What I’ve discovered is that most people in any given community are there for the same reasons I am, to feel a sense of belonging. They’re hoping to find genuine connections, to share knowledge and interests, and create lasting friendships.

This journey can also pose many challenges and dilemmas, such as how authentic is too authentic? Should I always tell the truth about how I feel? Is the world around me ready to hear my truths?

Releasing each piece of your truth is like dropping a brick you’ve been carrying in your chest. Except you didn’t know you were carrying it until it was dropped and you all of a sudden felt lighter in the heart.

The International Labor Organization released a report that found working long hours, defined as more than 55 hours a week, was responsible for 745,000 deaths from stroke and heart disease in 2016 — a 29% increase since 2000.

One thing I want to mention is that not all fragrances are bad. We’ve sort of come to this notion that fragrances are bad and essential oils are good, which is not always the case. Not all fragrances are bad and not all essential oils are good. 

When his words guided us to visualize our bodies laying still, dying, my mind was on high alert, my emotions triggered, and I felt my body resisting his words and the experience. My mind had anticipated this dreaded moment and I was angry at its arrival, out of sheer fear of what I was going to feel next.

When we fully embrace our feminine energy, it feels comfortable to just be. We know that everything and everyone we come in contact with has been and will be touched by us. The question becomes, how do we want to touch them? Leading to, how do we want to be?

There are many self-improvement books and lectures that talk about the Ego being the voice of fear and limitation. What they don’t typically talk about is that the Ego is also our self-identity, our sense of self-worth, and who we are as an individual.

In the intervening two-plus decades, I have experienced countless emotions, thoughts, reflections, regrets and losses, as well as victories, successes, lessons and blessings.

Many people who talk about empowering others to become more motivated and fulfill their potential, yet when they meet a truly empowered individual, they hold back their support or are even quick to tear them down.

Emotional abandonment is leaving our emotional needs unattended, often without acknowledging or addressing it with a response. That can leave us feeling confused, unsettled and unloved for a long time.

Sometimes, it takes a great amount of courage to go through life as a multifaceted human being. Because there are so many facets to you, forming a clear sense of self can be a confusing process.

That was when I came across the powerful idea of choosing happiness, as a decision. I realized then happiness is a commitment — it is a practice I would have to adhere to in order for it to last and expand.

Just remember, when we talk about mind-body, that the mind actually represses things but our body never forgets. I have worked with many women who have been physically abused and all of them have very similar postural positions.

Somehow, my traumatic past made me feel special in a way. I had been telling those stories for so long that without them, I feared, I would just be ordinary.

Many of us struggle with external demands, stress, and busy schedules. We are programmed to believe that we are only valuable if we are constantly producing, achieving, or available for everybody. I’d really like to challenge that belief.

Language, math and science are considered the essential courses taught at elementary schools, yet there is no mandatory curriculum for something as fundamental as how to be a good human being.

Who are we?… It’s tempting to go identity-shopping and look for the answers outside of ourselves, but this way, we only end up building more layers on top of who we really are.

If you’re at a crossroads and are contemplating starting your own business, maybe my list of traits will help you determine, or at the very least, give you a starting point to research the right areas or develop certain traits you need to become an entrepreneur.

If everything in life seems to work against you, or you are experiencing a difficult loss in your life and nothing is going right at the moment, taking a big breath and a big step back to regain your stability might be just what you need.