10 Things I Learned/ Embodied in 2023….

1. Doing what lights YOU up/ is in alignment with YOU may trigger/ bother folks. Do it, anyway. Otherwise? You’ll end up not doing it, and still disappoint someone, including yourself at the end.

2. Amore Fati (She’s a #NietzschGirl). I learned to love my fate. I have a completely new understanding of it. I believe that everything has happened “for” me, not “to” me. It’s post-traumatic AND glimmer growth. Radical acceptance, forgiveness, compassion, and understanding, and all of that jazz.

3. Don’t wait for a rainy day, to do, to try, to use that special something. Stop postponing healthful joy. Make that trip happen, go outside, play, have fun, explore something new, call/ text that person you’ve been thinking about, bust out the fine china, hug yourself, hug your loved ones, tell them how much and why you love them, dance in the living room, sing that song, use that bath bomb, spend that gift card or certificate, wear that fancy dress or outfit, prioritize your well-being. BE in-joy. BE happy. Right now. You are worthy and deserve every drop of it.

4. You have not met all of the people who will love you in life, or who will love you even more. I met so many new soul family members, mostly overseas. I also rekindled my connection with my bio family I hadn’t seen in quite some time (that will happen with 27 first cousins spread across the globe). LOVE YOU, ALL  Σας αγαπώ! Vos amo.

5. The best love story of all time? The one you engage in with yourself. You are your soulmate, and it’s magical to embody who that is for yourself. If you haven’t read Calling in The One yet, I highly recommend it. Spoiler alert: It’s you, bb.

6. The quickest way to feel rich? Count all of the things in your life that money cannot buy. Blessings are all around us, always. So many glimmers, even in the day-to-day. From exchanging a smile with a stranger to a child’s laughter, spending time with a loved one whose energy nourishes you, to someone holding the door open for you, witnessing an amazing sunrise or sunset, to a friend checking in, giving or receiving kinds words, or just feeling the sun’s warmth on your skin. Choose to see it. Choose to feel it. Write it down, talk about it, and hold that gratitude, it’s medicine and strengthens the positivity bias in your brain. You are already so rich :>

7. Plant medicine is a beautiful tool to heal ourselves/ this world (when it’s right for us), by showing us our path and helping us let go of what’s blocking us from it. I am forever grateful for the medicine, and the integration I’ve done alongside it this past year. Not to mention, the work I get to do as a psychotherapist with it (cc @beginwithintoday)

8. HEALING IS POSSIBLE. Neural retraining got me from being able to eat 20 safe ingredients, to being able everything except gluten. Sitting with, and integrating Aya officially placed my anxiety and C-PTSD into remission (@psychologytoday article coming soon). And, my Panchakarma also placed most of my autoimmune diseases in remission.

9. And when you heal, WE ALL heal. As I witness myself doing deep work, I also witness how my family and other relationships are positively affected, including the work I do with my clients. This extends out further. It’s a true ripple effect/ energy shift. Competition isn’t real. When you succeed, and raise the vibration, you give permission and light the way for the rest of us to do the same. Your success (in all areas) is my success, so thank you in advance for doing the work.

10. There is no such thing as failure. I had to end a couple of projects and relationships that weren’t in alignment and were ultimately blocking me from other possibilities and opportunities in life. They were big investments, making it hard to let go of for many years. And, although I could very easily view these as ‘failures,’ they were just (expensive and at times, heartbreaking) universe-sent classes that provided me with priceless wisdom and evolution. The space created in letting these finally go is already ushering in beautiful/ new, reciprocal energy, and I wholeheartedly welcome it. Sometimes the end IS truly the beginning.

So much experienced, healed, learned, unlearned, grown, eaten (lots of amazing GF food) understood, connected with, let go of, appreciated, and enriched. I fell in love with myself, including all aspects of my past, my present, and my future. So lucky. So blessed. So Grateful ❤️ LOVE YOU.

What did you learn/ embody in 2023?

NEW PODCAST EPISODES (INCLUDING A DISCUSSION ABOUT MY PANCHAKARMA)!

Some resources that I have found, or have been shared with me by this AMAZING community…

1. “For the past three years, I’ve been working on an assessment to help people determine their CA personality type, aka orientation type. I’m excited to announce that the assessment is complete! The Constructed Awareness Scale (CAS) is a 12-item Likert scale that went through scientific rigor to be considered a valid and reliable personality assessment. We conducted a study last summer that initially validated the CAS. A paper that summarizes the study is being submitted for publication. I’ll provide more details about the paper once it’s published.” Tyler Orr

   Click here to take the CAS.

2. Providers …..

A. https://specialistmd.co (only Lyme doctors that can be accessed from anywhere)

B. Lam Clinic - https://lamclinic.com/

C. Tustin Longevity - https://www.tlcdoctors.com/

D. Psychiatry https://laurawakilmd.com/

https://peakhealthservice.com/our-mission

E. Temecula Center for Integrative Medicine - https://www.tcimedicine.com/

3. Meditation for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome https://insighttimer.com/nimabu/guided-meditations/tapping-for-chronic-fatigue-syndrome?_branch_match_id=1000492877243429799&utm_source=more&utm_medium=home&_branch_referrer=H4sIAAAAAAAAA8soKSkottLXz8wrzkzXyyjRd84PrnAPds5PcUsCAE51%2BYAcAAAA

4. Filing for Disability -  video watch

5. SD in-person and virtual Executive Functioning Coach

https://www.levelupefc.com

6. Mast Cell and Mold https://www.massmecfs.org/news-events/66-sunday-conversations/874-sunday-conversations-jan2024?fbclid=IwAR2-D1nEa0caYV2aWKG2rAIFSvTLsB3u_pZfTo3BXfpGJSHlOcqF9Z9awZY

7. The healing power of nature https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y-wHq6yY2CI

8. Last, but not least, this poem was shared by our co-facilitator, Erica during our last Empowerment Circle …

RUN THE DISHWASHER TWICE.

When I was at one of my lowest (mental) points in life, I couldn’t get out of bed some days. I had no energy or motivation and was barely getting by.

I had therapy once per week, and on this particular week I didn’t have much to ‘bring’ to the session. He asked how my week was and I really had nothing to say.

“What are you struggling with?” he asked.

I gestured around me and said “I dunno man. Life.”

Not satisfied with my answer, he said “No, what exactly are you worried about right now? What feels overwhelming? When you go home after this session, what issue will be staring at you?”

I knew the answer, but it was so ridiculous that I didn’t want to say it. I wanted to have something more substantial. Something more profound. But I didn’t. So I told him,

“Honestly? The dishes. It’s stupid, I know, but the more I look at them the more I CAN’T do them because I’ll have to scrub them before I put them in the dishwasher, because the dishwasher sucks, and I just can’t stand and scrub the dishes.”

I felt like an idiot even saying it. What kind of grown woman is undone by a stack of dishes? There are people out there with actual problems, and I’m whining to my therapist about dishes? But my therapist nodded in understanding and then said:

“RUN THE DISHWASHER TWICE.”

I began to tell him that you’re not supposed to, but he stopped me.

“Why the hell aren’t you supposed to? If you don’t want to scrub the dishes and your dishwasher sucks, run it twice. Run it three times, who cares? Rules do not exist, so stop giving yourself rules.”

It blew my mind in a way that I don’t think I can properly express.

That day, I went home and tossed my smelly dishes haphazardly into the dishwasher and ran it three times. I felt like I had conquered a dragon. The next day, I took a shower lying down. A few days later. I folded my laundry and put them wherever they fit. There were no longer arbitrary rules I had to follow, and it gave me the freedom to make accomplishments again.

Now that I’m in a healthier place, I rinse off my dishes and put them in the dishwasher properly. I shower standing up. I sort my laundry. But at a time when living was a struggle instead of a blessing, I learned an incredibly important lesson:

THERE ARE NO RULES. RUN THE DISHWASHER TWICE!

Credit ~ Kate Scott

JOIN US ON TUESDAY, 11/21 AT 6 PM PST!

AGAIN, THIS IS FREE + VIRTUAL (AND YOUR CAMERA DOES NOT NEED TO BE ON) AND IS OPEN TO ANYONE WITH CHRONIC ILLNESS, INCLUDING THEIR LOVED ONES. WE CAN’T WAIT TO SEE YOU THERE!

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Christina was featured in the I Love the Way You Lyme podcast!

Liste HERE<3

Did you know a small portion of every therapy or coach visit is donated to The Trevor Project? They provide information & support to LGBTQ 
young people 24/7, all year round (and, my phenomenal VA, Rebecca, who is a LCSW in works, volunteers for their hotline… She’s the best). Anyway, everyday is Pride around these parts :>

I AM HONORED TO HAVE BEEN NOMINATED FOR A SOCIAL HEALTH NETWORK’S (PREVIOUSLY WEGO HEALTH) HEALTHCARE COLLABORATOR AWARD

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO VOTE FOR ME, PLEASE CLICK HERE

(TY in advance! )

What I am listening to^^^