Are you stuffing your feelings?

It was day two of our cottage rental and I had managed to consume more sugar than I had in the last month. When I came up for air, I realized, I was stuffing my feelings of fatigue and elements of burn out. I had been so focused on serving and helping others that I had temporarily checked out of what I was feeling. Can you relate? Next month, my team and I will be doing a deeper dive into the topic of "Be-ing" versus "Do-ing" so be sure to sign up for our Powerhouse Newsletter so you can become more aware of what blocks you from just "be-ing" and learning ways on how you can lean in to it. www.powerfuljoureny.com

Today, I am inviting you to acknowledge how you disconnect or stuff your feelings and ways you can choose differently. If I were to ask you what is your #1 way that you check out from how you feel what would you say? Netflix bingeing, food, alcohol, people pleasing and trying to fix other people's problems versus your own or maybe it's shopping? You can't change what you don't acknowledge.

The next step is to be kind and compassionate with yourself. When I acknowledged that I was stuffing my fatigue and overworking myself, I was able to build in positive self talk. This took practice because my inner Rambo really did want me to feel shameful about what I had inhaled or eaten. When I chose to treat myself like I would a good friend, I shifted my thinking to being more about what I was neglecting in myself. I went from stuffing to soothing myself. I sat by the water often just taking in Mother Nature, I journaled, meditated and gave myself permission to unpack what I was feeling. It was in my focus of relaxing, napping, eating healthier, moving my body and "just being" that my feelings were able to emerge.

What you don't allow yourself to feel will show up in your body as an ache or pain. For me it was my lower back. The more I allowed myself to feel what I needed to feel, the less my back hurt.

"Your feelings are a part of you and need to be expressed. When they come knocking at your door of awareness its important you let them in. They say pain is inevitable but, suffering is optional. Learning how to pay attention to your feelings without being tormented by them will serve you well in your leadership role. When you neglect to feel your feelings it sets you up for a fall. Treat yourself with the same care and respect you would a friend, colleague, employee or someone you serve." Excerpt from my book, The Powerhouse in you: How to lead with greater resilience, courage and confidence.