My Philosophy
When sickness overcame me to the point of near death, I found it difficult to heal both physically and emotionally. Finding something beautiful on the other side was nowhere in sight as the life I had before was simply gone. Oddly, what the flip side of the coin held was a way of living and self-care that opened up new meaning to health and happiness. A slowing of the process and an appreciation for the life that I do have. I can now sit with things that I used to run from; acknowledge aspects for good and for bad that were ignored.
The autoimmune experience is an emotional one, and there are different phases we go through that are similar to the stages of grief: denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. And in all honesty, I have experienced all of these in one day when in the middle of a flare. All of these are natural human responses when facing something that scares us, denial especially, when reality is something that we don’t want to be true or don’t know what it is to be fixed. With autoimmune disease, however, if we get stuck in denial, we don’t address it. We pretend it’s not happening until our body gets too loud to ignore. We can’t fix anything until we admit there’s a problem and understand that in the same way we acquiesced into a new normal of dysfunction, we can also empower ourselves to heal.
There are things beyond our control, but there are also things within our control, and even small things matter. For this reason, I believe saying the following is important for me to share to anyone wanting to work with me:
I believe our bodies are amazing and deserve our love, not our anger.
I believe focusing on the negative will make you negative. I also believe toxic positivity is equally as destructive.
I believe the choices we make every day have a huge impact on how we feel. Diet and lifestyle truly are medicine.
That said, if medication is needed to put you in remission, it's a wonderful thing to live in a world where medicine is available. Never feel like a failure if you choose an integrative approach.
I also believe that we aren't separate from the world around us, so the choices we make every day also impact others.
I believe everyone on this planet is deserving of dignity, love, joy, health, safety, and equal rights. That includes people of all races, ethnicities, genders, sexual orientation, age, ability, religion, and nationality.
I believe in the mind-body connection. That our thoughts and feelings impact our physical health and vice versa, which is why mental wellness practices are as important to autoimmune health as diet and sleep.
I also believe that hurt people, hurt people. So, those same mental wellness practices benefit the world-at-large.
I believe therapy can be helpful for anyone, but especially people living with the challenge of a chronic illness like autoimmune disease.
I believe self-compassion and compassion for others go hand-in-hand, and they are both skills worth nurturing.
I believe love is stronger that hate, but I also think love is best expressed through action.
I believe prayer can be a beautiful thing, but it doesn't work alone.
I believe in self-awareness over denial. Both in regards to our own health and the health of the world-at-large. It's up to each of us to be aware of that pattern and work our way through it. Too much harm is done when we get stuck there.
I believe unprocessed emotions cause incredible harm.
I believe we are all works in progress. We can't change others. We can only change ourselves, but that can have a powerful ripple effect.
I have adapted this manifesto of sorts from an amazing teacher, Eileen Laird, and invite you to consider anything that came up as you read. True healing addresses all aspects of our lives, begins with our own self-care, self-love and self-acceptance opening the door for community care, community love and community acceptance. Healing at its greatest potential.