Autumn is my favourite time of year. The colour of the leaves, that icy chill in the wind like cold fingers brushing your neck, the smell of wood burning fires, the wind whistling through the bare branches and the dark winter nights.
It's a time to snuggle and a time to rest or "Cwtch up" on the sofa if you live in Wales.
This morning I woke with that gravelly feel in the back of my throat, my glands swollen, my body aching. I sneezed about five times before having a coughing fit. My first Autumn cold...
In the past I was working in an office and would, like most people, have got up and rushed into work. By the end of the day I'd have been exhausted, or should I say more exhausted than normal. I wouldn't have listened to my body, to the signs that I needed to stop for a little while. I'd have continued until I became so ill that I couldn't move. That is the modern world we live in. If you take time off then you get disciplined, always the rules catering for the minority that take time off work when not ill. So people go into work with illnesses and perform less efficiently. Mistakes happen, things take longer and they pass their illness onto others. So instead of allowing that person to take a day or few hours off, or come in a bit later each morning and leave a bit earlier for a few days, or allowing them to work from home - they are forced into the work place and ironically the companies that employ people lose more hours due to lost productivity.
I now work for myself and fortunately I don't have any appointments today. I got up and had a fresh ginger tea, followed by porridge with raw cacao powder, ashwangda powder, honey and ginger. I have an air mister pumping out a water mist with Eucalyptus, Cypress and Pine to clear the air. I've had some Elderberry syrup and some Echinacea in warm water. All I have done is snuggle up under my blanket in my cosy office, reading magazines and supping my herb tea. I've noted down some ideas for future courses and I've just chilled and rested. Already the glands have retreated and are no longer swollen, I haven't sneezed or coughed since and I can feel my body is appreciating the time to rest and fight the illness. But this is a luxury that most people don't have.
Since leaving my job my exhaustion has gone and now I embrace who I am, but days like today remind me how lucky I am to be following my own path and my own dreams.
Whilst on holiday last week on the beautiful Llyn Peninsula (which I have pictured above) I realised that my "genius" area (a term used when setting up your own business) is fighting fatigue and exhaustion. I've lived with it for so long and carried on going. I've learned what works and what doesn't, more importantly I now understand how to recharge myself.
So my niche is going to be coaching people to overcome fatigue. This way I can use my experience and training to really help others by running online and 1 day course's, retreats in Wales and 1 to 1 coaching.
Everything I do has taken me to this place. When doing my NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming) training a few weeks ago I discovered some amazing techniques and I left there feeling more alive than ever. One technique in particular resonated with me Time Line Therapy. This is a beautiful technique for dealing with hurt, anger, grief, sadness and fear. The beauty of it is that you don't have to relive your past trauma's like in traditional therapies and for so many that is a real blessing. Since having this done my head feels so clear, just like when you have a menthol steam inhalation, though its lasted for weeks. My mind feels scrubbed clean and life is so much brighter and so positive. I train in this technique end January and also in Hypnotherapy, another technique I'd have said no to in the past, though now realise what amazing benefits it has to offer.
For me I am already looking forward to a new year, a new life where I can help others.