SHE BOSS

{ SHEBOSS } YOU ARE ENOUGH. ADAPTING TO THIS NEW “NORMAL”

BY NICOLE HEROUX WILLIAMS I PHOTOS BY NSP STUDIO BY DR JESS GERMANO - FOKIN

AFTER FEELING LIKE YOU MIGHT HAVE LOST YOUR SENSE OF SELF

Hi SHE Bosses! Welcome to my SHE Boss Column. Where we talk about anything from being the boss of your own true self to living your best WHOLE self + relationship to getting your head in the game and your body in sheets and how to (re)create the spark in your intimacy. Where we have true, real, raw and authentic talk because you are well-deserving of knowing what’s going on with your WHOLE self, mind + body.

I want to focus on a topic that we all are dealing with on a daily basis right now with constant changes, and doesn’t seem to be going away anytime soon…this pandemic. Can you believe it’s been two years already? Stop for a minute and be true to yourself when you ask “How am I doing?” We often check in with others and ask “How are YOU doing?”, but we don’t often check in with ourselves. Take a moment and really think about it. “How am I REALLY doing??” “How have I REALLY been doing through all of this??” “Am I feeling ME??” It’s OK to take a moment and be true to yourself…you deserve it!

Since this global pandemic began, I’ve been emphasizing the importance of being mindful of mental health + wellbeing, not just personal health + wellbeing. Many of my patients + clients are bringing up the same struggles they are continuously having with their sense of self, their relationship/s, work, family, and so on. Many are inquiring how do we adapt to this new normal? How do we adjust? How do we mourn the loss of what once was? Or even embrace this new way of being?

Many are feeling triggered by these sudden changes that have now created what seems to be this rollercoaster ride of ups and downs over the past two years. This feeling of a loss of control, fear of the unknown, the unpredictable, and feeling forced in so many different directions to name a few. Those that have never experienced struggles with mental health + wellbeing or even their relationships before are now all of a sudden finding themselves feeling these unfamiliar thoughts and feelings, not to mention having no idea about what to do with them or how to manage them. And those that were familiar with these feelings, are now experiencing them at a more heightened or exacerbated level. Those feelings of being more anxious, depressed, fear, hysteria, paranoia, irritability, anger, distress, loss of control, insomnia, restlessness....the list can go on and on. Whatever “it” might be, it’s important to know you are not alone with these feelings and to know we are in this together and will continue to be in this, as well as other crises’ together. It’s also important to note that the aforementioned is impacting all ages + stages of life, so be sure to keep checking in with your kiddos. I will be writing more about the importance of this in upcoming column articles.

Some key points I’ve been sharing with my patients + clients to be able to manage and maintain a healthy sense of self + healthy relationships include:

- Pull the Positive + Recognize the Glimmers: Slowing down from the day to day hustle or stressors and being able to now recognize the importance of focusing on yourself, your relationship, your family, and maybe even those goals or projects we’ve been putting on the back burner. All those things that we promised ourselves that we would someday get to them. Well…now is the time! If this pandemic has taught us anything, it has shown us how those things that we might take for granted can change in an instant, so it’s important to live + embrace each moment to the next.