"Without a transition, a change is just a rearrangement of the furniture. Unless transition happens, the change won’t work."
-William Bridges
December greetings dear friends, I sincerely hope you are enjoying the holiday season. I always write about themes that present themselves in my own life, the lives of my clients, friends and family. This month my theme is being experienced by all of the above. During this season of change, I was blessed to be interviewed by Rebecca Romo of 99.9 The Q. Her fabulous radio show is "Feel Good Mornings". She has a special segment called "Wellness Wednesday'". Rebecca and I had a great conversation and more of it will air after Christmas. We focused on my Top 3 Tips for getting through change. I'm currently using each of these three in my daily life. Thank you Rebecca for the opportunity to connect with you and your listeners. Listen here.
Change is inevitable. It can wear us down if we don't successfully transition through it. The holidays often amplify our stress or grief, it can make change that much harder. We have to remember it is not always a joy filled time of year for everyone. Among the many things Rebecca and I talked about was how good it feels to help people. It can boost our moods and take our minds off of our worries. However, we cannot successfully help others if we are depleted. For those of us who have ever suffered burnout, we know we have to fill our own cup first.
Mindfully and strategically transitioning through change is an act of self-love. How do we master this? We all get caught up sometimes and need a healthy reminder to slow down, be gentle with ourselves and others. Change may be sudden and unexpected, or it can be planned and by choice. No matter which category of change you are coping with you can shift and uplift yourself and rise above the challenges. Every change will provide a life lesson, but seeing that in the moment is often impossible. I have learned to have more trust in the process. Without fail I am surprised when with ease and grace things do turn around. I am learning to expect everything to work out and surrender to the transition with unwavering faith. Here are the tips that are working for me and my circle this holiday season.
#1 Maintain A Daily Routine
When times are in flux it's crucial to have structure to rely upon. Meditation, time in nature, and physical exercise of any kind are highly effective ways to center and ground yourself. Feed your body nourishing whole foods. If you suffer from anxiety it's time to proactively cut back on caffeine. Try to wake up a little earlier to dedicate time to your routine. Get to bed a little earlier whenever possible to ensure you get enough restorative sleep. I use CBD products to support my sleep and manage pain. It's easier to manage your routine when you've slept well and aren't in pain. These products work so well I decided to sell them at my office and my clients love them as much as I do.
#2 Get Radical With Your Self-Care
Remember to fill your own cup first. You cannot function at your best while depleted, especially if you are helping others. It's easy to beat yourself up. I challenge you to be gentle and compassionate with yourself. It is not selfish to set healthy boundaries at work and at home, that is an act of self-love, self-care and survival. When you are feeling well balanced it will have a positive impact on those around you. Self-care doesn't have to cost anything, there are plenty of ways to care for yourself without spending money. The expense can trigger more stress, especially at the holidays.
#3 Don't Isolate
Stay in touch with the positive people in your life, in fact proactively reach out to them. If your network is less than strong right now, or perhaps non-existent, please work on lining up support both personal and professional. Limit exposure to situations or people that shake you off your stable ground and increase your stress. Trust is hard for some of us, asking for help is actually a strength not a weakness. I'm no stranger to this point, I push myself to reach out to those in my life when times are tough. I didn't always do that. The result was tougher and longer transitions periods at no one's expense by my own.
I hope these suggestions prove to be helpful to you, or someone you love. But wait, what about boundaries? Well Rebecca and I talked offline about the need for healthy boundaries, and it will be a focus of yet another blog soon. If you have not attended my "Establishing Healthy Boundaries" workshop, please pay close attention to posts in January. It goes hand in hand with these top 3 tips to successfully navigating change.
I look forward to hearing from you if you need fresh ideas on creating your routine. I am designing new workshops that I'm very excited about launching in 2023. My previous blog posts have shared no cost or low cost self-care tips, please look back at 2020. I'm thrilled to be collaborating with other practitioners and small business owners in my new classroom space. Please check my workshop tab for all of my offerings. Thank you for your interest and support of my work.
All my best and brightest holiday wishes to you and your loved ones.
Till we meet again, -K
