat local fresh food, rather than processed foods.

As with any changes there will always be a level of resistance, so it will take a commitment, but I have no doubt that once you tune into your body you will discover the wisdom which lies within, and restore yourself back to balance.

Once you become more aware of your thoughts, habits and patterns you will begin to become more experienced in the art of self-care.  And by that I mean taking care of yourself, the way you would a child or a friend, but now we are talking about YOU.  

Take some time to honour yourself, your needs and your desires, because when we take care of ourselves we have so much more to offer the world.

The Mosaic Of My Life.

So to continue the story of India in a nutshell, the process got harder than I could have imagined, not so much this year on a physical level, but on a thought / feeling / psychological level, a whole new can was opening to me. I was privileged, wasn’t I?  To drop down into the unconscious layers of my being, a process which I had been working towards for many years, but what I found was far from what I desired.  Painful childhood memories, every imaginable fear and phobia arose which was then amplified with the addition of panic attacks, I was here to be healed, yet all I wanted was to get the hell outa here! 

Welcoming the dawn and saying farewell to my final moon in India.

My years of self-care and spiritual practices thought me to trust, to trust when even the tiniest glimmer seemed to be extinguished, so I knew this was simply something I had to go through to bring me back to me, why I was not sure, but I knew and held tight to the trust.  I went to India to be healed and came back broken.

As a coach I often say to people find your why, because in your why lies your motivation, so throughout the four weeks of treatment I held steady on my why, talked about it, meditated on it, visualised it, so my why, and the amazing people in my life both in India and via skype kept me going.

I invested everything in my why, energetically, physically, emotionally, financially, and when I came home I found out that my why, hadn’t worked in the way I wanted.  In fact my TSH levels were now at a critical level, I could barely walk, I was in agonising pain, completely exhausted, couldn’t concentrate or focus, I was like a zombie.  So I took the decision to go back on my medication.

It was at this point that I downed tools on everything, I delegated like a queen, cancelled yoga classes, stopped coaching, and for the following six weeks I focussed on going inwards, doing everything inspiring, I mingled with high vibe conscious people, I listened carefully for guidance, yet there was no voice, so instead of abandoning me, I trusted.  

I took myself on a spiritual retreat which I had booked before India was even on the cards, I was going because I had booked it, not because I really wanted to, I wanted to wallow I was broken- remember and a two hour train ride wasn’t high on my priorities list, I was still trying to process everything, did I really need to mix more into the pot?

But it was in these two and a half magical days that I met me, a part of me that I did not know even existed, a part of me that had been buried under conditioning, life and yet there I was all along.  I came home to who I was, not who I thought I was, I found peace with my illness, I was not cured but healed. 

Satsang with Miranda Mac Phearson- a true privilege.

Within the following few days I ended a relationship, gave the keys back to my beautiful home and since mid-May I have been working on strengthening my connection with me, and the guidance is talking, my life is flowing in a way it has never done before.

I am getting to create the mosaic of my life, I can take all the shattered pieces of my life and create a life of beauty, meaning and purpose.

Heartsong Mandala from Kevin James Carroll chanting event in Dublin.

My Latest Healing Adventure

This morning my newsfeed on facebook showed me a picture that I posted exactly a year ago today, which was an identical scene to the one I had just left only moments before- so for those who didn't get the memo I'm back in India.

Once I decided to return to India people instantly kept asking me to keep a blog again, but each time it just didn't feel right, and although I thought I wouldn't, I find myself today, 20 days in feeling a little inspired to write.

Its kind of a sense of De-Ja-Vu here everything seems the same, yet is totally different.  I am different. Last year I found the panchakarma process very physically challenging, but this year it has dropped to a completely different level.  

When I returned from my 5 week panchakarma experience last May my medical teams, were delighted (and slightly intrigued) at how I had re-booted my body, and stabilised my bloodwork.  For the majority of 2014 & 2015 I have been really healthy, and felt like I had been given my life back.. So I got busy doing all the things which I had not been able or well enough to do over the previous years.

As many of you know I booked this trip with about 1 - 2 weeks notice, shortly after finding out my thyroid had switched itself off.  This in itself was a major wake up call, I began to delegate and to re-focus my health (AGAIN) as my #1 priority. 
 

For most people a diagnoses like this can be a relief, a pinned down condition and a treatment plan, for me getting this news was devastating.  Initially I felt steam rolled by failure, that everything I had worked towards, especially in the last two years to regain my health had been a waste.

You see in January I finally completed my coach training, and got started working on my new wellness company, something which I had felt called to do for such a long time, but had not been well enough to do.  So at last I was well enough to take the training, had enough energy to infuse into my new company and then came the SMACK!! 

The news became even more traumatic- that I was not the glowing example of 'healthy and well' that I was pinning my company on.  I wanted to start this new venture to give hope to people that despite a diagnosis you can make decisions to empower and encourage your healing and wellbeing.  Love Your Life (my new wellness company) would offer techniques and tools from coaching, yoga & meditation to empower and inspire people to transform their lives and health.  Yet I found myself thinking 'who am I to deliver this message, you can't even maintain your own health'.

Doubt and vulnerability are two key emotions that every entrepreneur feels as they share their offerings with the world.   For me dancing with wellness has been a major aspect of my life for the last 10 years, so this offering came from deep within my heart.  All this combined, my ego was having a field day, bashing me down, and now this set back just 'confirmed' I was not good enough to start this wellness company.

Fortunately I have 10 years of experience in this wellness dance, and as one of my favorite authors always say- 'life is your classroom, to teach is to learn' and by god am I learning!!

I was forced to face my ego, my chronic illness', my own beliefs and wellness practices, and whilst it might sound dramatic I felt rocked to my core.  I had to dig deep and examine how best I should proceed.  Having taken medication for the guts of 9 years, and rarely had a quality of life which I have experienced over the last year I was faced with the FEAR dilemma....Should I follow my doctors prescription out of fear of what might happen, or should I do what has worked for my body in the past, both filled with risks, and whilst paralyzed by doubt and fear choosing my path became increasingly difficult. 
 

Yet slowly with the love, encouragement and support of my cheerleaders aka all you amazing people in my life I began to acknowledge and recognise that six of my chronic illness' were (and still are) in remission- I was doing amazing!!

So this is something I began to focus upon, and choosing my healing path became simpler, once I began to dissolve the fear.

Having met so many inspiring people here in India who have or are experiencing health conditions (be they chronic or not), I am feeling even more inspired and called to get Love Your Life off the ground, so if you want to join me with a daily(ish) slice of positivity pop over here to join my journey.

If you want to read all about round 1 of India aka my 2014 healing adventure all the gory details can be found here.
 

Sending love to each of you, and some morning sunshine from India xxxxxxxxxxx