find a chiropractor – Page 5 – We Only Get One Chance

I PLANNED ON HEALING

I am calling my newest snowboard trick “double back-flip to face plant”. Sounds a little like something that Shaun White would do in the Olympic Men’s Half-Pipe competition, however probably without the “face plant” part of it. Actually it is not a trick at all…and don’t worry, all along I planned on healing.

It was the second run of the day at Georgian Peaks, a private ski club in Northern Ontario. I drove over and met a friend there and we hit the slopes for the weekend. It has been a while since I have actually snowboarded with skiers, I usually snowboard with other snowboarders, and we definitely attack the slopes a little differently.

I have said over the years that snowboarding is meditative for me, and is one of the reasons I love it so much. You have to be 100% present-time consciousness otherwise you will find yourself in trouble in a hurry. This time maybe, just maybe I was a little bit distracted. Maybe.

Fenton Chiropractor Georgian Peaks

I was cruising along to keep up with the two-planker, and I caught my back edge on some ice. I am not exactly sure what happened from there. I know I hit my head twice (thank goodness for helmets, do yourself a favor and do not go out there without one) so I am convinced I flipped twice. I also know how I landed, so the face plant definitely happened. No one was there to witness it but I am positive 5’10” red jacket and loud plaid pants flipping down the hill was quite a show.

When I gathered my thoughts and got back up on my feet, I became acutely aware that I had jarred my right ankle and knee. I am not sure what movie this line comes from, but my mind went right to “That’s gonna leave a mark.”

When injuries occur, I go into a mode that I like to call “let me just pretend that didn’t happen”. “Where thoughts go, energy flows and manifests in physical form.” Over the years it has served me to distract my mind from what just happened, and it usually leads to quick healing.

I snowboarded the rest of the day and met up with some of my friend’s friends at the lodge afterwards.

I noticed that my ankle was a little bit uncomfortable when we were sitting and chatting with friends. After a half hour went by, it became impossible to ignore. Another half hour and the pain is nearing a 7 out of 10. By the end of 2 hours of chit chat, I was in so much pain, I was nauseous. Even through all that, in my mind I was still planning on healing.

Our original plans to head out for dinner and drinks changed in a hurry as my body required that I succumb to RICE mode: Rest, Ice, Elevation, Compression. The friend I was traveling with is a Naturopathic Doctor and we were able to add some homeopathic remedies and do some manipulation of the ankle joint to add to the RICE efforts.

After a few hours, it became apparent that I was probably not going to be able to walk the next day, much less spend any time on my snowboard. As the evening progressed, it was increasingly difficult to ignore what was happening with my body, however I still planned on healing and the RICE efforts continued well into the night.

The real test came the following morning, when I took my first step on to the floor from the bed.

I have to admit, I was groggy, needed to use the restroom and my mind wasn’t focused on our evening spent in RICE mode when I took my first steps.

Half way to the restroom, it dawned on me that I was not only able to walk normally on that foot, it also felt 90% better. Good thing I planned on healing all along.

The next question was “do I dare snowboard today or just spend my time resting?”

If you know me at all, you know the answer to that one is always, “Let me just give it a try and see what happens.” And so I did. But remember, my mindset was always that I planned on healing.

Turns out I was able to comfortably ride harder that day than I did the day before. It felt good to be out there in my happy place strapped to my board. I also know when one experiences joy and happiness, healing energy is turned up a notch as well.

I was happy. I planned on healing all along and my body did exactly that.

We were both astonished at the fact that I felt as good as I did the very next day. We both witness incredible healing on a regular basis in our different professions, however we were still amazed by how quickly this process happened for me.

When situations like this come up in my life, it just leads to the building of a stronger and stronger faith in the body’s innate recuperative powers and it’s incredible ability to heal. We, as a society, have not given it enough credit for what it can do.

It is important to listen to the body’s warning signals and stop when it says stop. We also need to be living a healthy lifestyle so the body has the building blocks it needs to heal, grow and repair. But one of the most important factors is plan on healing.

In retrospect, I know that my mindset of “I planned on healing” took my healing energy up a level. I am not at all recommending that you test the limits of your body, but when you do happen to get injured…do yourself a favor and plan on healing. I guarantee you will be astonished at how quickly your body follows those orders.

A HUG

Never underestimate the power of a hug. I get my fair share of hugs but I want to share about one that recently shifted my entire life.

Some of you may be thinking…”Oh, she finally met Mr. Right!”. Not so fast.

As I stated in some of my recent posts, I spent the end of 2013 in Costa Rica with some great friends. 4 years ago, this same group of friends and I vacationed in the same exact location. We all had a strong desire to go back since the day we left there in 2009. So, we made that happen.

We wanted to return to that spot for a number of reasons; the location was absolutely beautiful, our time there was peaceful, we were off the grid and we felt well taken care of. That “taken care of” feeling is so necessary for humans, we all have a strong desire to be looked after, tended to and assisted.

Fenton Chiropractor hug

My friends and I shared a little bit of anxiety going back after 4 years wondering if it would be as good as we remembered. It was, it is and we had a blast!

One of the things you will notice when you travel to Costa Rica is the exceptional service. Tourism is a large industry in that country and it is nice to feel a sense of pride coming from those who serve you. The locals work long, hard hours but they have beaming smiles and are some of the friendliest people I have been around.

Staying at one location for the entire week allows us to really get to know some of the servers, the ones at the restaurant in particular, and some of them remembered us from our initial trip 4 years ago.

They take time to get to know a little about their guests and, in turn, we get a chance to learn about them. We learn about their personal lives, their families, their homes and some of their life experiences.

As we were having lunch and winding down our visit on our final day there, our table was being waited on by a man named Christian. He happened to one of the servers that remembered us from our previous visit and so we caught up about his family and kids during the week.

We finished one final delicious meal at the restaurant and got up to pay our bills. As we were hanging out and waiting for the credit cards to process, the hugs begin. I hug a few of the group and then I get a chance to give Christian a hug. He is a bigger guy with a really powerful hug, he kind of engulfs you…and he holds on. Its longer than a cordial hug and I can energetically feel a deep meaning. Not anything like he has an attraction for me, but just the deepest, purest heart felt gratitude for another human being.

The experience was two-fold; first, it was a most beautiful, sincere expression of connection and gratitude, and second, it was unexpected in that moment because it was coming from someone who waiting on our table.

It was profound. It shocked my heart space and I had to choke back my tears.

A hug, an embrace, a gesture in a moment with another human being,..you just do not know how far reaching it can go. Add a smile, a high five or even simply making eye contact to the list of ways to acknowledge another human being for their presence.

Let’s not forget the health benefits of hugging; lowering stress, balancing out the nerve system, boost self-esteem among so many others.

I posted on my Facebook timeline about a “hug that shocked me into tears”. There were many people writing me behind the scenes about how excited they were that I “met someone” and hoped it stemmed into an amazing relationship. I regret to disappoint, however it was completely platonic, a simple gesture between 2 human beings, from a married man, with children at home, who lives in Costa Rica…so I am still looking.

BJ Palmer said it best with his quote, “We never know how far reaching something we think, say or do today may effect the lives of millions tomorrow.” Step out there. Give someone a hug. Hang on a little longer. If you see someone who isn’t smiling…give them one of yours. Be the change…we only get one chance in this life.

MESSAGE FROM YOUR CHIROPRACTOR

I have many people connect with me over email, facebook, text message, all kinds of media, all day long. Some of them come to the Cafe of LIFE for chiropractic care and some go other places. Some people have been connecting with me for years about coming in for care but have not been in yet. Some people write me from other cities and states and ask me for advice. This next message stems from something I wrote to someone who I do not get to adjust in my own practice…but I was moved in my heart by the struggle they posted on facebook. She lives a distance from me and doesn’t get to see me in my practice, but this is a message from your chiropractor.

“I see you are struggling with so much pain.

Let me say this, when you are in the middle of it and it is the first time you have ever experience pain like that before, it feels like your life is doomed. It is hard to see to the other side of any of it. It creates so much additional stress to the already stressful lives we lead. When you are then unable to pick up your children, and unable to workout, it makes it exponentially worse. It is so tough to deal with the day to day.

Please realize that pain is an incredible teacher. It tells us to slow down, stop or take a new path. It grabs our attention for a reason.

In saying that, the body is an incredible healer, much more powerful than anyone has every allowed you to believe. It can heal from almost anything. Truly it can and I see it every single day and bare witness to some super incredible stuff.

Right now, your body is in a splinting/protection mode so you don’t make it worse. It is stopping you in your tracks to slow you down for a reason. Let it do that.

Remember to breathe. Breathe deeply and often. Drink water and go for a walk. See your chiropractor, do your physical therapy exercises you were given and know you will recover.

Society has taught us that things should happen instantly. Healing doesn’t happen instantaneously on the subjective level but is happening. It is always happening and getting chiropractic care helps to maximize its potential to do that.

Breathe. Drink water. Get adjusted and walk. This too shall pass. Place some faith in your body’s incredible ability to heal. If you witnessed as much healing as I do on a regular basis, that would be easier for you to believe. Because you don’t get to see that, I am doing my best to express it in written word.

Fenton Chiropractor 5

Take it however you feel is right for you. Be well. Erica.”

This message rolled right off my fingertips in a couple of minutes and when I went back and read it, I thought everyone might benefit to hear this message. I truly, truly, and in every sense of the word, bare witness to MIRACLES, the body’s incredible innate ability to heal itself every single day I step foot into my office.

Old, young, infants, big, little, pregnant, disabled, happy, sad, all kinds of physical ailments, birth trauma, car accidents, injured from over-prescribed medications, vaccine injuries, people wanting to heal, people that feel well and want to stay that way, massive falls from many story buildings, broken bones, physical abuse, sports injuries, veterans…you name it, I have seen most of it in my 9 years of private practice. I have seen some really cool stuff that the body is capable of doing. We need to give it the right tools that allow it to do its greatest work. It takes time…nothing in this life doesn’t take time. We need patience. We need a good, healthy lifestyle. We need water. We need movement. We need rest. We need chiropractic care.

I just wanted to share with all of you a message from your chiropractor.

DETOUR

Just when life seems like it is heading in one direction, something happens and we are off on a detour.

I absolutely love to travel…love, love, love to see new places. I love having a change of scenery and switching things up on a regular basis. I love taking the detour…that is as long as I have time for said detour.

I was sitting on a bench in a parking lot with some friends last weekend while we waited for our planes to pull up on the other side of a chain link fence…and as I describe this, I pulled a picture off the internet below so that you can get the visual.

The scene…two 20 foot long park benches back to back underneath a rickety metal awning, a small white portable podium with “Sansa” and “Nature Air” written on the front, a chain link fence with a ragged gate that wouldn’t hold up against any kind of force, a small refrigerator with a padlock on it labeled “Snack Bar” and on the other side of the fence are a couple 12 seater planes.

When we pull into the parking lot, it resembles more of a bus station than an airport. The funniest thing is when you walk up to the small white podium, they ask you which airline you are flying with and then depending on which, one of 2 men step up to the podium to assist.

The luggage is tagged and the kind man hands me a laminated “Sansa” brochure that he calls my “boarding pass” and I am prepared to get on the plane.

As I am waiting, I realize that my luggage is still sitting off to the side of the runway and doesn’t appear to be heading with the rest of the group to the luggage compartment in the belly of the plane. The kind man then mentions to me that “Your bag no fit on plane due to balance. I send to your home.”

Ideally it is not good to ever travel separate from my luggage, but if you are telling me you are going to have it delivered directly to my doorstep, then it will be alright to let my ocean-scented, sand-filled bag of beach clothes show up to my home instead of being checked onto my plane.

So I jump on my plane and am off while my luggage is taking a detour.

In San Jose I reconnect with my friends for dinner and a little more time together as my flight will be departing at 2am.

A few hours later, I arrive to the airport only to I discover said flight is now delayed to 3am. The woman at the Spirit Airlines desk checks me through to Detroit and hands me 2 boarding passes, one for now and one for my connecting flight in Fort Lauderdale.

I arrive in Lauderdale realizing I have limited time to get though customs and make my connection. At this particular moment I am grateful to be traveling separate from my large suitcase which I would have to wait for and recheck after customs…this expedites my transition onto America soil and I have potential to make up some time.

I sprint through the airport and make it to my gate with a few minutes to spare. I walk up to the Spirit Airlines counter and the woman takes one look at my boarding pass, tells me I do not have a seat on that flight…AND THEN proceeds to board 4 “stand-by” passengers onto the flight while I am standing right there.

You know the level of disappointment when you order the most delicious food at a restaurant that you have been craving since the last time you were there 3 months ago…and when you get right down to the last bite, your best friend reaches their fork over and takes that last morsel of goodness? That is what it felt like in that moment, MULTIPLIED BY 1,000!!!!

“Ma’am we have you booked on tomorrow’s flight out”.

“Are you going to compensate me for hotel stay for the night?”

“Well no.”

Hearing this news after being up for 28 straight hours, did not go over well. Having her board 4 “stand-by” passengers while I stood right in front of her also didn’t go over well…MULTIPLIED BY 1,000!!!

This time, not so gracefully, I detour…

I find a cab and take a ride up to Lauderdale by the Sea and check-in to a hotel. Serious false advertising and I make quick of a lesson that I should check a room out before checking-in.

So I detour…

I find a nice Sheraton about 20 minutes away that has rooms available and get checked-in. As I am heading up to my room, I spot a cool little bar inside the hotel that has windows into water tanks of some sort. It is eye-catching and then I read “Mermaid Show 6:30 Friday and Saturday Evenings”. Today is Saturday, WHAT LUCK!!! My original plan to nap for the next 6 hour will have a small detour in the middle to the Mermaid show.

I arrive early and pull up a seat next to an incredible couple that had just gotten off one of the cruise ships. We talk about our vacations and then we detour into some really amazing conversation about life and living, things you usually discuss with long time friends. Because my luggage was on a detour, my plan was to wear the clothes I had on my back until I got home…whenever that may be. By the end of a 4 hour conversation with this couple, they pay for my meal and she offers me clean clothes.

As I lay down in my bed to sleep fast, I travel through my memory of the events of that day. Every possible thing that could go wrong with travel, did. It was truly challenging. In the end, I was so grateful for the opportunity to see my very first Mermaid Show and spend time with these magnificent people.

My flight in the morning turns out to be simple. It is an entire day later however I buckle into my seat, we take off on time, we land on time and off I go…easy since I don’t have to stop and collect my luggage (which finally showed up to a local airport a week later…enough material for its own blog post).

On my drive home from the airport, I take a detour to Whole Foods…because I am hungry and I need food in my house when I get home. In retrospect, I am grateful I made that stop as the streets filled with close to 2 feet of snow over the next 24 hours.

This trip seems to go on and on and on and there is one final detour…my best friend of almost 20 years opened her dream yoga studio, Bent Yoga, in Brighton on that very day. It required that I truck through all the snow to give her a congratulatory hug, but it was all absolutely perfect timing.

Sometimes we are presented with a huge bright orange sign in front of our face that says “DETOUR” but often the sign is a faint whisper, a small calling in our heart. If we can have a little bit of trust in the fact that there is a much larger plan, we can listen to those signs and settle in gracefully.

I am grateful for that trip, I am grateful for that time and I am grateful for the people that I met along the way. I am one that seeks out adventure and enjoys taking the long way home. Though that was a little too much detouring for my likings, I am grateful to have had that experience if for no other reason than it seems there isn’t a possible way for a day of travel to get more complicated than that.

In the midst of it all, the moments of sweetness serve as a reminder to do my best to be a little more accepting of life when it takes its next detour.

RIDING WAVES

I wrapped up 2013 on vacation with great friends in Costa Rica. As some of you know, Costa Rica has become a popular surfing destination and there are opportunities for riding waves all over.

If you have followed me at all, you also know that I am an avid snowboarder and one of my happiest places is strapped to my snowboard in Colorado.

While in Costa Rica, my Colorado friends and I took quite a few opportunities to surf. The ocean is really warm in that area so it is simple to throw a rash guard on, grab a board and paddle out.

I have done quite a bit of surfing over the years in Costa Rica, Ecuador, Belize, California and New Jersey. One of my greatest challenges of surfing is getting the board and myself safely out past the break. It is a game of finesse, timing and strength. When one is a little on the tall and lanky side and riding a 9 foot board, it can be quite challenging as sets roll in.

The particular beach that we surf at in this spot in Costa Rica, the water is soft, the waves are gentle and there is a beautiful rhythm to the ebb and flow. It also makes getting out past the break just a little bit easier.

While I am out waiting for the next wave, I am thinking about all the snow that is piling up at home. Though I am grateful beyond what words can describe to be sitting on that board in that moment, I also have a moment I am considering how much I am excited about getting on my snowboard when I get home.

The two sports are similar in some ways. They way you stand on the board is the same, though snowboarding you are strapped in. There is a meditative sense to both sports…in other words, you need to be present and in the moment or you can quickly find yourself in trouble. There is a sense of working with nature, snowboarding-snow conditions, surfing-the powerful ocean.

My dearest love for snowboarding stems from many reasons that I will not go into due to the length of the list. One of the key reasons I love it is because I get a chance to explore a mountain. There is a chance to check out this run over here, that run over there, this restaurant for breakfast, that one for lunch, this group of Aspen trees, that group of pine trees, this trail, that chairlift. You get the idea.

Surfing is different. It is paddle out, catch a wave, come back to where you started, paddle out, catch a wave, end up back where you started, paddle out, catch a wave…and it goes on. There isn’t necessarily an area of water you are covering and not one area of that water is ever the same.

…but for me I realize how much it is about internal exploration. It looks a little like this…This water is so beautiful. The view from my board is amazing. Its really awesome I have some good friends joining me. I see a set in the distance. I wonder if I am in the right spot. I can see that wave building. Is it going to be big enough to ride? Will it break right or left? it it going to be too big for me? Oh $#1t, here it comes! I am in the right spot? I need to turn around and paddle. Where is all that anxiety coming from? Will I catch this one? Will I get rocked by it?…and honestly, none of this internal dialogue and analysis is helpful.

The only thing that is helpful is learning which wave to catch and then letting go.

When mental resistance and fear come up and the mind shifts to and through all of that diologue, it is very difficult to go with the flow of the wave. If you have the skill set, then paddle when you know you should paddle, pop-up when you know you are on it and then simple ENJOY THE RIDE!!!

It is such a beautiful dance with such a powerful force. There is not one thing you can do to change the wave you are on. The only thing in that moment is to turn the mind off, get to that feeling place, relax, let go and trust. It is more of an internal exploration experience with a sense of adventure, thrill and flow.

Usually surf sessions last an hour to a few hours. This gives time to rest and regroup inside and find more and more peace, grace and flow.

When you snowboard, you have a little bit of say in what the snow is going to do underneath your board. When surfing, you have absolutely no say in what the ocean is going to do.

Surfing is about life and life is about riding the waves. We have a choice what wave choose to get on, we do not have a choice about where that wave is going. We have the ability to turn or get off that wave…but if we learn to trust ourselves, we transition into the flow of the powerful Universe gracefully.

(The following link is not my video but it is taken at the surf spot we spent most of our time so you can get a feel of the waves)

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ppfzD8MsDLE[/youtube]

I am grateful for my life and the opportunities to explore and go on many adventures. After this past visit to Costa Rica, the ebb and flow of life is forefront in my consciousness. There is an ebb and flow to the days, the nights, work, family, friends, driving, eating…absolutely all of it. The troughs make the peaks sweeter. The peaks make traveling back down to the troughs exhilarating. The most important part of all is finding internal peace so that wether at the top or the bottom while riding your waves, you remain graceful.

Peace to you as you start 2014.

ITS A FEELING

People often ask me about my chiropractic office the Cafe of LIFE. For years, I have tried to really explain what it is like in here…but honestly, it is more about a feeling.

Its a feeling that you can maybe understand if you had pictures and words and could see the inside of the office and hear a story.

That is exactly what we have done in creating the clip below. I have had great feedback so far and just wanted to share with you a little about what I mean when I say “Its a feeling…”.

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ht7tC9CLe8[/youtube]

Please feel free to share with your friends and family or connect with us on Facebook. It truly is a feeling. See you soon!!

HELPING OTHERS

For the past 6 months of so, I have found myself awake and staring at the ceiling (when I should be sleeping) a little more than usual. There doesn’t seem to be anything too different happening in my life that is creating a little more sleeplessness however I get to that time of the night and I just do not seem tired. Of course, life still goes on and regardless of how little sleep I have gotten, I have to get up and start my day. So I have turned to helping others…

Helping others? What is she talking about now?

I am going to take you all the way back to elementary school and this idea of “You get what you give”, isn’t there a song called that? If you are playing nice and you decide to share something with a classmate, that classmate will think of you next time they have something to share. When you give out a good or bad attitude, you usually attract the same in return.

So what on Earth does any of what happened back in elementary school have to do with sleepless nights?

Some time ago, during one of the Cafe of LIFE Book Club meetings, we were reading a book about creating happiness and how if you are searching for happiness, reach out and help another person be happy and the Universe will step up and help you in return. Likewise, if you are looking for a relationship, reach out and help someone else find a relationship and the Universe will step in and help you.

So due to my recent challenge to find zzzzzzzz’s when I need them, I decided to help other people fall asleep…and I don’t mean with chiropractic care, however sleep improves tremendously under chiropractic care.

Let me side track for a moment. Have you heard of the concept of visualization when you are trying to manifest something in your life? Do you ever take a moment to visualize an event or situation you are involved in before you get there? …and then you realize that it turns out in real life exactly how you planned? The brain will fire the same neuron connections and pathways wether the situation is actually happening in real life or if it is just a figment of the imagination.

So getting back to my sleep challenge…I lay in my bed, and instead of staring at the ceiling, I imagine myself getting a small hand lantern and walking down the road to each of my neighbors homes and visualize myself helping them fall asleep. There is nothing that I actually do (I wouldn’t have the slightest idea how to put someone to sleep), I am just there setting an intention for them to fall deeply and peacefully asleep and having a very restful night.

Funny thing is I have yet to make it past the 2nd house and I am out like a light. Also my final thoughts before that rest were helping others and that has to be a good thing. I can tell you one thing, it has changed the evenings for me and I have been doing this for a solid 3 weeks now with ridiculous levels of success.

This past weekend I was in New York City at a Hay House conference called “I Can Do It”. I was with a couple girlfriends and we shared a room. If you know me, you know I have anxiety about sleeping in the same room as other people (hmmmm…may be a good hint why I am still single, just sayin’) but that is the set up and it saves us loads of money to share a room together.

This time I had strategy and I spent the first 2.5 minutes or so mentally walking the halls and standing outside other people’s doors and helping them to fall deeply and peacefully asleep and having a very restful night. I say 2.5 minutes because honestly, it is such a short time of helping others and I am out.

This may seem like a really small thing to you, like it is no big deal.

This is a REALLY BIG DEAL to this gal.

I keep checking in with myself the following morning to see if I remember my last thought from the night before…and it is always helping others fall deeply and peacefully asleep and having a very restful night. It is a really peaceful way to end my days.

If there is something out there that you want more of in your life, spend some of your time and energy helping others to have that and the Universe will help you. I am living by a whole new motto “Forget counting sheep, help others fall asleep!” …I am going to go and do that now.

A SHARE FROM MY PRACTICE

A share from my practice…

September 18, 2013

A 17 year old presented in my office 2 weeks ago with systemic pain…everything hurt. One day prior to her first visit with me, she was in the emergency room at an Ann Arbor hospital with a pain level of 45 on a scale from 1-10. Excruciating. She has had to use the handrails to pull herself up and down stairs lately and has not been able to have any normal 17 year old fun.

She had been dealing with this type of pain for the past year and her family had done everything for her. All medical tests were negative. Next step in the medical arena was muscle biopsies. She was 1 week away from going in for that.

This beautiful girl was put on acne medication in early 2012. Turns out as her parents did more research after not finding any answers to all the pain she was experiencing, systemic pain can be a “rare” side effect of that particular medication.

Her mother works with some other people who are under care here at the Café of LIFE and one of them said to her, “If anyone can help your daughter, Erica can.” I am flattered however I also know that I am just the messenger, chiropractic and the body’s Innate Intelligence is doing all the work, the only part I can take responsibility for is I have the education, skills and I set a very clear intention for her to return to perfect health.

They had no idea what chiropractic was about. The first visit to the Café of LIFE includes a lot of education about the nerve system and the power that heals the body works though this system, and if there is interference, called “subluxation”, it is going to be compromised. They were shocked to know that, grateful for the time I spent with them explaining that and STOKED to get started.

Today marks her 4^th adjustment. She is pain free for the first time in a year, she has had some 17 year old fun over the past few days and is in high hopes of joining her swim team for practices and meets in the next couple weeks.

The body has an incredible ability to heal. I am so lucky to be able to witness these miracles on a regular basis. I share this story with you so that you know a little bit more about what goes on here at the Café of LIFE. I also share this story so that you do not take medication prescribed by the MD with blind faith. Do your research.

Some many of the stories at my practice are worth sharing with the world. I don’t always take the time to write them all out. Thank you for taking the time to read and for letting me share.

FLYING

Every single time I am on a plane, I am amazed, thrilled and in awe of flight and flying. I have been on small Cessna planes in the past so going up in one was not a big deal for me this past Sunday…well until we left the ground and I knew I wasn’t going to be doing a usual “wheels down” kind of landing once I took off from the runway…and that is when the nerves kicked in.

I do not have a “bucket list” so to speak, however the concept of having a “bucket list” is so main-stream that as soon as I started telling people that I had signed up to jump out of a plane, that was the next phrase from their mouths, so I have just gone with it. I am fascinated by flight, flying and in this case, more like dropping.

The flight has been planned for over a month and as the time was drawing near, I could feel the intensity of my nerves increasing. I believe in LIVING this life FULLY and, as I have stated many times before, am always in the pursuit of RICH, REWARDING EXPERIENCES…that is how I ended up on that plane with a guy and a parachute strapped to my back.

There were a few other people getting ready to do their first jumps while I was there. I heard the woman working the desk tell one of the other nervous first-time jumpers “Those guys are skydiving (meaning the instructors), you are just going with them.” Very interesting perspective.

The instructors were amazing, especially the one I was jumping with. There was ample, clear instructions blended with just the right amount of comforting/encouragement/kick-you-in-the-pants dialogue going on.

When I am overwhelmed, my body goes into tears or hysterical laughter…on the plane ride up, I couldn’t hide my tears, he knew it and responded “You are going to make me feel bad if you are crying when I push you out of this plane.”

The plane slows down, the door pops open and I slide to the edge. We are facing the rear of the plane and the instructor puts his left leg out and foot on a step. Then it is my turn. I have to take both of my legs and swing them out and let them dangle while he finishes getting us ready. The plane is going 80mph at this point so the wind is enough to knock you right off (and if you watch the video link below, you can see me mouth expletives at that point).

He signals and I lean back into him, he wraps me up and out we go. It is nothing less than sheer terror sitting with my legs dangling outside the plane. The terror is because I have a decision to make, jump or don’t jump. Once the decision is made and we are out of the plane, it is easy. There is no turning back at that point. The only option is to let go, seriously, you can do nothing else.

As we are plummeting toward the Earth going 120mph, there are a few thoughts going through my head, however nothing is registering because ultimately nothing really matters at that moment. It is a moment that I have completely given up and given over trust to my instructor. Total trust…total faith…and mind you, he is a complete stranger to me. I think of all the reasons to be fearful of skydiving, becoming completely vulnerable to a stranger, and putting your life in their hands, is the scariest part. Somehow, he was able to take an incredible video, 400+ pictures and keep us safe all at the same time. That is some serious talent!!!

I am so glad I purchased the video and picture package: grateful for the video for very obvious reasons as seen below, but grateful for the pictures due to how much raw emotion is shown in my face…and then add in a 120mph wind and the face does some pretty funny things.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDi7nW_l_Pw[/youtube]

Since the jump, so many people have asked me if I will do it again. There are quite a few people in my life that will be less than thrilled if I do go, but if the time is right and the opportunity presents itself, I am all for it.

Getting outside our comfort zone is really where all the magic happens in life. Getting WAY OUTSIDE that comfort zone allows some true shifts to occur that will forever change us as individuals. I was terrified in that moment of sitting on the edge and dangling my feet. Because I made the next move, assisted by Josh, I am changed forever…in a good way.

The experience was such an amazing life lesson of trust, faith, vulnerability and letting go.

The question has come up a lot of “Did your stomach drop when you were in free fall?” It is so interesting because the plane is already going 80mph when I am hanging out of it. Then we drop at a speed of 120mph and there isn’t much of an actual feeling in the stomach…it truly felt like I was flying. I was heading downwards, but I could only really tell that due to me seeing the ground getting closer, there wasn’t a dropping sensation at all. And of course, once the parachute is out, it is just peaceful soaring the rest of the way to the ground.

My challenge for you…before the end of the year, check something off that bucket list of yours or at least set some plans in place to accomplish something in it next year. At the very least, step outside your comfort zone somewhere in your life. It is hard to predict what will happen, however dropping into it and letting go may very well turn into flying.

TEARS HELP

There are a few moments in life when there is so much internalized intensity that tears help. Just letting a small explosion come out of your tear ducts helps to alleviate the pressure of the current moment and the stress that is building.

I am a pretty sensitive gal and do my fair share of crying, though crying is not exactly what I am talking about, though I guess it would technically be what is happening.

This past weekend I re-visited Bower’s Harbor on Old Mission Peninsula in Traverse City to compete (or rather complete) the Traverse City Triathlon again this year. I was signed up to do the same distance I did last year which is called a “Sprint” and consists of 1/2 mile swim, 12 mile bike, and 3 mile run.

I had quite a bit if anxiety building up for about a month prior to the race last year due to the distance of the swim. This year I was much calmer…until the morning of.

I had a few friends accompany me in the race this year which included my Mom and step-dad. They had each done two shorter triathlons in the past and had been training and gearing up for a few months for this one. I think I was partially picking up on their nerves that morning as well and hoping and praying they had good experiences since I was the one that encouraged them to participate.
The 5:30AM wake-up time came all too early and we were grateful most of our gear was packed the evening before. The drive up to Old Mission took just over and hour from where we were staying. As the miles passed and the time ticked away, the most intense nervous/anxiety feeling started to brew inside me. No amount of deep breathing or meditation could contain this feeling. It could have possibly been the month-long anxiety from the year before all being packed into one single hour.

I had to come up with a strategy and chose to turn on some loud music and let it out somehow and that is when tears started streaming down my face. As I sat and watched my body do this, I checked into my thoughts to discover there was a little bit of fear creeping around in there…okay, it was sheer terror. Over what? Why such terror? Then I tapped in to the fact that this swimming thing never gets easier for me. I struggle and gasp for air due to my challenged heart and decreased ability to carry oxygen.

So I just let it flow and allowed myself to settle into the idea that the wet suit I was about to put on will keep me on top of the water no matter what and all I have to do is put one arm in front of the other and kick my legs. Tears help a lot in relieving that kind of tension.

We pulled up to the parking lot where we would unload our gear and head down to the starting line. My Mom walks over to me and says “I think I am going to throw up.” That didn’t help the nerves any however I was grateful to have had the avenue of release already figured out and felt better, though still super anxious.

The morning continued. I survived the swim easily this year. The race went well. I beat my time last year by 7 seconds…which I was happy about. At least I am consistent I guess. My hopes in doing these events is that my anxiety will diminish with each event and I can get to a place where I can thrive from the starting gates and focus on the event rather than being distracted with so much anxiety. 2 Sprints down, many many more to go.

Speaking of triathlon, I would like to mention one of my heroes that happens to be doing the Ironman Triathlon this coming Sunday. My cousin Kelley was born 2 years after I was and we grew up together. She has taken on endurance events over the years like it is a side job of hers and will be completing the ultimate endurance challenge ever…Ironman. The race consists of a 2.4 mile swim, a 110 mile bike and a 26.2 mile run. I wish I could be there to witness this huge accomplishment in person but will be there in spirit. And I have to admit that during my race last Sunday, I thought about her and was grateful to not have that kind of a race ahead of me.

Bottom line…tears help. They do. There is a reason they are part of our physiological make-up and can really be used to our advantage from time to time.