When slowing down is exactly what you need

I woke up this morning and realised we’re already almost halfway through November and I feel like I’m still waiting to get started. Do you recognise that feeling? You have big plans, or indeed any plans and they just seem to get put off on a daily basis because of your energy levels, because of the weather, because of life happening in unexpected ways.

I lay in bed for a few minutes thinking about how I’ve let myself down and getting frustrated and then I caught myself. Here was a stick I did not need to pick up and beat myself with. Instead I could choose to see it and just walk on by. It’s not like I’ve sat around doing nothing for the last fortnight. I’ve shown up for myself and for other people. I haven’t let anyone down. It’s just that I haven’t done as much as I’d planned. And that’s okay. I’ve done the best I can in my particular circumstances and that’s all any of us should be asking of ourselves.

Like many breast cancer survivors I deal with post-treatment fatigue and in addition I have seasonal affective disorder (SAD). Since the clocks went back I’ve noticed a difference to my mood and my energy levels and I realised this morning that it’s more important to honour that than fight it. That doesn't mean I’ll allow myself to sink into a depression. In fact, on Monday afternoon when both fatigue and SAD hit me I realised that going to choir practice would do me more good than not going. And I was absolutely right. Although I was physically exhausted the concentration, singing and company did my mental health the world of good.

There is no shame in resting when we need to. No shame in slowing down. In fact, my word for this month is rest. Perhaps my subconscious has taken over and the reason I haven’t done as much as I’d planned was because it knew what was best for me. Nature after all slows down and rests at this time of year so why shouldn’t we?

My plan for today was to write a fabulous series of emails to tell you all about my Black Friday offer. You’ll still get some emails but they might not be as carefully crafted as I planned!

So, here it is, this year’s Black Friday offer. You can have a foundation coaching package – a 90 minute 1-2-1 coaching session, two weeks of virtual support and a follow up 30 minute coaching session for half the usual price. It will cost you £198.50 if you purchase using coupon code BF50 between now and the 30th November. You can then book the session at your convenience.