For Jesse
When everyone was discouraging me from making different choices for my life, Jesse was always there to encourage me to live my own life and make my own mistakes. Knowing he was just a text or call away gave me so much strength and courage to confront the world.
Daddy Issues
This experience has negatively impacted every aspect of my life. My physical and mental health have suffered. I felt (and still feel) traumatized and furious that this happened to me.
The Heart of Tantric Sex
The first lines of this book resonated with me so much! When I read, “The first time I made love, I recall being overwhelmed with disappointment, especially since I had waited for love and made it a special occasion. I asked myself, ‘Is this what all the fuss was about? Surely there must be more to it?’ ” …
Radical Acceptance
Tara claims, “Radical Acceptance is the willingness to experience ourselves and our life as it is.” I became willing to experience it all fully without the façade and that’s when my life really began to change for the better.
My IBD Purse
I was diagnosed with severe Crohn’s at eight years old. Getting through each day was such a struggle but over time I learned how to better prepare myself for being out in the world. I had to plan ahead for any possibility every time I left the house. Eventually that turned into carrying a giant purse with literally everything but the bathroom sink. Here is a list of the basics I made sure to never leave home without.
College & Crohn’s
It was an incredibly lonely time in a life full of loneliness but it’s also when things really started to turn around for me.
Breath
“Breathing is a power switch to a vast network called the autonomic nervous system,” Nestor wrote.
The Choice
“Expression is the opposite of depression,” Dr. Eger claims. As depression rates continue to climb, we need to put an emphasis on expression. Too many people suffer in silence, slowly being eaten away by the past.
The Body Keeps the Score
Dr. van der Kolk stated, “The bodies of child-abuse victims are tense and defensive until they find a way to relax and feel safe.” When I started trying to take better care of myself, I decided to get a massage. The first time, and several after to be honest, were not very pleasant or relaxing. I would often still feel just as tense or even more so when it was over. The masseuse would keep saying, “You can relax now,” and I would be so confused because I thought I was relaxed.
Year One of Hosting the Brené Brown Podcast Discussion Group
Week after week, the display of vulnerability and courage has been amazing to witness. Brené covers many difficult topics and the bravery it takes to sit in front of a computer and discuss emotionally charged subjects with perfect strangers needs to be recognized and applauded!!
Think on Purpose
The more I called bullshit on negative thought patterns, the more my health improved. The more I started consciously deciding what to think, the more my life improved.
Can’t Hurt Me
“Don’t stop when you are tired. Stop when you are done.” This is one of the execution steps David Goggins includes in his Warning Order at the beginning of the book. These two simple sentences are not only great advice but they also sum up this book well. Pain and exhaustion are just steps on the road to self mastery. If you let them stop you, you will never realize your true potential.
Only Me
A lot of assumptions are hurled at only children. People just assume you’re a spoiled brat who has been handed everything you could ever want in life. They just assume things were calm and peaceful in your household because it was just you and your parents must have been so attentive to your every whim. They assume you’re socially awkward and don’t know how to make friends or interact with people. They assume you’re still spoiled as an adult and have always had a great support system. That was not my experience whatsoever.
The Pleasure Trap
Book Review: The Pleasure Trap: Mastering the Hidden Force that Undermines Health & Happiness by Douglas J. Lisle and Alan Goldhamer
Come As You Are
Come as You Are: The Surprising New Science that Will Transform Your Sex Life by Emily Nagoski, Ph.D. is an exploration of the physiology and psychology of women’s sexual wellbeing.
Why I Became The IBD Life Coach
Today, I’m so grateful for my disease and the constant struggles it has brought into my life. I’m stronger than Crohn’s disease and it took going through hell for me to realize that for myself. Now I use what I have learned through the many hardships and tough lessons I’ve experienced throughout my life to help others find a way out of the darkness.
Diets
Diet can definitely be a four letter word. Just hearing this word can produce tremendous anxiety for some.
Man’s Search for Meaning
Frankl survived the Nazi concentration camps and fulfilled his destiny. He completed his work on Logotherapy, which focuses on the future, the meanings each person is to fulfill. These meanings can change over time. Frankl writes, “What matters, therefore, is not the meaning of life in general but rather the specific meaning of a person’s life at a given moment.”
Intermittent Fasting
“Why are you trying to lose weight when you’re already so skinny?” This is always the first question I get when I say I practice intermittent fasting. No, I’m not trying to lose weight. I’m giving my digestive system a break and practicing self-control.
Daring Greatly
I love Brené Brown. I’ve seen many of her talks and interviews. I host a discussion group for her podcast. She is such an inspiration. I really wanted to love this book, it just wasn’t for me. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a great book. I was so excited to read it and have myContinue reading “Daring Greatly”
Exercise and IBD
Joint pain and fatigue are common when you have IBD. It can be so hard to motivate ourselves to exercise when we are in pain and already exhausted but exercise is so important for pain relief and improving our health.
Bathroom Battle
When you have IBD, you often feel like you’re in a battle for the bathroom. Here are some tactics to conquer the bathroom battle.
10% Happier
Book review
10% Happier: How I tamed the Voice in My Head, Reduced Stress Without Losing My Edge, and Found Self-Help That Actually Works – A True Story by Dan Harris
The Deepest Well
Book Review: The Deepest Well: Healing the Long-Term Effects of Childhood Adversity
10 Days of Silent Hell
10 days of silent meditation hell! A hell I’m grateful for having gone through.
First Solo Adventure
Today is probably my favorite throwback of the year! I arrived in Ecuador on this day 3 years ago for my first solo adventure! It started out a bit rough. I was scared, my grandma kept telling me I was going to die alone over there, the food was weird and I was having aContinue reading “First Solo Adventure”
Food Journal
A food journal is a great tool for IBD warriors wanting to figure out what they can eat…and what to avoid. FREE food journal template included.
New Year’s Eve 2019
The last twelve months have flown by! It blows my mind that today is the last day of 2019. This year has been crazy, full of ups and downs. I even fell down, high up on a hill in Colombia, LOL. While some of this year has been rough, some of it has been absolutelyContinue reading “New Year’s Eve 2019”
Childhood Crohn’s Diagnosis
Being diagnosed with Crohn’s as a child made life very difficult. Feeling like I had no one to talk to made that struggle so much harder than it needed to be.
Crohn’s Disease and Yoga
Crohn’s disease has always been a giant obstacle in my life. I began having obvious symptoms at 7 years old. I was terrified. I was so scared that I did not tell anyone for over a year. My life since has been a blur of doctors, pills, hospital beds, IVs, intense pain, and crippling depressionContinue reading “Crohn’s Disease and Yoga”
A Texan's Fitness 