The feelings wheel is a great tool to have in your toolbox when processing through feelings and emotions! I'm dropping it here and will eventually get it in the classroom for easy access... (The Feelings Wheel is now in the classroom under toolkit)

1. What am I feeling right now? You can refer to the feelings wheel - choose the emotion that best describes: What am I feeling right now? Where do I notice it in my body? What does this feeling want me to know? 2. What happened before I started feeling this way? Trace the emotion back to the moment it began. What event, thought, memory, or interaction may have triggered it? What story am I telling myself about what happened? 3. What does this part of me need right now? Instead of pushing the feeling away or judging it, ask it with curiosity: What am I trying to protect? What do I need from me in this moment? How can I respond to myself with compassion instead of criticism. Somedays feel light and other days feel heavy. Paying attention to all of the normal, mundane, and hard feelings is called becoming emotionally attuned to yourself. You carry your feelings in your body, so part becoming aware is paying attention to where the feeling sits - your chest, your stomach, etc. Giving yourself space to process through your emotions helps to regulate your nervous system. Share anything you feel safe to share or would like help to process!!

Healing isn't a destination! Healing Isn't linear! Healing is a journey... sometimes you can move through seasons and circumstances with ease and grace, and the next time you can feel your chest tightening, your anxiety spike and you really have to focus on self regulating!! The question isn't "Do You Think I'm Healed" or "Am I Healed Yet" --- The better questions are: 🌻Can I stay present with my feeling and emotions rather than avoiding them or running? 🌻 Can I respond with curiosity instead of shame? 🌻 Can I offer myself compassion instead of critcism? 🌻 Can I recover more quickly than I used to? 🌻 Am I becoming the woman I want to be? Healing isn't the absence of pain! Healing IS growing your capacity to stay connected to yourself through the discomfort of emotional and/or physical distress... Healing isn't perfection - it's practice.. and continuing to come home to the woman you are meant to be!! Where are you most tempted to avoid the feelings and emotions?

As a recovering people pleaser, there have been some really hard decisions and boundaries I have had to create for my emotional health. When you decide to take ownership in your own life, you can be confronted with some very painful circumstances. The very people you thought would always have your back, are sometimes the very people who resist you making changes. The reason for this is, when you decide to take ownership of yourself, you are no longer a doormat to be walked all over or told how to act or what to do and that is very uncomfortable for people you have used your methods of survival to their benefit. Even when they don't consciously recognize it. If you are terrified of stepping into your own story because you know it has the potential to create waves, I see you and I get it. One courageous act at a time, brings you back to yourself. "Healing begins when women choose to engage their stories with curiosity and compassion instead of shame". Join my 4 week intensive coaching program where you'll explore the thoughts and beliefs that keep you stuck. Comment BLOOM for your spot! 🦋You Were Made For More🦋 xoxo, Verna

When your heart feels tender, something inside of you needs tended to in a gentle, compassionate manner. I realized again this morning, that one minute I feel okay, and the next minute I'm in tears. For most of my life, I had been a master of stuffing all my feelings, pasting on a smile, and saying I'm fine! Since I began my journey to reconnecting with myself, my feelings, and emotions, and using the tools that I teach, my heart has become softer. Sometimes those emotions feel so overwhelming and you really just want to stuff them down, but when you learn to tend to yourself, you begin to know the version of you that is tender, compassionate, kind, and embodies love in the most vulnerable and authentic ways. And you may notice it's very uncomfortable for the people you think will always have your back. You were not made to stay small or play small because of someone else's discomfort. Your people are those who can sit with you in the hard vulnerable spaces without judging or even sometimes saying anything. Learning the art of holding space for someone else's pain is the most beautiful gift you can offer someone else. Can I hold space for you today? Comment or DM "BLOOM" for your spot. 🦋"Healing begins when women stop running from themselves and attend to their thoughts, feelings, and emotions with curiosity and compassion instead of shame".🦋 You Were Made for More! xoxo, Verna