Mind-Body-Spirit connections: spirit and mind

Posted on October 29, 2017 by Sarah

As I continue this series about the mind-body-spirit connection, my hope is that you will be able to open your awareness to your own body and spirit connections. I think for most people this is a foreign concept and requires an entirely new way of thinking. For me this new perspective took time to form and began first by recognizing the evidence that already existed in my own experiences.

Mind and body are aspects of ourselves that are easy to identify. We all think and process things in our minds, and we all have physical bodies. However, the idea that we are also spiritual beings can be harder to grasp. By growing up in a Christian home and progressing in my own faith journey I have always known that I have a soul or spirit. But knowing in my mind that I am spirit and experiencing and connecting with this spiritual aspect of myself are two very different things. Your background is likely different from mine and you may still be unsure about the concept of spirit. As I share some of my personal experiences, perhaps you can evaluate your own moments to identify if a spirit connection has surfaced in the past. Continue reading →

Feminine characteristics

Posted on June 30, 2017 by Sarah

feminine characteristic - when sex hurts there is hope I recently had the opportunity to attend a yoga for pelvic health retreat which was absolutely amazing! (They have another one planned for October near Boston…you should check it out!) The women I met there made such an impact on me that I want to introduce all of them to you. Maybe I will eventually be able to convince them to share their own unique stories on this blog. In the meantime I would like to introduce them through the most impactful feminine characteristic they embodied during my time with them. Continue reading →

May is Pelvic Pain Awareness Month!

Posted on May 21, 2017 by Sarah

Did you know that May is Pelvic Pain Awareness Month? I didn’t know either until I saw the International Pelvic Pain Society‘s post on social media. Despite how busy we all are, let’s take a moment this month to help spread awareness about this very real suffering. I would like to challenge you to do this in your own way. Perhaps that is a simple re-tweet of the International Pelvic Pain Society’s awareness message (@IntPelvicPain) or sharing the image below on Facebook. Or, maybe it is sitting down with a new friend and sharing your own story. You may be surprised to find out who else is struggling with pelvic pain. Whatever you choose, I would love to hear about it! Please post a comment to share (and you can use an alias if you prefer to remain anonymous). And as you spread awareness, be sure the message is clear that when sex hurts there is hope!

Process of transformation

Posted on January 29, 2017 by Sarah

You may recall me sharing about my theme word for last year of transformation. Looking back at the beginning of 2016 to now, I honestly can’t say I see much evidence of change. I didn’t accomplish many of the goals I set out for and I haven’t even changed much in my habits. From an outside view my life looks pretty similar to what it did a year ago. Instead, the process of transformation has been taking place on the inside—in my thoughts and perspectives. I am starting to see things in a new light, considering new ideas, and realizing that my old ways may not be best. And isn’t that where change needs to start—in our hearts and minds? In this world of instant gratification that we live in, we forget that real change takes time.

I feel like last year served more as a preparation for what is to come. It makes me think of the story of a seed. Continue reading →

The Mind-Body-Spirit Connection at a local support group

Posted on August 30, 2016 by Sarah

I’m excited to share that the Orange County Interstitial Cystitis (IC) Support Group is hosting a talk on Considering the Mind-Body-Spirit Connection. The guest speaker will be Mary Ruth Velicki, MS, DPT who you may remember from my review of her book, Healing Through Chronic Pain.

Mary Ruth Velicki, MS, DPT will present concepts about the mind-body-spirit connection using information from the literature, her personal experiences, and case examples using clients with interstitial cystitis. The purpose of this talk is to introduce a holistic approach and new avenues that may be helpful for healing. The role of the nervous system will be highlighted along with concrete strategies to calm both the body and mind. Continue reading →

Transformation

Posted on May 31, 2016 by Sarah

Transformation—that is a powerful word. It’s an exciting word, full of discovery and opportunity. When I first felt God giving me that as my theme word for this year, I was focused on all the positive connotations. I desire transformation, or at least what is on the other side of it. You see, when I first heard that word I was thinking about the results of transformation, not the process of transformation. The first inkling that there might be something other than pure positive in the idea of transformation came when I shared with my sister about my word for the year. Without hesitation her response to me was, “that sounds scary.” I hadn’t thought about it until then, but yes, transformation does sound a little scary. And now that I have walked through some of the process I will tell you that it’s a lot more than scary—it is uncomfortable and downright difficult. Continue reading →

How hope began in the darkness

Posted on April 24, 2016 by Sarah

I think it is time for me to share the story of how this blog came to be. It’s strange, I was thinking that it felt like the right time to finally share this and I didn’t even realize what month it is until I sat down to write. This month marks two years since the start of this blog and three years since God put the vision in my heart to create it. Here’s my story of how hope began in the darkness.

I think I’ve mentioned before about how 2013 was a really tough year for me. March is when the worst of it began—the beginning of the end of my marriage—and April 1^st was my absolute worst day. I had been given some pretty devastating news the night before and my heart was still reeling from the reality of it all. I remember that I had to go to work that day due to a number of responsibilities I couldn’t postpone. I cried as I got ready and I cried as I drove to work, but somehow I managed to hold it together to get through the day. The next morning I was getting ready for work again and an idea came into my mind about starting a website. It would be something that could be a resource for others like me—something that could have allowed me to find help sooner. Continue reading →

When Sex Hurts There Is Hope

Sharing my journey to provide hope for others

Tag Archives: hope