I've worked as a structural engineer for 20 years - so stress and hard work and PILES of responsibility are well tread paths for me. 

And like everyone else, it builds over time - it doesn't usually happen all at once like a ton of bricks.  I checked off all the boxes of outward success in life: 

•  you get a good job - check
• you get married - check 
• you have 3 kids - check

Then I started to wonder, is this all there is?  Outward success wasn't providing an equal level of internal satisfaction.  Shit. 

The stress of leading projects at work, with the demands of raising three awesome kids, and being a wife, mixed with my own self care and interest in keeping up with my own individual interests, was A LOT.  To put it mildly.  

One by one, different stressors and more responsibility add up.    

My marriage ended in 2013, and grieving and then healing that relationship was a project all on it's own.  Nevermind anything I had to make happen in the other areas of my life!! 

Things were at an all time high level of stress and anxiety and just a complete feeling of overwhelm.  It was brutal.  But one foot in front of the other...and...

All The While, I was a devoted student to the spiritual realm.  For more than 20 years, I've read slews of spiritual and self help books - my favourite authors are Deepak Chopra, Eckhart Tolle, Oprah, Pema Chodron, and the list goes on!  I attend all of Deepak's talks when he's in town.  I have taken so much training on this topic - I am definitely a student for life. I have loved this facet of my life since I was in first year university - way back in 1996 - I still remember like it was yesterday, the first book I read was 'How to know God' by Deepak Chopra and it totally opened my eyes to a rich spiritual life. 

I have become a Certified Meditation Teacher, and I am a life coach.  I also became a student of astrology and healing chakras, and tarot, and anything to do with the general magic of the universe.  

I slowly began to see, how my spiritual interest was going to save me in the other areas of my life. 

My 'aha' moment came, when I realized the closer I was in alignment between my wonderful inner spiritual world with my external physical world, before I could really come into full bloom in my life.

And so I started walking my own Truth.  My own Path.  No longer what the patriarchy wanted.  No longer concerned with societal expectations.  My heart and intuition were now my guides for decisions big and small. 

And doing this literally has saved my sanity.  It changed my perspective.  I began making different choices, saying no to requests more often - my priorities became crystal clear.  

I now have a wonderful partner - and we have recently moved in together with our kids - 5 kids between us so it's a full house!

Life is FULL but it feels Right.  There is joy in the journey that I'm tapped into.  And I've never felt more satisfied and purpose-filled.

And if I can do it, you can do it!   

• LOVE Downhill skiing - so does the whole family - my kids, my partner and my step kids! 
• Insatiable reader - self help, spiritual, business, fiction (only with my book club ladies), women's leadership - when I was younger I used to worry about reading to quickly and actually running out of new books to read - hahaha!  What a relief to realize that it's never going to be an issue - there are so many great authors publishing all the time :)
• Meditation has brought magic into my life 
• Nature is my church and my gym - the ocean and the mountains hold extra special places in my heart but anywhere outside in nature is great!
• Sun Sign: Aquarius, Rising Sign: Leo, Moon: Libra - astrology adds a wonderful depth and perspective to my life, along with more magic :)