As a busy, working mum of two, I knew I needed a change.
After giving birth to our first daughter, I experienced many classic signs of "baby blues"; "We got this!" my husband and I thought. We talked, we worked together (and no, I did not seek professional help), and gradually, I got "better".
I put on that face (you know, the one where everything is sunshine and roses on the outside, inside, you're not so sure) and did my "Mum duties".
I went a year and was returning to work and had hardly lost an ounce of the 60 extra pounds I had put on during pregnancy. It bugged me, but I was so busy with work and shuttling our daughter to the sitter and back home again that I started to forget about it. I was busy at work and didn't often take time to eat. I lost the "baby weight".
We planned baby #2.
Again, I gained nearly those same 60 pounds back. This time, I was antsy for my 6 week check-up so I could get the green light to begin my fitness regime. But I had no plan. Then I met a wonderful woman online who offered me the perfect solution: fitness, nutrition and round-the-clock support. I bit: hook, line and sinker.
She explained to me that it was simple and very effective. She had her own results that showed me that anyone really could do it. She could tell that I was excited to try something new and kept me excited about it until my challenge pack
arrived. Then she kept me engaged and accountable through her Facebook group that she was running. Things started relatively smoothly. I had results.
As our second daughter grew and we ventured out of the house more often, I started to recognize something else about myself that was different than it ever had been; I was experiencing anxiety.
I didn't really clue in until we went on a family outing to the Niagara region and I had an, albeit minor, panic attack on a roller coaster. Then it started happening more often. I couldn't keep myself together to go to play group even. People started texting me asking what on earth they had done to me that I was so brusque with them. I had no answer.
This time, I knew I needed to speak with someone. I started with our family doctor. She suggested a few things to me; ways that I could start getting "myself" back after having children. Tips and tricks; things I should and shouldn't do to help ease the anxiety and help me start getting a little more sleep.
I took (most of) her suggestions and started a new hobby that would serve as a "kill two birds with one stone" kind of deal; spend 30 minutes of "me time" exercising each day and work towards a more positive mind set while helping others find joy in the same activities - I became a BeachBody Coach.
Time passed and I found that the pieces of the puzzle were falling into place; I was treating my body well and feeling the effects of that extra care, which seemed to spur me on to new places of making a total turn around in my life. I began to realize that what I felt as "shyness" was coming across as "rudeness" to others, and when I figured that out about myself, I knew that must be true of others as well.
I re-learned, and for the first time payed attention to, the fact that hurt people hurt others. I've now felt the joy of lifting others up instead of using them as stepping stones.
I'm not perfect. I've got a long way to go yet. The difference now is that I've got the tools to keep me moving.
After giving birth to our first daughter, I experienced many classic signs of "baby blues"; "We got this!" my husband and I thought. We talked, we worked together (and no, I did not seek professional help), and gradually, I got "better".
I put on that face (you know, the one where everything is sunshine and roses on the outside, inside, you're not so sure) and did my "Mum duties".
I went a year and was returning to work and had hardly lost an ounce of the 60 extra pounds I had put on during pregnancy. It bugged me, but I was so busy with work and shuttling our daughter to the sitter and back home again that I started to forget about it. I was busy at work and didn't often take time to eat. I lost the "baby weight".
We planned baby #2.
Again, I gained nearly those same 60 pounds back. This time, I was antsy for my 6 week check-up so I could get the green light to begin my fitness regime. But I had no plan. Then I met a wonderful woman online who offered me the perfect solution: fitness, nutrition and round-the-clock support. I bit: hook, line and sinker.
She explained to me that it was simple and very effective. She had her own results that showed me that anyone really could do it. She could tell that I was excited to try something new and kept me excited about it until my challenge pack
arrived. Then she kept me engaged and accountable through her Facebook group that she was running. Things started relatively smoothly. I had results.
As our second daughter grew and we ventured out of the house more often, I started to recognize something else about myself that was different than it ever had been; I was experiencing anxiety.
I didn't really clue in until we went on a family outing to the Niagara region and I had an, albeit minor, panic attack on a roller coaster. Then it started happening more often. I couldn't keep myself together to go to play group even. People started texting me asking what on earth they had done to me that I was so brusque with them. I had no answer.
This time, I knew I needed to speak with someone. I started with our family doctor. She suggested a few things to me; ways that I could start getting "myself" back after having children. Tips and tricks; things I should and shouldn't do to help ease the anxiety and help me start getting a little more sleep.
I took (most of) her suggestions and started a new hobby that would serve as a "kill two birds with one stone" kind of deal; spend 30 minutes of "me time" exercising each day and work towards a more positive mind set while helping others find joy in the same activities - I became a BeachBody Coach.
Time passed and I found that the pieces of the puzzle were falling into place; I was treating my body well and feeling the effects of that extra care, which seemed to spur me on to new places of making a total turn around in my life. I began to realize that what I felt as "shyness" was coming across as "rudeness" to others, and when I figured that out about myself, I knew that must be true of others as well.
I re-learned, and for the first time payed attention to, the fact that hurt people hurt others. I've now felt the joy of lifting others up instead of using them as stepping stones.
I'm not perfect. I've got a long way to go yet. The difference now is that I've got the tools to keep me moving.