As I reflect on what I want to share with you this month, there is one theme that popped into my brain. For those of you who know me or have followed me for a while now, I’ll bet you can guess what it is. (Hint: It has to do with November and how I sign off on all my emails. 

It’s gratitude! Cliche? Maybe, but gratitude is a huge value of mine and honestly, I have so much to be grateful for this year. As I write this, I’m curled up on my couch with my baby sleeping on my chest. This is a beautiful thing to be grateful for.

2023 has been my year of growth and expansion, which included bringing Dr. Lydia on to join the team, moving to our new office, and having a baby. This has brought so much good, but it required going through hard moments like:

• Figuring out if hiring someone was the right move (It was!).
• Processing the unexpected news that we would be moving offices when the only thing running through my exhausted, first-trimester brain was, “I don’t have the bandwidth for this.” (I found the bandwidth for it).
• Crying on the couch to my husband when I was so tired, nauseous, and upset that I didn’t feel like myself. (It made me appreciate feeling like myself again).
• Being overwhelmed after going 100 mph during May and June to get our new offices set up and ready for client care on time. (I had to take my own advice and be diligent with yin yoga, journaling, and breath work to process my own stress and overwhelm).
• Transitioning my focus from business growth to having a baby and turning the reins over to Dr. Lydia. (My business is like another child to me so this was a big practice in letting go).

We would all love to live forever in the good moments, avoiding the tough times, hurt, discomfort, and pain. But we live in a world of opposites, and those opposites are a necessary part of the human experience. If we don’t go through the hard moments, we can’t appreciate the amazing ones.

• Having Dr. Lydia onboard is BETTER because I reflected and prayed so diligently on making that decision.
• Our new office is BETTER because we put blood, sweat, and tears (literally) into making this space as amazing as possible.
• The birth of our new baby is BETTER because of the struggles I went through during both of my pregnancies.

So even though I want to bid the strugglesome moments adieu, my higher self knows that they are necessary and simply part of the experience of life. The tough moments make you stronger and more resilient. Life doesn’t get easier…you get stronger.

I challenge you to reflect on the tough moments of your life:

• What can you learn from them?
• How can you embrace gratitude?
• How are you becoming a stronger, more resilient person? 
• What beauty is emerging from the rubble?

As always, I’m grateful for you and our Empower Physio and Wellness community. Thank you for being a part of it!