The way I evaluate the world, affects how I feel. An event occurs, I evaluate, and then my emotions control my experience. Put a different way, thoughts control our emotions and emotions control our experience. This is an important truth that I remind myself of when facing difficult situations. While we frequently do not have control over what is brought our way, we always have the choice and freedom of thought. We have the ability to choose the messages that we tell ourselves. These messages are what control our emotions and therefore control our experience.
While my path to becoming a certified women’s life coach has been a life-long journey filled with a multitude of experiences that have provided constant growth and learning, the catalyst that moved me forward to pursue a career in coaching was my diagnosis of breast cancer in 2017. The first thought I had on the evening of receiving my diagnosis was, “What am I supposed to learn from this? There has to be a purpose.” I knew that while I did not choose to have cancer, I was able to choose my thoughts and by doing so, I was determined to ensure that the experience would have many more positives than negatives despite what my body was going to endure. While there were certainly tears and feelings of loneliness throughout my cancer treatments, these moments did not define my experience. I strove to find the learning points and engaged in self-study to gain a greater perspective of who I am and what my purpose in this lifetime is. Cancer went from being my worst enemy to my greatest teacher.
Once we start to recognize that we always have the choice of how we want to experience our world, we become no longer victims to the situations and relationships that we find ourselves in. We become in control over our experiences and we are able to see opportunities and solutions that were initially lost to us.
The holiday season brings on additional challenges. While the beauty of the season with all of its decorations and pomp and circumstances and traditions certainly exist, it is also a time that many women feel a high level of stress stemming from work and social commitments, holiday financial stress, and feelings of loss often seem greater during this time of year. As we go through this holiday season, be particularly aware when these feelings come up. Ask yourself, “What are the thoughts behind these feelings?” Consider whether or not these thoughts are ones that no longer serve you. If these thoughts no longer serve you, how would you rewrite these thoughts?
I wish you a blessed Holiday Season filled with thoughts that support your emotional well-being, thoughts that allow you to experience the beauty of the season, and thoughts that allow you to be fully present in the way you want to experience life!
