I just set aside my to-do list to watch this video that a friend just shared with me. Oh my. “If I were a young woman now, I’d spend more time being, not doing.” Tears are rolling down my face. This life of ours. It’s here. Now. I want to live like there’s no tomorrow. I want to spend five more minutes on the dance floor.And I want to spend more time cuddling my kids before they are too big to cuddle in the same way anymore. I’m here life. And I’m all yours. ❤️

Thank you for inviting me to share about courage and resilience, TEDxTraverseCity. I’m honored that I had the opportunity to be a part of TEDx TC’s pitch night. It certainly expanded my authenticity and vulnerability limits as I owned my story publicly. And it gave me the opportunity to claim that we can rise up in the face of adversity.  This story of mine has been be restored and restoried.  And I have found, in both my research and in my life experience, that there is light waiting for us and we take steps forward onto a new path.  There is beauty to be bourne from the ashes of trauma.  And there is life.  Life available to us now. 

So much love and so much gratitude fills me to the overflowing.  Today my story still faces difficult obstacles, yet it will not be defined by the things that impact it.  It will be defined by me.  Defined by joy, love, gratitude, peace, overflow, goodness, truth, strength, friendship, community, courage, connection and abundance. ❤️

Trauma impacts our brain and makes a mark on our lives. Having an environment that helps us safely navigate trauma and work through it is crucial. Healing is a journey and honoring ourselves enough to navigate our way into new ways of living can be incredibly freeing. This video is such a helpful way to look at what happens to our brain and body while experiencing trauma.