Mary Claybon's Middle Way Health Blog

Shifting Gears

I just returned from a wonderful family vacation in Oregon "God's Country." We had 10 wonderful days away with our children and granddaughters. After being away and having a very long day at the airport due to a flight glitch, I am back at my desk, taking a deep breath and moving slower than usual because I am "Shifting Gears." Enjoy this article I wrote about this very phenomena.

SHIFTING GEARS

 

Your kids are going back to school.  You’re in empty nest. You’ve just returned from traveling. You’re starting a new job. Whether you are experiencing any of these transitions or other changes in your life, they all have something in common. They cause us to shift gears or reorient ourselves to our place and time and circumstance.

I travel a lot both for business and pleasure. When I return home it takes me a couple of days to get back into the flow of my routine. I am often tired and feel a bit disorganized. Rather than get upset, I simply listen to my body. Sometimes it needs to rest. Other times I need a good walk. If I just go with the flow I feel much more balanced and productive within a few days.

I remember when my children started school in the Fall. Summer was fun and our schedule was flexible, but by late August even though we still felt the summer heat, it was time to set the alarm and get back into a routine. When they all went away to college, the house felt empty and my husband and I had to reset our priorities.  It is all a matter of change and shifting gears.

Shifting gears has an effect on the body, the mind, and the spirit. We have to come up with strategies for easing into our new situation. We have to cope with change.

In the book, Aging Body Timeless Mind ,Deepak Chopra states “An estimated 6 trillion reactions are taking place in each cell every second.…In order to stay alive, your body must live on the wings of change.” Essentially we are always adapting to change.

Your body may respond by feeling a bit off. You may experience fatigue or a sense of restlessness. You may feel like you’re getting a cold or have a run down feeling.  Mentally you may feel a sense of disorientation or not knowing what to do next. You may feel unorganized or a lack of focus. You may also have a positive experience of feeling excited, relieved or contentment. Shifting Gears can strengthen or weaken your spirit and sense of connectedness.  

Some strategies for dealing with shifting gears or coping with change are first to accept that you need time to readjust. Recognize that a shift is taking place not just outside you, but within you as well. Ease back into your life situation slowly. You may need to take time off work. If you just returned from a vacation it is good to plan for a day off to unpack and prepare to get back to your normal working routine.

 It takes time to adapt to a change in your life, and if it is a big change you may need more time to adapt. Give yourself time to adjust to your current situation. Allow your body and mind to relax as needed. Take a nap or take a walk, whichever is most helpful. Most of all, practice mindfulness- staying in the present moment and accepting a short period of chaos while your body, mind and spirit adapt to change.

 

Mary Claybon is a life and wellness coach, writer and speaker with over 30 years of experience in the field of health and wellness. Through her business Promoting Health: The Middle Way LLC, Mary has facilitated wellness programs for businesses and individuals and now offers telephone and web based coaching nationally to facilitate lasting behavior change. Mary also facilitates A Course in Miracles group in Cincinnati, Ohio. Visit www.themiddlewayhealth.com or call Mary at 513-309-8377. Mary’s e-mail is maryfree@cinci.rr.com.

 

 

 

 

 

Becoming your authentic self

I am currently reading a book called Becoming Who You Are by James Martin, SJ. He writes about living an authentic life by getting to know your true self vs your false self. As he tells the story of his own struggle with a (Corporate) soul, He shares a wonderful quote of Thomas Merton from No Man Is An Island,

"Why do we have to spend our lives striving to be something we would never want to be, if we only knew  what we wanted? Why do we waste our time doing things which, if we only stopped to think about them, are just the opposite of what we were made for?"

These are such important questions and reminded me to be aware when I am busy with things that have nothing to do with who I want to be or the passions that feed my soul. Those moments take my energy and joy away. It is when I am doing authentic work that life flows; I feel healthy and energized. Work and play blend.

Are you living according to what you were made for?

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If I could only own one book!

If you were only allowed to own one book, what book would you choose?
Submitted by The Private Library.

 My first thought was A Course in Miracles, a book that became the philosophy of my life and spiritual path over 20 years ago. The Course brought me back to a new relationship with God and helped me to sort out some of my religious and philosophical questions. Also, being an intellectual myself, and having an interest in health, both mental and spiritual I was very attracted to its origin. Helen Schuchman,(great discussion about Helen at Oprah.com) the woman who listened to a Voice and put her ego aside to transcribe the powerful words, was someone I could relate to. She was a doctor of psychology and taught at Columbia University. She was raised with a variety of "tastes" of a variety of religions and as an adult atheist, was not looking for God but simply looking for a way to find peace in her department. She also had studied Freud and wrote scholarly works on psychosomatic illnesses. She essentially was interested in the body/mind experience. I was also attracted to Kenneth Wapnick, another psychologist who was searching for an authentic path while contemplating his Jewish roots, but finding himself attracted to Catholicism. Ken found Helen during the transcription of the Course and from then on it became his path. Being a Catholic who married a Jew and have found myself in both worlds, found peace in the teachings of the Course and its definition of Jesus. Although not peaceful to study, if we finally get it, it is a path to true inner peace.

The only other book I would own would be a blank journal for my own thoughts and writing.

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