Have you checked-in with yourself lately? ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌
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Permission to Rest

Dear Sample,

Over breakfast recently, my husband and I realised that we had a scheduling conflict in the coming week. Usually something like this would be a non-event - we would simply resolve the issue and move on. But that was not what happened that day.

That day, I expressed my dismay with more irritation than usual. Then my husband responded with more defensiveness than usual. And before we knew it, the air was rife with tension and I was biting my lip to keep myself from crying. What was going on?

"Our tense breakfast episode turned out to be the red flag I needed to recognise that my fuel tank was empty, and that I needed to put on the brakes and check how I was doing."

The relatively insignificant scheduling conflict was the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back for me. Our tense breakfast episode turned out to be the red flag I needed to recognise that my fuel tank was empty, and that I needed to put on the brakes and check how I was doing.

The past couple of months have been particularly gruelling for me in terms of emotional load and people engagement. I had out of town guests and multiple group gatherings on evenings and weekends when I usually recharge and recalibrate for a new week. Recent events in the past few months had also triggered old emotional wounds that needed time and space to be healed - time and space that I have not had.

"Recent events in the past few months had also triggered old emotional wounds that needed time and space to be healed - time and space that I have not had."


I realised that I haven't had a full day of mental, social, physical and emotional rest in more than five weeks - no wonder I was getting irritable! My heart sank when I looked at my calendar and realised that I had another full week ahead - including the weekend. I felt my gut clench and I started feeling breathless. My overcrowded calendar was making me feel suffocated - literally.

"Without [buffers], our capacity to bless others with our full presence and energy will be extinguished, beginning from our own relationship with ourselves and with each other."


It had been a while since I wielded a metaphorical scalpel on my schedule. But I knew it was time. It was time to take a deeper look at my schedule and make changes so that my soul can breathe and love feely again. I had to re-introduce buffer days of solitude and rest by rescheduling some appointments and blocking out dates weeks in advance to ensure that there will be proper sabbath weekends where my husband and I can extend hospitality to ourselves. Without that, our capacity to bless others with our full presence and energy will be extinguished, beginning from our own relationship with ourselves and with each other.

How is YOUR soul faring? How are you doing in body, mind, heart and spirit? 


In this issue of Begin Again I wish to highlight a couple of creative resources for restoring your weary mind and soul. I am particularly excited about the launch of SOUL SPA by Anam Cara Ministries because it is an experience created around one purpose - to let you and your inner child rediscover rest and delight in each other and God's delight in you. Don't forget to read till the end and check out Soul Spa and Restore with Clay/Play!

Journeying together with you,

 

If you were forwarded this newsletter and would like to subscribe, you can do so HERE.

 

If you are ready to take a concrete step towards living a more authentic and integrated life, I can help you gain clarity about your next step. Find out more HERE.

  

Short Reflection

Read Post

Becoming Me Podcast

Podcast Player

Ep 49 Inner Child Healing & Healthy Relationships

When we lack integration in our own identity, we do not have the power to love ourselves or others well. The work of interior integration helps us to love not only much but also love others well.

In this episode I share how inner child healing helped grow my capacity to love others well:

- Made me more self-aware of when I was using connection with others to avoid connecting with myself 

- Helped me to stop shape-shifting in relationships 

- Helped me learn to recognise where healthy boundaries are and act on them

Episodes 50 | Building Inner Resilience in Stressful Times

Being our real selves can be difficult even when we are not under duress. How do we build the inner resilience to still act with authenticity even in times of stress and adversity?

In this episode I discuss three factors that impact our inner resilience:

- our level of integration (healing)

- our ability to self-regulate when we are triggered

- and the availability of the right kind of external support.

Episodes 51 | Freedom from the Shame that Binds You

Many of us don't realise how much of a hold shame - specifically toxic shame - has over us. When shame is 'toxic', we don't just feel shame over what we do but we experience deep shame over WHO WE ARE.

Toxic shame at the core of our identity re-tells the lie that our worth depends on never making a mistake or never disappointing others.

In this episode I share some of my own experiences of shame and how I began to be freed from the hold that it had over me.

This episode drops on Wednesday 15 June 2022. Don't miss it!

Subscribe to my podcast on Spotify / Apple Podcasts / Google Podcasts and don't miss it!

Listen Now

Resources

1) SOUL SPA by ANAM CARA MINISTRIES (1-2 July)

SOUL SPA is a specially curated 24 hr retreat that will facilitate rest through delighting your senses, calming your mind, feeding your soul and grounding your body. You will be surprised at how even just 24 hrs of gently facilitated silence can give you a deeply restorative experience of rest. If you are always time starved and exhausted, a SOUL SPA could be the gift you didn’t know you needed.

More Info

 

2) RESTORE Creative Workshop (1-2 July)

Come enjoy a time of rest and rejuvenation for your heart, mind and spirit. Be engaged in various hands-on activities that allow you to get in touch with yourself and receive deeper insights about your life. Explore the spaces available, both indoor and outdoor, that provide avenues for deeper rest and reflection.

More Info

 

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www.integroformation.com • Singapore, Singapore • IG @animann / FB @integroformation