#WooWoo Wednesdays: Finding a Soul Sister

What a #Woo week it’s been!

Photo by Moose Photos from Pexels

This week did not start off on a high note. I’ve been having trouble writing. This Coronavirus situation is only getting worse (as I write this, it has just reached pandemic status). And even though I am doing my Kegels, my backache hasn’t disappeared. So I turned to Louise Hay’s Heal Your Body guide to see what she had to say about lower back pain:

Fear of Money. Lack of financial support.

Well, damn. Why does Louise have to be spot on?

Money is ALWAYS a trigger for me. It’s even more of a trigger now because I’m in a state of transition. I’ve cut back on my work so I can figure out my next step professionally, but I still judge myself by how much money I make. I know I will make less this year. My husband knows I will make less. But accepting that — instead of being extraordinarily grateful to the Universe that I can do that — has been super hard for me.

To top it off, I am failing at my attempts to practice non-striving. I cannot stop pushing myself to come up with a clear cut strategy for living my best life. Do I want to pursue writing? Do I want to get a meditation degree or certification? Do I want to look into yoga teacher training? I’ve been so distracted by this tug-of-war that I can’t write.

But this week, the Universe showed me it had my back.

Ever since I read Sheri Salata’s book, The Beautiful No, I’ve been listening to the Sheri + Nancy Show podcast. I feel like Sheri and Nancy have become my friends and a valuable source of support. (Ok, yes. That sounds a little creepy.)

But this week’s podcast blew me away. Sheri and Nancy interviewed author Jen Pastiloff. Before yesterday, I’d never heard of Jen. But as of today, she has changed my life.

As I learned about Jen’s life, it sounded amazing. She leads retreats for women all across the globe! She’s a yoga instructor! She’s written a best selling book!

And. She’s. Deaf.

BOOM!

My heart stopped when I heard that. My eyes filled with tears. I had to place a hand on my heart. I’ve been dealing with hearing loss for a decade, and I have let it stop me from living my dreams. In the past few years, I have slowly started to beat back my depression and regain a sense of self through therapy, meditation, the teachings of Abraham Hicks, the work of Dr. Joe Dispenza, and the support of my husband. 

But hearing that Jen — this fabulous, accomplished, inspirational woman — was deaf felt life-changing. There are so many people I look up to in The Land of Woo. But I have yet to meet one who is deaf. You cannot be what you cannot see, and hearing Jen’s story allowed me to finally see myself living a dream life.

My path forward has become a bit more clear. I feel as if I have a soul sister supporting me in this Universe. Perhaps a whole tribe. Listening to that podcast, I felt genuinely complete — and that is something I haven’t felt in a very long time.

The Courageous Act of Saying No

The real question is, are we brave enough to want our heart’s desire? Are we daring enough to believe that we can have, be, or do what we want? 

– Sheri Salata, The Beautiful No

I recently read Sheri Salata’s book, The Beautiful No: And Other Tales of Trial, Transcendence, and Transformation.

If you haven’t heard of Sheri, you have most likely heard of her boss — Oprah Winfrey. Sheri was the executive producer for The Oprah Winfrey Show, and then co-president of the Oprah Winfrey Network.

Yup. In short, she pretty much had *THE* dream job followed by another dream job. 

Then she quit.

Why? She was unhealthy and unhappy. She was 100 pounds overweight and single, with no relationship in sight.  She was in her 50s and knew something had to give. That something turned out to be her job.

I devoured her book. 

Here was someone who had access to all the great thinkers, leaders, and healers of our time, but she still avoided taking the difficult step of putting herself first and making room for her own health and happiness.

“I could recite the tenets of best-life living backward and forward. I could produce the hell out of transformation. I just continued to avoid producing the transformation of my own life.”

– Sheri Salata, The Beautiful No

That’s what I’ve done for years. I’ve defined myself by what I produce at work, how much money I make, the clothes I wear, the house I own. But no matter how many milestones I achieve – Bigger house! Nicer wardrobe! Cooler job! Happy clients! — it hasn’t made my soul happy. I’ve felt lost, unfulfilled, and confused because I was living the life I thought I was “supposed” to be living. 

What Sheri did takes courage. Yes, she had the means to walk away from a fabulous, well-paying, prestigious job. So, on some level, it was “easier” for her to walk away. But walking away and leaving your professional identity behind — especially as a middle-aged woman — takes guts.    

For me, starting this blog takes guts. I want to explore an aspect of myself — my fascination with The Woo — that is outside the bounds of the person I always thought I would be. It means giving up the life I thought I was supposed to have to live the life I was meant to have.

I hope I’m ready to produce the hell out of my own personal transformation.