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mental health poem by terri klein womens wellness circle jill hewlett

A New Kind of Partnership

Because May is mental health awareness month, I feel that it is essential to share this poem about the overthinking mind with you. My poem, A New Kind of Partnership, speaks to the importance of building and strengthening a new and healthier relationship with your mind. It has been proven that a trained mind can quiet an overthinking mind. 

 

 It greets me first every morning  

And also tucks me into bed 

It’s my constant companion 

The voice within my head 

 

I set every intention to lose it  

To give it wings—to set it free 

Yet it always chooses to stay 

And to inhabit ALL of me  

 

My overthinking mind is very much like yours 

I’m at its beck and call 

It orders, commands, and loves to take charge 

It’s not a program I would ever choose to install 

 

But evolution deemed this necessary  

To help me to survive  

Yet my wants are so much greater 

So now I’m choosing also to thrive  

 

I’ve had enough of my unhealthy stories 

I’ve had enough of “mind-made” me 

There is a greater vision  

That my future self can see  

 

Beyond the overthinking 

And all of my false truths 

Beyond the limiting beliefs 

That still remain with me from my youth  

 

Yes, I’ve suffered because I’ve been bullied 

Yet it is I who am to blame 

It is my self-created “stories of struggle” 

That constrict me time and again  

 

By the way, this realization  

Took years to unfold 

And I can promise you, without question 

That it is worth its weight in gold 

 

There is nothing more valuable 

Than a peaceful mind and an open heart 

Mind training is immeasurable 

And it’s the only place to start 

 

But it has to become a daily practice 

To rewrite your script and to rewire 

For you are teaching your miraculous brain 

A completely new way to fire  

 

Remember, you’ve been using specific words 

Thinking specific thoughts, and behaving one way 

You’ve developed habits, good and bad 

That you’ve been living and supporting each day 

 

It’s the inner work that will lead you  

To overall ease and well-being 

There is nothing more transformative 

And ultimately freeing  

 

Than rewriting your most important stories 

And creating new versions of self 

And learning just how to prioritize  

Your state of mental health  

 

I’ve stopped needing to fix every part of me 

And everything I deem wrong in another 

I spend less time wanting for life to be different 

And so I’m a much better person and mother 

 

And so whatever life may throw my way 

I now have a tremendous toolkit with a golden key 

One that I can choose to open  

As needed—just for me 

 

So yes, it still greets me first every morning,  

And also tucks me into bed 

It remains my constant companion 

But it’s a new and improved voice within my head  

 

Because I have learned how to manage it 

And I continue to train it well  

My mind and I have developed a new partnership 

With a new and enriched life story to tell  

 

You too, can learn how to do this 

Your trained mind can be at your beck and call 

It will be kinder, gentler, and more mindful 

A program you would gladly choose to install! 

 

We have a duty to evolve the brain  

And a very real obligation 

To change collective consciousness 

For every future generation  

 

Essential? Absolutely 

Possible and doable? Oh yes 

The alternative…it’s not pretty 

Underlying unhappiness and chronic stress  

 

So let’s make this happen—  

One person at a time 

The responsibility needs to be shared 

For it is both yours and mine 

 

Sincerely, 

Terri Klein 

Author, Speaker, Coach 

 www.newlife-chapterone.com 

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Empowerment + Growth = Conscious Living

March is a magical month, celebrating International Women’s Day on March 8, 2019 and our second Women’s Wellness Circle annual event, Empower One on March 6, 2019.  I look forward to being a part of both celebrations knowing I will connect, share and learn with others as well as be a part of the cosmic energetic boost that will be created by millions of women (and men and children!) throughout this week.

When I take a step back and consider what makes the Women’s Wellness Circles so special, it’s the opportunity to come together in a sacred space to be nurtured and to grow.  Jill Hewlett’s blog The Beginning of Blossoming speaks beautifully to our innate desire to “burst forth into a new realm of growth and life experience,” even when it doesn’t feel like it or we feel so stuck that it seems impossible to do so.

Empowerment

Growth is fueled by many things, empowerment being one.  Empowerment has many definitions, such as the process of becoming stronger and more confident, especially in controlling your life and claiming your rights. It is also a multi-dimensional journey to realize your full identity and powers in all spheres. (Gloria Steinem)

My growth is certainly multi-dimensional and because I continue to be empowered, my goals and overall life vision continue to become clearer (and bigger, yikes!).  At the end of each year, typically in November, I begin my goal setting, planning and visioning for the coming year.  For me, 2019 is all about conscious living.  Conscious living to me is a fulfilled life but also one, as Steven Aitchison defines, where I have to actively evaluate my activities, decisions and options to make deliberate choices based on my values and my truth. 

This includes taking care of myself (see Jill Erridge’s post on Why Prioritize Your Self-Care?) and welcoming growth or a different mindset (see Karen Armstrong’s post on Time for a New Story).  It also includes striving for mastery in my field, nurturing my spiritual growth, feeling balanced between Mind, Body and Spirit but also going outside of myself to take care of our planet.

This leads me back to what’s behind conscious living – empowerment and growth. 

My growth is implicit by simply practicing and taking action (no matter how small that action is) towards conscious living.  I am evaluating, making decisions and creating deliberate choices in my life.  I am able to because I am empowered to make it happen.  I am empowered to create those choices.  I am empowered to take control over the multi-dimensional, gorgeous, meaningful fabric of my life.

Every woman is on her own journey of empowerment.  No two are alike.

Empowerment comes in many forms:

  • through private and personal healing
  • by learning about self in our feminine energy and wisdom
  • by creating more choice and opportunity
  • by standing up for self and others
  • by standing up for what you believe and hold true
  • by challenging stereotypes and biases
  • by taking action
  • through personal development, capacity building and learning
  • by creating space for others to nurture and support empowerment (Empowered Women Empower Women)
  • through celebrating achievements
  • by caring about and for others and our planet.

This year’s Empower One event will take place on Wednesday, March 6th and is a fun and powerful evening of community spirit infused with movement, music and moon teachings.  You will feel connected, build your inner strength and spiritual fortification, engage in meaningful self-care and create new self-awareness.

You will know your worth, stand confidently in it and take clear action.  You will be empowered.  I wonder where it will take you?

To register for the event, visit https://womenswellnesscircles.com/empower-one-2019/

Casandra Bryant

Transformational Coach, Group Empowerment Leader 

PhD Student on Female Social Entrepreneurs

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