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This is so different from last year. Last year my oldest child, my son, made the decision to go to college 11 hours from home. I tried so very hard in those last few months to be present and soak of the "lasts". The last prom. The last tennis tournament. The last awards ceremony. You know, the lasts.... (read the teary eyed blog about that here first going to college ) Fast forward to exactly one year later and I am at the same crossroads with my daughter. However, this feels

Dear Beautiful You, It has been some time since my last post. I took some much needed time for self-care and self-reflection. As some of you know, I landed in the hospital on my vacation with kidney stones and a kidney infection. While it was not a great experience, it was a learning experience. To be honest, everything is a learning experience if we choose to see it through that lens. What I learned is this:  I needed to make even more time for myself in order to create the

Dear Beautiful You, My oldest daughter was that kid that always wearing a princess dress. I mean always. Her absolute favorite was her Cinderella dress. She was about everything Disney, so we were excited to have the opportunity to go to Orlando around her third birthday.  But  the more I thought about it, I felt we should postpone the trip until she was potty trained. The lines, the bathrooms, the diapers all seemed to be too much for me, so I made the decision to hold off. 

Dear Beautiful You, My son and daughter have taught me so much about the "new" college world. It is a world filled with anxiety from the day they begin high school. Everything is geared towards college: classes, grades, tests. Even sports! It is no wonder teen anxiety is at an all-time high.  My son is a freshman at his second university, and my daughter is a high school senior who committed to a college junior year, but has since changed direction of her major and has just m

When I first realized that my anxiety was more than just fleeting, that I actually had an anxiety condition, was when I was brought face to face with faith. I can clearly remember the moment someone told me to put it all in God's hands. This was a cause for extreme anxiety for me. I actually can recall shaking for 24 hours straight (no exaggeration) worrying about this. Why? Because a large part of anxiety is control. And to relinquish control, to give it away, was a scary op

Dear Beautiful You, I used to spend so much time reading. Obviously there is nothing wrong with reading. I must have read every self-help, motivational and biography book about overcoming obstacles and making it happen. I also read volumes about the brain/body connection and incessantly researched questions I had. I thought I was really smart to invest countless hours filling my brain with such amazing, positive words and incredible scientific information.  I could rattle off

Dear Beautiful You, " I am sorry I cannot make it tonight " " I am sorry I am feeling tired " " I am sorry I did not return your text " I spent years of my life apologizing for me. You see, I have always been a person that is a bit of an introvert. I like being alone. Not lonely. Alone. I am not that party person that can drink all night, dance until dawn and get up and do it again, especially with huge groups of people. I have an energy that seems to deplete quickly. What I

Dear Beautiful You, Remember the movie War Games? You know, the 80's movie starring Matthew Boderick? That movie was iconic for me, although I did not know how much at the time. Well, if you did not see it, let me give you a quick synopsis. A computer, Joshua, is simulating a nuclear war, but the US military believe it is real. And it is Matthew Broderick's character (a computer whiz) who helps the computer learn that playing "war" is not a fun game.  In fact, in the end when

Dear Beautiful You, Happy New Year! The New Year is such a symbolic time. It is a beginning. And just like any beginning, we have the opportunity to begin again, to start fresh. To set goals and to start new things. It is a beautiful time to sit with yourself, finding what it is that you want to accomplish this year, and creating a plan to make that happen.  I know. I know. You have heard this all before. But keep reading, there is more. Creating a plan is one of the sure fir

Dear Beautiful You, Anxiety is clever. It steals your time.  I can remember hours, no days, worrying about what had happened in my past and ruminating over the details. I would park my ass in the 1980's and live there in my mind for what seemed to be eternity.  I would allow all the emotions to flood my system (anger, sadness, rage, resentment, fear) and relive the traumas over and over. I would worry about what happened, why it happened, where it happened, if it could happen

Dear Beautiful You, I took this picture in Paris last year. I re-learned a valuable lesson while on vacation there. I wanted so badly to immerse myself into all things French, I forgot what was best for me. Let me back up a bit. We were only in Paris for 24 hours, on Valentine's Day and I had our family packed with sites, activities and French cuisine. Oddly, although only one day, it did not feel rushed at all. We started at the Louvre and worked our way through the streets

I was not feeling great mentally part of last week. To be honest I was a bit off. The weather was rainy and I was like a lump on the couch, only rising to do needed tasks. I had two days without clients and meetings, but I knew I had plans for the weekend, so I had to drag myself up out of the slump I was in and get myself ready for the upcoming events. It was a bit of a pity party for the pain I was experiencing in my shoulder. The first thing I did was get a manicure. It wa

Day 1 at college: setting up cable was a priority lol! If you remember from my post "My Boy is Going to College" I wrote about my son Sean and how I was dealing with my first child leaving for school. I am writing a follow up to that article and beginning this blog post with the ending from the original. (original post here for context): ...I will leave you with this advice Sean, which by the way is the same three things I have been telling you since you were a baby. Almo

Dear Beautiful You, I have a left frozen shoulder. It sucks. I don't know if any of you have ever experienced this, but it is quite painful. Like I see stars and fall down in pain when I reach for something, try to take off my bra, put on my seatbelt or a coat. Forget trying to sleep on your side. I am literally a "stare at the ceiling on my back" gal now because movement in the bed is not my friend. My husband can hear me whimpering in the house whenever I move my shoulder t

So yeah. This was a tough one for me. It is 100% my job to get better. Not my husband's, not my physician, energy healer, therapist, herbalist, friend, whom ever, not their job. It is mine. During the anxiety years I cried so much that I swear it was amazing that I was not extremely dehydrated and in the hospital with a continuous IV to keep me going.. My eyes were in a perpetual state of puffiness and my spirit was so low that it felt heavy. I would scream through the tears

Dear Beautiful You, Every time I work with a new client, either immediately or eventually this belief surfaces, without fail: I AM A FRAUD!!! We are scared that we lack expertise or training and that one particular class we didn't take or certification we did not have the money for will be the demise of our business. Or that someone "better" will expose us to the imagined sniveling, cowering imposter we believe we are inside.  Here is the thing. Actually, here are four things

Dear Beautiful You, I remember the first time my symptoms went away. I worked so very hard at finding the answers that worked for me.  I was so excited, and anxiety was behind me!!!!  Or so I thought.... And then those terrible symptoms came back, and this time with a vengeance. Not days later, but months later. I thought I was the most unlucky person in the world to have to endure this monster twice. So, I once again worked hard and my symptoms disappeared. But again, two ye

Dear Beautiful You, I used to hate my body. Such a strong word, hate, but fitting. And it wasn't what you may think. I was a little mad with my outward appearance, but I was incredibly angry at the inside. I would go around pissed off about the things that my stomach was reacting to and resenting all the food sensitivities. I would complain to anyone that would listen, to also let them know that my body was not the way I thought it should be.  I went to doctors, alternative h

Dear Beautiful You, It has been a couple weeks since I have written a blog post. I have been completely hyper focused on completing my book. Writing this book has been a labor of love over the last few years, but to be honest, I have been in labor too long and it was beginning to hurt. So I put all else aside, and wrote, and I am happy to say I am getting there! "The Eight Hour Angel" is the title and I cannot wait to tell you more! I can say it is a book that will challenge

Dear Beautiful You, Some of the best advice I ever got was this: Not everyone likes you, so stop wasting your time on those that don't. His unofficial science was this: approximately one-third of everyone likes you, one-third of people do not like you and the last third really don't have an opinion or care. When I was younger I worried when I felt that I was not being liked and I bent over backwards to get them to like me. What I did not understand at the time was this: I co