Practicing radical self care! -7:30AM post gym selfie from Friday

(*Todays message was originally posted on my Instagram account Friday morning- hence the emojis!). https://www.instagram.com/elizturnercoach/?hl=en

Burn Out 

This is a subject that comes up again and again in my line of work. I have seen so many women juggling full time work, their families, supporting loved ones who are ill or disabled, striving to be perfect at work and home (the topic of perfection I will leave for another day as that is a meaty one!) – all while putting themselves on the back burner. A few years ago I did this as well.

But I learned some hard lessons and I do this no longer! ?

Why I practice radical self-care?

Because it is key!

If you aren’t functioning at 100% how can you best support others?

We want to be functioning from a soulful place of strength not operating out of fear, right? You can only run on the fumes of anxiety and stress for so long and then you will hit a wall.

How to prevent this?

RADICAL SELF CARE!

and…

… for me, going to the gym consistently is one of my RSC pillars.

My alarm went off at 5:30am and I did not want to get up as I was tired from a busy week, and the bed was so cozy, but I thought about how good I would feel after. So I went and took some of my micro aggressions out on the medicine ball! ?

Now as I write this I feel less stressed about events that before were bothering me, I feel calmer and stronger and I sleep better. ??

Exercise, restorative sleep, massages with an RMT, play, family time, things to look forward to, and eating food that comes from the ground, not a box or bag, are other key pillars of RSC ?.

The Daily Check In

So today please check in with yourself and ask what you are doing in terms of RSC?

How are you feeling in your body right now?

What would feel good to you to do today?

-Coffee with a friend?

-A nap?

-A stretching class?

-A hike?

-A long soak in the bath?

Do it!

Put yourself first and watch how everything else falls into place!

You deserve it!

xo

Eliz

The post Radical Self Care appeared first on Elizabeth Ritchie Counselling & Coaching Services.

Feeling like your life is stuck in a rut? Then this is for you. Keep reading to find out 7 sure fire methods to help you get unstuck.

Hello friend, September is upon us, and after the back to school flurry things are starting to settle down in our household. And this weekend, along with hockey tryouts, a piano lesson and grocery shopping, we will be beginning to pack up a few things here at my parents farm, as it looks like our renovations are finally nearing completion! Woot!!  After almost 10 months away from home, I hope to be sleeping in my own bedroom by the end of the week. Yipee!!! The house looks fabulous and I will be sure to post some pics in the next Fullflight missive. But back to what to do if you are stuck in a rut…..

I was working with a client recently and she was describing her mood when she returned home from work. Going to work uplifts her, she enjoys her job and the people she works with, but returning to her house is a different story. She described driving home from work and rounding the corner to see her house with her front yard strewn with junk, and once inside, being greeted by more mess. Certainly not an uplift.

The family dynamics are such that my client ends up being responsible for most everything, walking the dogs, grocery shopping, getting the meals, looking after an ailing relative, and ALL the cleaning. There are other grown ups in the house but for one reason or another they aren’t pitching in. (And that is a whole other discussion).You can see now why coming home weighs so heavily on my clients shoulders.

Rules to getting out of a rut-

1. De-clutter / clean up / throw out the junk:

Heck hire a maid service if you have to! This is the suggestion I gave my client, and I do this myself when the ‘stuff’ of life starts piling up around me and I can no longer see my counter tops. Maybe it’s just a quick tidy that your place needs, but if it is a big job, pay someone to help you out. It’s worth it.

2. Try the fresh flowers cure:

This goes hand in hand with Rule #1 above. Once you have tidied up an area, and the surface is clean place a vase of fresh flowers there. Instant mood boost!

3. Shift your perspective:

Instead of looking at what is wrong in your life, start look at all that is going right. For the client above I suggested that she write down 10 things she is grateful for, every night before bed. Maybe there is junk in her front yard but she has a grassy, big lawn. Her house may need cleaning but it is hers, and she loves the neighbourhood it sits in. I like to greet the morning like this as well, noting all the things I am grateful for just after waking up. This is my way of ensuring that the day starts off on a peaceful and positive note, before I am swept up in the ‘to do’s’ of the day.

4. Start with the easy.

Let’s say you are feeling so overloaded at work or with your life, that you are frozen, you don’t even know where to begin. Start with one small action. If you are at work, at your desk, start with something doable. Maybe it’s calling a customer you know will be friendly as opposed to calling the grumpy one.

Or maybe your being hard on yourself for getting out of shape, or putting on some extra pounds? If that is the case, again start with something easy. Lace up your kicks and go for a walk around the block. If you want to get to a gym class in the morning, pick out your exercise clothes the night before and lay them out, so when the alarm goes off you will be ready and your morning will run smoothly. Just take one small action in the direction of where you want to go.

5. Be your #1 cheerleader:

When I ventured out into the coaching / entrepreneurial world I had the expectations that my friends and family would gather round me and give 110% in supporting this new venture of mine.

Nope.

Did not happen.

There are only a couple of my close friends and family members that helped me out when I was in that fledgling stage, and I so appreciated it, and do till this day!

But I did expect my cheerleading section to be bigger. But you know, people are busy, they are focussing on their needs, and maybe they don’t even know what you want from them.  What I have realized is that you need to be your own biggest cheerleader first. It doesn’t matter what goal you are trying to reach, the number of set backs along the way, or the number of ‘likes’ you get,  what matters is how YOU feel about what you are doing. I have put up blog posts and released work into the world that has been greeted with …crickets. But you know what, I don’t care, because I love what I do, it is my way of ‘serving’ and I would do it even if no one paid me, and to me that is a BIG win.

Be your own biggest cheerleader, ‘nuf said.

6. Try something new:

Hip hop dance class, wake boarding, poetry slam contest, motorcycle lessons, whatever. Find one thing that lights you up and go for it. Go for it even if you feel like a ‘shlumpadinka’ (lazy person in yoga pants on couch), go for it even if your roots are showing and you haven’t shaved your legs in weeks. Go for it even if you feel silly, scared or self conscious. Move through that fear and you will discover the goodies on the other side and suddenly you won’t feel so stuck.

7. Consult a professional:

If you have tried some of these suggestions and you still feel stuck, or you can’t contemplate even attempting any of the above, then it might be time to consult a professional. Depending on your level of need you could hire a coach, see a counsellor or therapist, or book time with a psychologist. If money is an issue check out free counselling resources in your area or inquire about ‘sliding scale’ payments.

This is your one life and you don’t want to be living it from the ‘in the ditch’ position on the side of he road, watching everyone else zooming by enjoying themselves.

You deserve to zoom too!

Getting to ‘zoom’….

That being said, everyone’s ‘stuckness’ is different, so different strategies will be employed for different people, but the above techniques I have shared are guaranteed to give you a quick jump start, they will help you see things differently, and hopefully get you out of the rut you are in and back on the road of life.

And if you have any tools you employ for when you are stuck in a rut, I’d love to hear about them- so put them in the comments, or if that is too public for your liking, contact me at admin@fullflightlifecoaching.com

Until next time my friend,

xo

Eliz

The post Stuck in a rut? Here are 7 ways to get out. appeared first on Elizabeth Ritchie Counselling & Coaching Services.

– Kate Spade

First Kate Spade and then Anthony Bourdain. Could the week of ended on a lower note?

Kate Spade!

With her whimsical and colourful handbags and note paper.

Kate Spade a depressed person? How can this be?

And then.

Anthony Bourdain.

The well loved pirate of the cooking world. A man with such a lust for life, such gusto, with an innate ability to connect and make us want to travel and eat and embrace life.

WT heck?

The world is still reeling.

I gotta admit Friday morning after scrolling through the news on my phone I cried.

It was like I lost a friend.

We Have to Keep Talking About Mental Health 

This past week has been a reminder.

A reminder to keep talking to each other, to keep connecting, and reaching out and asking ‘How are you doing?’ and more importantly,  ‘How are you really doing?’

And if we know of a friend who is struggling right now, check in with them.

We are all busy, with full lives and competing priorities, but if we lose the ability to connect with others and to care, we are truly doomed.

On Shame 

We can’t let shame get the best of us either.

There is no shame in feeling broken, unloved, or less than. We ALL have been there one way or another, had some type of mental health crisis – be it depression, anxiety, a panic attack, whatever…

You don’t need a diagnosis from a doctor to have a mental illness.

And know there ARE solutions to this!

There are ways to work through whatever is dragging you down, but to do that you first have to have to –

tell someone.

It is ok to lose the battle…

…but keep fighting the friggin war!

A couple of resources to share;

The best books I have come across in terms of getting past shame and finding the courage to be vulnerable, to open up to others about your pain, is Brene Brown’s work.

‘The Gifts of Imperfection’ and ‘Daring Greatly’ are two good jumping off points. Her TED talks on these subjects are excellent as well. Google them.

Pema Chodron’s book ‘When Things Fall Apart’ is another excellent resource.

Crisis Hotlines

Canada – http://www.crisisservicescanada.ca

U.S. – http://crisiscallcenter.org/get-help-247/

Europe – http://www.iasp.info/resources/Crisis_Centres/Europe/

If you need any specific info / resources feel free to connect with me at admin@fullflightlifecoaching.com 

And, if after this rough week you want some good news….

Because it is June, my birthday month and I’m going to be half a century old – yep fifty years old!!  I have put together a fun little something that you can check out HERE

xo

Eliz

The post Yep I cried. appeared first on Elizabeth Ritchie Counselling & Coaching Services.

Four days on and I am just finding my feet again.

According to the Kubler-Moss model of grief there are several stages you move through when processing grief.  Denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. I feel like I have been through them all after waking up Wednesday morning to find that our neighbours to the south had elected a reality show celebrity to the highest office in the land.

I was gutted.

Part of me is still gutted!

It was Hillary time, she put in years of work, she had experience on the world stage, she had devoted her adult life to public service and this is what she got?

After his hot mic moments, his inflammatory talk about Mexicans and Muslims and his multiple bankruptcies, 53% of white women voted for Trump and cleared his path to the presidency?!

Inconceivable.

(*If you want to see how shocked I was check out the FaceBook Live video I made in my PJ’s during the early hours of Wednesday morning- but you will have to scroll down my page to find it as I posted A LOT after the election).

But it IS real and on Friday, January 20th, 2017 Donald J. Trump will become the most powerful man in the free world.

 What Comes Next?

What the heck do we do now?

Well we start small for one. We start with ourselves.

In the wake of the election one of my mentors Dr. Martha Beck put out some wise and calming videos and a telecall. (*I have put the full directions to get to Martha’s post election video and the one hour follow up call below. If you are feeling frustrated, depressed or angry I highly recommend you watch / listen to them).

Basically I focussed on raising my positive frequency.

Here’s what I did;

My British father in law was coming to stay with us two days after the election and we were down to the wire to get his room ready before his arrival. The spare room had been untouched since we moved in five years before and it really looked shabby. There was scribbling on the walls and tack holes everywhere. Giving it a fresh coat of paint helped me to get some of my angst out (*new color was celery green- pic below if you are interested).

I took a break from the painting to snuggle with Rebus (our cairn terrier) then I took him for a walk, admiring the fall leaves and the clouds in the sky.

Once the painting was done I popped into Starbucks and treated myself to a skinny peppermint mocha, the first of the season and from there did a little shopping. It is hard to be totally bummed out when you are surrounded by beautiful items and glittering Christmas displays. I bought a red throw blanket and a coral lamp from Pier 1, then went home and sorted out the new items in the guest room which now looked clean and inviting.

I felt better.

Trying to regain my equilibrium with a skinny peppermint mocha

On November 11th we attended the Remembrance Day ceremonies in Fort Langley, the birthplace of BC. There in the old cemetery with its wrought iron fencing and towering chestnut trees we listened to the bag piper play ‘Last Post’ and watched as the four planes roared over head at 11:00AM. After the crowds had dispersed Will and his Grandad laid their poppies on the cenotaph.

I felt gratitude towards those who had paid the ultimate sacrifice. I felt proud to be Canadian.  I felt better.

At the Fort Langley cemetery

Fighting Against Reality

‘When you fight against reality you will always lose‘. I tell my clients.

The reality here is that Trump is the President Elect and it is doubtful that can be changed at this point. But it is still possible to accept what is while at the same time working for change.

My take on this outcome-gut punch as it was, is that we needed this.

We needed Brexit, we needed to see the far right groups surging across Europe, we needed those terrorist attacks in France, and we needed to see those families with small children fleeing the strife in Syria only to drown in the Mediterranean, we needed Putin’s dictating ways and the invasion of the Ukraine, we needed that crazy president in the Philippines who is killing all the drug dealers, and we needed Trump to win this election in order to WAKE US UP!

We need (and by ‘we’ I include myself in that as well) to get out of our bubbles and start paying more attention to what is happening around us. The old world order is breaking down and we are now a global village which means what affects one group of people affects us all. Trumps’ win has shown a good chunk of the world what we DON’T want. As I write this the EU has just convened an emergency meeting to discuss how to deal with Trump and his foreign policy mandate.

So we know what we don’t want but the question is; ‘What do we do about it?’

The First Thing We Need To Do…

Before we can do anything we need to get to feeling good first so we don’t act out of anger or fear.

You need to get to feeling good any way you can because we need you, we need each other and we all need to be shining our lights in this world, and to do this we need to be operating on all cylinders, we need to be elevated, peaceful and in the flow.

In Martha’s video she directs us to ask ourselves;  ‘In a nation (or world- my words) so divided, who is doing the loving?’

Who IS doing the loving?

We can do the loving.

We can love our neighbour. We can love the Syrian refugees that have recently arrived on our shores and we can love the First Nations people who are experiencing so much pain on their reserves. There is A LOT of work to be done in our country and around the world and this election result is a golden opportunity.

I haven’t figured out what I am going to do yet- volunteer, donate money, get more political?…. but starting with social media posts I am speaking out, I am writing about it, I am talking to my kids about why I was so sad after last Tuesday’s election.  That’s a start, but it needs to continue and I have some ideas percolating!

So if you are feeling disheartened and sad, look after yourself, listen to Martha’s work, turn off the news, put down your devices and pet you dog, rake the leaves, love your neighbour. Do whatever you can to raise your vibration and get to feeling good again and then get out there and shine your light and together we can create a world we DO want!

xo

Eliz

*To find Martha’s post election FaceBook live video go to my Facebook page and scroll down till you see the video (Martha’s wearing purple) or go directly to her FB page and do the same. If you want to listen to the one hour post election call go to Martha Beck’s FB page and scroll down past the video until you are past the second picture of the eclipse (you are looking for the Nov. 10 th call ‘After The Election. Now What?‘). In the comments section below you will see the link to the tele -seminar call. If you only have time for one I recommend listening to the call.

*Also a reminder that of Nov. 15th at midnight my 3 month coaching package Overwhelmed to Optimal will be increasing in price. If you want private coaching with me at the lower rate shoot me an email at elizjturner@gmail.com or contact me through my website.

Completed guest room, just needs new flooring…

The post Grief, anger, disorientation-coming to grips with the US election results appeared first on Elizabeth Ritchie Counselling & Coaching Services.

And so July is coming to a close…

What ???? Already!!! Summer is half over???? Crazy.

Well it has been a good first half for me and hopefully for you too!

Since our return from our family vacation it has been a round of swimming pools and lessons and watering the garden (it has been hot!) and playing with our new puppy Rebus. He is a ‘sharp as a tack’ cairn terrier who is quite the bossy dude!  The boys are having such fun with him and Oliver can’t wait to get out of bed and greet him in the morning.

(*FYI- Rebus got his name from a favourite fictional Scottish detective of mine ‘John Rebus’)

Other Happenings!

Some of us from the Power Posse ‘Make it Happen’ group (PPMIH) met last week for dinner at Hooked restaurant at Crescent Beach and I got to check in with the ladies, see how everyone has been feeling, and catch up with how they are doing in regards to their personal goals.

Feedback so far indicates members have been ‘test driving’ the various coaching techniques I have been sharing and are pleased with the results.

Yay PP gals!

I have to say I am just thrilled at the calibre of women who have joined the PPMIH group and am blown away by their enthusiasm and how they support each other. I always come away from our get togethers thinking that when we women work together the sky is the limit!

Up next is a country / nature walk and ‘hands on’ cooking session at Vista D’Oro in late August, followed by a vision boarding session in September.

Can’t wait!

The WHOLE Truth – What a horse taught me about my fear and anxiety (one year on)…

As you probably know I am headed south to Arizona this fall, to my pal TJ’s ranch for our ‘Wild at Heart’ Nature and Equus Based Coaching retreat which will take place at TJ’s beautiful Apache Springs Ranch.

Last year after I returned from our retreat (which was called ‘Women in Transition’) I wrote about my experience of being coached by a horse.

Yes, really!

I was coached by a horse in the round pen (facilitated by TJ) and the entire exercise was ILLUMINATING.

Below I share a snippet of the post I wrote last year about the retreat and my time in the ring with Gypsy- but I had to add more.

Re-reading my article from last fall I realized I had only scratched the surface of what I discovered and I didn’t tell the WHOLE truth and honestly I probably wasn’t even conscious of the full truth back then….

…but with the passage of time I have gained more insight so I am peeling back the onion and sharing the whole shebang with you!

Be sure to keep reading to the very bottom to find out what was really going on in my head…

*Article from October 2015

For me our retreat was a peak experience on ALL levels.

I loved getting to know the bold women who signed up for this journey despite knowing very little about what they were in for and for trusting TJ and I to facilitate this experience.

And the ranch!

Wow!…

The land the Apache Springs ranch sits on is breathtaking, with mountains surrounding it and a river running through the canyon where cacti, native grasses, trees and birds abound. I saw deer, roadrunners, turkey vultures, and a desert fox too.

It is a fairly remote area, situated about 30 miles from the Mexican border so you can’t help but feel a tremendous sense of peace amidst all that wilderness. The first two days I was there the weather was unseasonably hot -like 100 degrees and my cowboy hat and sunglasses saved the day. For the remainder of the trip the temperature was perfect around 80-85 degrees and there was always a nice breeze.

Me and Gypsy in the round pen

What Gypsy Taught Me

Then there was our work with the horses. Now I have zero horse experience so this retreat was a big learning curve for me, and I got to see TJ in action and support her and the retreaters as she facilitated the coaching in the round pen (along with the life coaching I did with the women in the conference area).

I also had an opportunity to have an equus coaching session with a black horse called Gypsy who TJ described as the ‘little shit’ of the herd, but who despite his mischievous nature, really was a delight.

Equus coaching is one of those ‘you gotta experience it’ (or observe it) to understand it – but in a nut shell what happens with you and the horse in the round pen is a metaphor for life, and so in the ring your behaviours and patterns are amplified. This in turn helps you gain more insight into how you show up in the world and paves the way for taking positive action.

After fifteen minutes in the ring with Gypsy (while being coached by TJ), I was able to highlight a pattern that constantly shows up in my life, one that can be both a bonus and a hindrance…

Equus Coaching = Wisdom Gained (the FULL story)

So now for the full scoop.

*The following wasn’t included in last year’s article because basically I wasn’t fully aware of what was going on under the surface, but I do now and I am sharing!

It started with me standing in the ring with Gypsy, letting him get used to me. He was pretty chill – occasionally looking around from me to TJ and towards the horses that were penned in a nearby field.  A few minutes pass and nothing happens. Gypsy wasn’t moving, Gypsy didn’t seem too interested in me, Gypsy wasn’t going anywhere.

Hmmmmm.

I felt like he wanted to move, that the horse was waiting for me to do something, that it was looking to me for direction. For the most part I stayed still and calm, patting him and speaking to him until I felt he was comfortable with me. Then I felt the urge to take some kind of action, to make Gypsy ‘do something’.

TJ asked me what I was thinking at that moment and I said;

 “I think he wants to do something”.

TJ then asked me why I had come to that conclusion and I replied;

 “I think he is bored”. 

She then asked me how did I know he was bored?

“Well I don’t really, he just seems bored’. I replied.

Maybe you are bored? TJ suggested.

“I don’t think so”. I replied.

(*Although in truth maybe I was a bit bored because the horse and I were just standing there, doing nothing. I mean what was the point of the exercise if we just stood there the whole time?….)

Do you think maybe you are projecting this desire to ‘do something’ onto Gypsy? TJ asked.

I didn’t really know what to say at that point.

TJ went on to explain that horses stand around all day in the field and don’t feel compelled to do anything unnecessary. They don’t need to fill their time, to be busy, to ‘make things happen’.

Ahhhh….I thought. Like humans do. Like I do.

That really was the gist of what TJ was saying.

She wondered if this pattern of ‘having to make things happen’ showed up anywhere in my life?

I laughed at that and said; “Oh yeah, like ALL the time!’

Positives and Negatives of my ‘Pattern’

After that lightbulb moment TJ asked me to think about specific situations where this pattern had cropped up.

‘Well it comes up in terms of my son Oliver’s development’.  I told her. (He has special needs and I have a tendency to feel I am not ‘doing enough’ for him.

I went on.

‘And for sure it was coming up in my business too because it is new, there are a lot of challenges and unknowns and I feel like I ‘have to’ make the business a success’.

Aside-

Now to be fair this drive to ‘make things happen’ is not all bad either as it propels me forward, allows me to ‘get sh#t done’, to accomplish things, and not get stagnant.

The down side though is that at times instead of sitting back, relaxing and allowing things to happen I let fear and anxiety get the best of me (and I have thoughts like; ‘Oliver will have trouble living independently’, or  ‘I won’t make enough money with my business’ ….) and so I ‘force’ the situation, which in turns depletes my energy and sometimes adversely affects outcomes.

To be able to lead me to this personal insight so quickly (in less than 15 minutes) based on one statement I made about the horse is a testament to the power of equus coaching and TJ’s skill as a coach, and reinforces the fact that what happens in the round pen is truly a microcosm of what plays out in all areas of someones’ life.

We chatted about how I can ‘make something happen’ or ‘choose NOT to make something happen’, and how the responsibility of getting things done doesn’t always have to fall on my shoulders, that sometimes just ‘being’ is ok.

Standing with Gypsy in the round pen, TJ then had me think about how I could move forward with this new information and apply it to my ‘everyday life’ and she suggested I give a bit more thought into why I was driven to constantly ‘take action’.

*Hint – it was to do with the usual culprits -fear and anxiety.

Through the rear view mirror…

Once you start delving a bit deeper into your fear and anxiety based patterns you generally will discover a limiting belief at the heart of it, something along the lines of ‘I’m not enough’.

With this experience now a year old I can better understand the ‘why’ behind my actions, the reason behind needing to ‘make something happen’.

With my son Oliver it is fear of the future, and being anxious about a time when I am not around to care for him. With my business it was good ole’ black and white thinking like;

‘I need to ensure that this business is successful because if it isn’t I will look like a loser and then everyone will discover that I am not enough’.

Sound familiar?

If the business fails it means I am bad. If it is successful it means I’m good. (Whatever the heck that means! lol)

We all have those tapes playing in our minds at some point.

‘I am not skinny enough’.

‘I am not successful enough’.

‘I am not smart enough’.

Or…

‘I’m too old’.

‘I’m too weak’.

‘I’m too much of an introvert / extrovert’. 

It is nothing short of REMARKABLE when we are able to gain insight into our behaviour and find the negative thought at it’s root and then change our way of thinking. The possibilities then become endless!

My time with Gypsy has given me the wisdom I need so that I can more quickly catch myself when I get caught up in this anxiety, fear based energy.  Then through various coaching techniques (some of which I am sharing with my PPMIH gals and some of which we we will cover at this years retreat) I am better able to shift these thoughts from the negative to positive and RELAX.

Each retreater who joined us at last years retreat went into the round pen with a horse and had a unique, insightful experience, and what they discovered about themselves was then used to create a plan for positively moving forward in their lives.

Like I said… REMARKABLE!

*Ok lovely, this is the end of my current comments and I will take you back to to last years post where I was describing the other cool stuff we got up to at Apache Springs:

OTHER FUN RETREAT STUFF!

Along with the magical equus coaching there was the morning ‘sit spot’ where everyone spent 20 minutes sitting outside in silence as a way of gently starting the day, there was a nature walk with Juan (a full Apache Indian who works on the ranch), and a basket weaving lesson from Juan’s lovely wife Melinda.

Melinda showed us this collection of local baskets (We did not weave these!)

There were rest times and massage time, and yoga and one evening we were entertained by a father and son ‘cowboy poet’ team, and through them and Juan, we discovered a bit about the local history and the evening was capped off with star gazing from the hot tub.

All in the retreat was restful, reenergizing, insightful and fun!

… and for me it was one of the most memorable experiences of my life as I SO enjoyed working with TJ and sharing the experience with the amazing women who joined us and I loved soaking up the atmosphere of the Apache Springs ranch.

There really is something life changing that happens when you are part of a like minded and supportive ‘tribe’, have time for reflection and solitude, get to connect with the magnificent animal that is the horse, all while being surrounded by the beauty of nature (and being treated like a rock star I might add!).

After my retreat ‘high’ I think you can see why I needed a few days to get back into the swing of real life and for the record I think I was dealing with the post retreat blues too!

Anyhow it is all good now, I am left with new friendships, wonderful memories and a newly found admiration for horses and the state of Arizona!

*End of previous newsletter

Apache Springs resident

See ya’!

Hope you enjoyed my ‘expanded’ recap of last years’ retreat and I hope that summer is treating you well my friend!

If you are interested in finding out more about our upcoming ‘Wild at Heart’ retreat CLICK HERE for the details and keep in mind that early bird pricing ends August 15th.

See ya’ (virtually!) in August!

xo

Eliz

The gang from last years retreat.

The post What a horse taught me about my fear & anxiety… (I’m telling the whole story this time!) appeared first on Elizabeth Ritchie Counselling & Coaching Services.