As I’m sitting at the kitchen counter trying to type this out my kids are being animals. This is my circus and those are my monkeys kinda animals. When I’m trying to focus I like calm and it’s not calm in here. At all. The song “Grapevine” by Tiesto is on Spotify right now and “just about to lose my mind” is throbbing in my head right now.

I moonlight as a substitute teacher and we had a province wide conference day yesterday and I attended some wonderful sessions on depression and stress by Dr. Daniel Chorney and one thing he mentioned screamed at me like my 5 year old is right now.

Being relaxed in a stressful situation is abnormal.

Why did this smack me right in the kisser?

Because I feel the need to put on a brave face and project this idea that I’m cool and calm and chill all the flipping time. After all, I chose to leave my marriage and move back to Nova Scotia so who am I to feel a little shook right now?

I need to stop thinking I must have it all together all the time. Guess what? You don’t either!

The reading I’ve been doing and the people I’ve been connecting with this week have reminded me that even I deserve to be cut some slack. Crazy realization, I know but I have a feeling other entrepreneurs and fitness fanatics and goal diggers may be in need of the same advice.

You don’t have to have all the answers.

It’s ok to lose your shit for a moment.

Acknowledge the shit storm going on around you and breathe for a freakin’ minute.

I don’t know what you’re going through but I’m a mom who’s trying to provide a safe and secure environment for my kids in the midst of a divorce. I’m a 40 year old woman who’s trying to leave one chapter behind and step into a new one while the past keeps hunting me down. I’m an entrepreneur with a penchant for perfection, which I know is crazy and unrealistic but my attention to detail makes me good at my job.  I’m a friend trying to maintain connections and strengthen relationships with people all over the country.

I’m a woman entering a new phase of my life and I just want to keep moving forward (I say that a lot, don’t I?) I’m working to be a better runner. A stronger person. A more flexible yogi. And I don’t have it all figured out and neither should you.

We are works in progress and sometimes life takes over. But don’t let it stay in control. Sit in it for a moment. Breathe. Then shake that shit off and move on. You are working towards bigger and better things and it’s ok to not be cool and calm or chill.