Sacrifices and Conversations

Well I've had an adventuresome past few days :). My biggest good news is that my makeup line MOVE Makeup is going to be available on Walmart.com! You may have seen my announcement on my Facebook Page and I've shared it all over my various MOVE Makeup social media worlds so I won't go into all of the details here to spare you :). What I do want to talk about today is making sacrifices for the things that are important to you and how I prepared for mine. I will explain. 

I'm about 3 weeks post surgery. The big meeting with Walmart was in Bentonville, AR which is about 3 hours from where I live. I needed to get there the day before the meeting and attend the Open Summit/Buyer Meeting event the next day from 8am until at least 2pm with my buyer meeting at 12:10. The day involved a lot of walking and keeping it together so suffice it to say, I was good and exhausted that evening and next day! But I also wanted to spend time with my family - so I mustered up the energy to do touristy fun things with them while we were in Bentonville too.

So when I got home on Thursday, the crash began and by Friday, I was sick in bed and am pretty much just now coming out of the haze - sort of, lol :).

Some might think that I did too much - that I took too big of a risk.

But for me, there really was no choice. I knew that this buyer meeting with Walmart might be the very key to making the kind of impact that I want to make in the world and I knew that I wanted to be/needed to be at that meeting. I knew that, whatever it took, I had to make that happen. 

But of course, in saying this I wasn't saying to the Universe "I don't mind compromising my health and ability to recover - this potential deal is more important than me". Not at all and so that meant I needed to start talking with the Universe and asking for what I wanted. 

The moment I knew that my surgery and the meeting would overlap so closely, I began visualizing myself healing quickly and completely and feeling energized and refreshed and well by week 2. I only allowed the thought that I would be ready and feeling great to enter my mind when I thought about traveling to Bentonville. I only thought about doing a fantastic presentation and feeling at ease, competent and worry free.

I never let myself think that I might not be up to it. And so the Universe conspired to make that happen.

I truly did feel wonderful the days before the trip. The Universe even kicked in unexpected help and support on the day of the meeting so that I would not be alone. I had a ride to every place I needed to be. I had beautiful support from all around. I truly didn't have a worry at all. The entire trip was a joy. And the best thing wasn't what you might think. The best thing is that I had nothing but time after the trip. That was my compromise with the Universe - that I would rest and truly recoup after the trip. I would make sure that I allowed myself the time to make up for the strenuousness.

And funny thing, the Universe (since it knows me well) made sure that my workaholic habits would not be able to kick in by sending a cold and cramps, lol. (Here's a little secret - that actually might have been me subconsciously throwing in some assurances - what you think is what shows up right?)

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So the moral to this story? After a major surgery like the one I had, 2 weeks post surgery one should not be going anywhere, let alone 3 hours away to a major conference.

I did because I got the Universe on my side. 

Your takeaway for today is to ask yourself how you can get the Universe on your side. When you know that something is important to you, but there are tons of unknown variables, how can you converse with the Universe to sway the tide in your favor?

Figure out for yourself what conversations you need to have and start having them as soon as possible.

Good food for thought and fuel for your next big thing ;-). 

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Needing some more inspiration? Check out this post and this one!

Mindset Magic!

Recovery is going really well :). I've been doing the requisite resting and relaxing. I've been catching up on my book and movie lists. I've been thinking and feeling and allowing. It's been so nice :).

So about the surgery, there ended up being 19 fibroids to remove. We (me and my doctor) opted for the same surgery, a c-section cut down my stomach between my belly button and nether regions. Thankfully they just reopened the previous cut so that my tummy wouldn't have an anchor etched into it :). 

This time around it was more painful that I remember and for the first time, I really wondered if I could handle another surgery like this - because there will hopefully be at least one more surgery like this in my life when I have my beautiful baby via c-section. (See how I'm putting my hopes into a visualized future :)). It was *that* painful. 

Thankfully, it has subsided substantially and I'm finding myself able to stretch out the time between pain pill doses :). Baby steps. Next week I think I'll even venture a walk through the neighborhood :). 

Thinking about my fibroids and how quickly they are growing gets me thinking about what causes them. On a physical level there are a few theories, but no one really knows the true answer. On an emotional level though, I think the conclusions that some people have come to hold a lot of merit. The most common reason I see stated for fibroids is that they hold stress, pent up emotions, unexpressed creativity, and unbirthed ideas. These non-cancerous tumors form to contain all of these things until you are ready to release or express them. 

When I think about what that could mean for me, it makes so much sense that it's almost comical. Let me explain. Going back to 4 years ago when my fibroids were first diagnosed, I lived in a sea of stress and had been like that for years. I'd been working so hard and so diligently on my goals that I'd become stagnant. The stress of succeeding and of making my current ideas at the time work was sometimes overwhelming - but I carried it. I soldiered on and I continued to 'fight the fight' to get where I wanted to be. And I definitely wouldn't let myself move forward on new ideas - I had to make the old ideas work. 

So it makes sense that my body would ball all of the tension and unexpressed energy in some way to try to protect the rest of me from it. What I mean is that a fibroid can be removed. Cancer for instance is a lot more difficult to remove. 

Fast forward to now and I can see again how I'm upleveling to an even lighter space of being. And it fits my current life goals and the stirrings I've been feeling in my soul. I know that I want a baby in my immediate future. I know that I want to live even more freely and creatively. I know that I want my new ideas and urgings to be expressed and nurtured and nourished.

It makes sense then that these last bits of stagnation, frustration, and old ways have positioned themselves to be removed. Interestingly, most of my fibroids were small. In there smallness though, they were still enough to keep an egg from implanting and cause excruciating pain every month. They were enough to get my attention and make me reach out to my doctor and press to find out what was going on. These little blocks were enough to need to be removed. 

And now they have been. And I don't plan to squander this beautiful gift.

I'm planning to give myself the time of day I need. I'm planning to be inspired and in wonderment everyday. I plan to make time to make myself smile and feel peaceful, at one, and in sync in whatever form and however many ways that takes.

I plan to move intentionally and to always remind myself that this moment is the most important thing. :). 

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I'm planning some great content for you that I'll be sending to my email tribe very soon. I'd love for you to receive it. If you are in need of some balance and some inspiration, join us :). 

June Brings Many Things!

Hello love!

Can you believe June is here! For once I am excited about where we are in the year. I'm feeling pretty joyful and even expectant of awesome things. That's a wonderful space to be in - very freeing and light. 

Now that doesn't mean that things are all peachy - quite the contrary. I've got some big things and big decisions and possibly major changes coming up in my near future. But instead of being afraid and stagnant, I am curious and open. I remember reading about approaching problems in this blissful way. I wondered if I'd be able to do it - if I'd be able to let the problems flow and to flow with them to their resolutions without pulling or pushing or dragging my feet; with no resistance and no attachment to the outcome but with a preference still in it all.

I can say yes now :). 

So probably the most important thing coming up is my surgery. On June 10th I go in for another myomectomy to remove more fibroids. This time I have 15 and my doctor feels that the best way to remove them is with an abdominal surgery as opposed to a laser surgery. So that means another c-section incision, this time probably across instead of down like my previous one, and 5 to 6 weeks of recovery. Yeah, that's going to be interesting :). 

The good thing is that this will be built in slow down time. Sure, getting it through recovery from surgery is not ideal but I am wise enough to not question the Universe (God). So I will be doing lots of reading for fun, crafting because it makes me happy to crochet pretty things, watching movies and Netflix series (Grace and Frankie anyone??), journaling and generally relaxing and healing. I will not lie and say I'm not looking forward to it. 

And in this time I'll be shifting too, shifting to do more of the work that lights me up and less of the work that drains me.  

In that spirit, I have decided to do one Facial Treats class on June 28th while I'm recovering and to do a handful of Holistic Skincare Consultations and Empowerment Readings in my last few weeks.

Yola had this to say about her Holistic Skincare consultation: 

You are amazing at what you do and what you do goes beyond wellness and beauty consultation; it allows people to be seen, heard, and know that they matter and all of this while educating them that beauty and wellness is rooted in nature and simple is powerful!!! 

And Tameka had this to say about her Empowerment Reading: 

"Leah's Empowerment Readings are Spot-On!" If you are interested in an empowerment reading, but not quite sure about it, count my testimonial as that last little nudge you need to go for it!
At worst, I thought I'd get a vague overview that could be applied to anyone's life. At best, I though Leah may touch on a few things that were relevant to me. My expectations were much more than exceeded. Not only was Leah 'spot-on' with things in my reading I'd never expressed to another soul, her detail and video delivery were also a pleasant surprise. She not only made sure I understood her process, but through her gift, I immediately understood how her reading applied to my life.
Leah will welcome you with her warmth, guide you with her wisdom, and empower you to be the highest form of your true self!

If you are curious about any of these and want to chat about it, reply back and we will before the 10th :). I do have a 4 spaces available for this next week also - if you want one of those, jump on my schedule and we'll go from there!

Thank you for being a light in my life!

What is a Holistic Skincare Consultation?

Are you thinking you might need a skincare consultation but you aren't quite sure what goes into one? In this video I talk about exactly how I can help you in a consultation. Any questions? Post them in the comments or email me! 

Schedule a Holistic Skincare Consultation here! 

Mind, Body, and Spirit for the Dancer - New Project!

It’s been a soul searching kind of month :). So many things have come up! I’ve had to deal with lots of disappointment and with the realization that some of my dreams weren’t really mine and really needed to die. And that process has been hard. It’s been a constant job to maintain my happiness and hopefulness. On all levels, mind body and spirit, I’ve been struggling to stay afloat. 

But through this tumultuous month, I’ve also realized great comeback moments. I’ve been reminded constantly of my value AND of how I shortchange myself. I’ve seen first hand how my own perspective clouds a situation and creates an entirely different false reality. I’ve had so many opportunities to practice my word for the year Courage. There have been so many ways, all in the space of 20 something short days, to put every aspect of my will and belief in myself to the test.  And when I have looked and have operated on faith and have trusted, help has been everywhere. And the whisper of intuition and the Universe has been in my ear, on my mind, and in the words of other people to me guiding me to the light that comes after the little deaths. 

I want to tell you about one of those conversations today. If you’ve been with me for a while, you probably know how important a holistic approach to life is for me. You might be familiar with my particular struggles with mental illness and you might also know that I believe taking care of your mind body and spirit is necessary for a happy, healthy soul that can overcome mental illness’s hold over one’s life. You also probably know how important being a dancer is to me - how vital to my life it is and how much I’ve worked and sacrificed for it. 

Well in my work that spans the worlds of mind, body, and spirit, I’ve often had difficulty figuring out how to bring my dance life into that work. It felt like there wasn’t a place for dance in my holistic beauty, health and wellness training. I felt like I just wasn’t sure how the two meshed. 

I toyed with the idea of creating a community of dancers that all cared about learning more on holistic beauty and wellness and for a time I did that - but kept feeling like it wasn’t gelling. And so I let that idea go for a time. 

Then a week or so ago, I was fortunate enough to meet a wonderful kindred spirit who brought all of it back to me and showed me the way to do it. See, I used to have a non-profit organization years ago where I taught all about holistic living, natural health and wellness. My focus then was lower income communities because I felt like they were the ones getting left behind. What this kindred spirit helped me to see is that there are a lot more people being left behind and I, with my unique background, could serve one particular group very well.

 Dancers. Yes, I could serve dancers who inevitably deal with so many mind, body, and spirit issues.

I looked back on my time traveling and performing every other week and boom - I saw it all. Being rail thin and thinking I was as big as a house. Feeling inferior to other dancers for no reason other than skin tone or hair type or body type. Starving myself and being on the extreme side of strict to fit a certain aesthetic. Dealing with horrible skin breakouts from stage makeup and bad eating habits. Syking myself in and out before performances, auditions, and competitions. Asking God, the Universe, anyone what I was was supposed to be doing in this dance world and feeling lost and unanswered.  

So many things that I know other dancers deal with day to day. 

I realized that I have a unique voice that can speak to them and I realized just how much I would have benefited from a voice like that when I was in the thick of it. 

And so this is my new project. Am I am ecstatic about it. I’ll be perfectly honest. I don’t know how it’s going to unfold. I don’t know how I’m going to manage it with everything else. But I do know that some things that I thought were so important just aren’t anymore. I’m letting them fall away no matter how scary that is. I’m getting done with NOT looking forward to the things on my to do list. The old adage that life is too short and too precious is true no matter how you look at it. 

So the fact that the thought of this fills me up with excitement and a rush that I can’t explain in words is THE thing that drives me and is THE thing that is important. Feelings like this are what we live for. Feelings like this are what make everything else possible. They are the fuel for the impossible. 

I had to go through a lot of little deaths, disappointments, stark clear moments, and deep dark places to get to the light again. Getting to the fuel sometimes requires that, but if you let yourself flow through it all (that’s what I call operating on faith), I know you’ll find yours. 

What am I talking about on Periscope?

I'm finally back on Periscope and have decided to teach a different quick topic each day! This is my schedule for the next few days. I invite you to pop over and follow me at @mymovemakeup. That is the handle of my makeup line MOVE Makeup and I do all my scopes there. So in addition to skincare and wellness, I'll also be doing beauty scopes on MOVE Makeup tips :). Be sure to download the app and follow me! 

Magnificent May...

Hey there love, 

Well May is well on it's way. It looks like it's shaping up to be a very busy month for me! What about you all? We stepped into this month with a very powerful New Moon just a few days ago that promises all kinds of goodness. I was reminded to look up my numerology a few weeks ago and found that I am currently in a 3 year in a 9 life. Kind of explains a lot lol. 

Looking at my shuistrological report also, May is supposed to be a freakin' fabulous month. Absolutely wonderful. 

But you know what. I'm not quite feeling that yet. To be honest, it's felt hard and stressful so far. More than once I've wanted to get back under the covers and try again another day. It's been tough. 

So what do you do when things feel that way? Do you chuck it all and let the circumstances win? 

It's probably in your nature, just like it's in mine, NOT to do that. You probably have this annoying urge to try again even when you don't feel like it and think you don't want to. 

But just because it's your inclination to keep moving forward, it doesn't mean at all that it feels good or that it's easy. It can be downright exhausting. Over the years, I've figured out some ways to make it a little bit easier. and here's what I've been doing this week to do that: 

1. Maybe you know that I'm actively trying to get pregnant. So you can probably imagine how disappointing it is when my cycle shows up again. It's very easy for me to get down about that and stop doing the things I've been doing to get my body in the best shape and my mind in the right place. What's been working is baby steps. What I mean is that in the days of my cycle, I don't ask myself for much. I let it be enough that I've done a few of the things that I know are important. Maybe that's taking my prenatal vitamin. Maybe that's eating breakfast. In a few more days, that list will grow back to everything that is important and it won't feel like I'm pulling my own teeth to get it done. But for now, just one thing, one small thing is enough. 

2. You probably know that teaching wellness and holistic beauty isn't my only job. I have 2 other businesses, my makeup line MOVE and my dance school LSLD. Having one business alone is a lot of work, but running 3 and hoping to have success with each is sometimes a difficult task. There's always something more to do - something else on the must-do list. How do I manage? I give each business it's day and I try to stick to that. Keeping organized in my mind is literally a life saver. I know I would be a basket case if I tried to do everything everyday. Having the serenity of knowing "today's not the day for that" is seriously peace giving. 

I can't take credit for figuring this out. A wonderful biz coach mentor of mine, Carmen Tseng is who set me on this path. She gets multi-passionate people like myself and she helped me see the wisdom in NOT trying to do it all, all at once. 

3. The third thing I've been doing is getting serious about my gratitude. You have probably heard me talk about gratitude a lot. You might remember me mentioning a gratitude list and how beautiful of a practice writing one out every day is. The thing is, you have to do it. And you have to do it even when you don't feel like and even when you feel like you have no time at all for it. I'm the kind of person that is always thinking about the things I'm grateful for and it's easy to think that's enough. It's not though. It's not enough when you are met with funky days when everything seems to just be blowing up in your face. Days like that require an ACTIVE practice of gratitude. An ACTIVE practice of gratitude is taking even 5 minutes to sit down, take a deep breathe, and write and feel. I really think the feeling is the most important part of this. And the writing allows space for the feeling to appear.

Now yes, I'll admit - you'll do all these things - and you probably won't see things change drastically. You probably will have some more absolutely jacked up days. It'll be hard sometimes to remember what exactly you are grateful for. BUT, believe me the energy is moving. The Universe is hearing you and the Universe is bringing your focus back to you. It really is a universal law that you can see played out all over life in a bazillion different ways. 

And the more important thing is that in the moment, you'll feel like you can get to the next moment. And the next. And the next. 

That's what I want for you and that's what I want for myself. In the next moment, everything could change and it's absolutely true that in the next moment, everything does change. But getting there is the key ;-).

A little help to get there: 

Grapefruit essential oil is beautifully uplifting and it's generally pretty inexpensive. Pick up a bottle at your local health food store and use in these ways:

• If you have a locket, take a little bit of tissue or a small bit of cotton and put it inside of the locket. Drop about 2-3 drops on the cotton/tissue and you'll have your own booster for when you need it. 
• In a 2 oz spray bottle, put about 10 drops to 2oz of water and spray around your home for an uplifting boost. You can spray your linen with this also.
• If you have a wax warmer, after the scent has left the old wax, add about 10 drops to it and you'll have your home smelling of grapefruit fairly quickly. 

The 5 Steps to Gorgeous, Radiant Skin!

Hello lovely people! 

I'm hoping that the days between posts have been filled with joy for each of you :). At the least, I hope you've had happy moments :). 

This being the last post of April and our month of Breaking down to break through, I've decided to break down the 5 essential steps that you need to be doing to get your skin to cooperate and be its most beautiful version of itself ;-). 

Remember that webinar I mentioned last post? The 5 Steps to Gorgeous, Radiant Skin?

In that webinar I broke down the 5 essential steps in your skincare regimen that you need to be doing. These steps are especially helpful if your skin has been acting up and nothing seems to be working. In many cases, this means that going ‘back to the basics’ is in order.

Your 5 essential steps are 1. Cleanse 2. Scrub 3. Mask 4. Tone and 5. Moisturize

How many of you are doing these each week? Do you know which ones should be done daily? How about weekly?

Well I talk about all of that in the webinar and lucky for you I recorded it! So instead of going over it all again here in written form, I want you to check out the webinar itself. Give it a listen before you step back into the bathroom to wash your face ;-).

To access the webinar, just follow the directions on this page!: www.leahpatterson.com/5stepwebinar