I’ve been talking with lots of folks about grief recently. Has this been coming up for you, too? As exciting as change and growth and healing are, there is sadness that goes along with these transitions. It’s something I wished we talked about more, but we don’t. There is so much focus on the beauty of change and healing (which is positivity-washed) that we sometimes forget that sadness fits in with all of it.
Read MoreY’all, I am so excited about the blog this week. As a proponent of healthy relationships, I am also a proponent of healthy breakups—because breakups are part of the relationship continuum. Sometimes after digging in to the personal and relationship work, we might realize that we have come to the end of a partnership (note: this comes back to the idea that the work in relationships may not have the outcome we were hoping for). This realization can be painful or liberating or unimaginable (or any combination of those emotions) and to me, it’s really important that we navigate this part of the relationship in a way that allows for dignity for ourselves and our partner.
Read MoreI am no stranger to loss—of people I love, relationships, seasons of my life, and health. I have been to more funerals than I’d like to share. I have looked death in the face personally in my experience with cancer. I was barely 18 when my father died unexpectedly and left me with more questions than answers about who he was and what our relationship could have been like. These experiences shape me, but they don’t define me. I would never wish these things on anyone, but I wouldn’t change them either. I am more compassionate, loving, open, and caring than I ever thought I could be. My heart is open and vulnerable, and I do the work to allow this (side note: it’s really hard). And that’s the way I choose to live my life.
Read More
