by | | Curated Content
September 3rd 2025
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WellBeing Magazine
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Discover how one lifelong worrier broke free from anxiety through mindfulness, self-compassion & surrender to live with ease.
I was an Olympic champion of worriers. Someone should have given me a medal. I worried about work, the state of the world and all the wrong things I’d done and couldn’t undo. I was particularly skilled at creating multiple future scenarios and running each one through to its worst possible conclusion.
My prominent topic, and the one that can still have me lying awake at night, is worrying about my family members. If any adult or child is having a challenging issue, I go into a fretting frenzy.
What shifted?
I was so exhausted by all the worrying that I knew something had to change. My never-ending loops of thoughts were always a form of fear, which had me in a constant state of anxiety. I was stuck in my mind, unable to connect with the small daily pleasures of my life.
Worrying did not help in any way. I wasted so many days worrying about things that didn’t eventuate! Mark Twain is often quoted as saying, “I’ve had a lot of worries in my life, most of which never happened.”
How it began
I see now that worrying was an unconscious strategy by my childhood self. At times, that child felt unsafe in an environment of reactive and dysregulated adults. The big emotions of fear, confusion and insecurity created an emotional charge that was overwhelming for her developing nervous system. As a clever protective adaptation, she locked away those too-big feelings and ran off into her mind, attempting to create meaning and a sense of control.
The endless thoughts were trying to protect the younger me from the overwhelm of feelings. They still do that now. Other people’s struggles bring up buried pain in me, then worrying thoughts take over to distract me from that pain.
Changing this unhelpful habit
For me, it’s an ongoing four-step process: Stop, regulate, feel, surrender.
Stop: Interrupt and reframe
If I can catch myself before I jump onto the worry- train, I say a simple word that helps me step back from the platform. “Stop”.
I also make a conscious effort to challenge and let go of my self-identity that says, “This is just who I am. This is how I love.” Having compassion for my younger self’s attempt at protection, I internally say to the worrying thoughts, “Thank you. You gave me some semblance of control during that childhood stage, but it’s not helping now.”
Regulate: and settle my nervous system
This happens by doing anything that has me in the flow state — connected to my senses and the present moment. Establishing a daily mindfulness meditation practice is essential. This allows me to relax, drop into deep breathing patterns and, crucially, discipline my mind to witness my thoughts instead of being embroiled in them.
Other ways I settle my nervous system include spending time in nature, bubble baths, relaxation, breathwork, exercise, singing, dancing, drawing, gratitude practices and journaling.
Feel: the feels
Inevitably, life continues to present triggering situations that flush up the exact emotions that have been buried in my cells for years. Now that my system is more regulated, instead of running away into my mind, I can sit with the bodily sensations that are signposts to an emotional charge that’s been locked away and is ready to be released at last.
Like a new version of a parent, I imagine holding myself as I would a little child, rocking her and saying soothing words like, “I’ve got you. It’s safe to feel this now. Let it pass through.”
Surrender: Hand it over
Only after navigating these four steps does a wonderful option arise. I can trust that there are powerful forces protecting and helping all situations, often through subtle miracles. It’s not up to me to hold it all. It never was, and it never will be.
Anchored and joyful
Nowadays, I’m more relaxed and steady in the world. But how am I doing with my prominent worry trigger — my family having challenging issues?
Now, I can gently hold the feelings that are triggered in me when my loved ones are having their issues. I can be present for them in a way that holds space and validates their emotions without trying
to rescue them. I can remind myself to trust in their resourcefulness and in the higher power that is guiding the unfolding of events.
As a by-product, when I’m not trapped on the worry-train to nowhere, I am more present to the joyful moments in my life.
Article Featured in WellBeing Magazine 217
The post Letting go of worry appeared first on WellBeing Magazine.
Read the full article here:
https://www.wellbeing.com.au/community/real-life-experiences/letting-go-of-anxiety.html
by | | Curated Content
September 2nd 2025
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Wellness Mama Blog | Simple Answers for Healthier Families
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For many years, I avoided grains completely and was vocal about it! During the height of my Hashimoto’s autoimmune disease, removing grains from my diet was one of the things that made a noticeable difference in my healing. Now that my body is back to a healthy state, I’ve added a lot of foods back […]
Continue reading Pumpkin Spice Overnight Oats…
Read the full article here:
https://wellnessmama.com/recipes/pumpkin-overnight-oats/
by | | Curated Content
September 1st 2025
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WellBeing Magazine
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At 87, illness left her weak and fearful, until a vitamin D deficiency was revealed. Supplementing restored her health and vitality.
I had an amazing experience a couple of years ago. I was 87 years old, perfectly healthy and not on any medication. One Saturday afternoon, as I stood in the kitchen making a pot of tea, I began to feel so ill that all I could do was walk down the passage and fall onto my bed. I remained there for the next couple of hours, wondering what had gone wrong since I wasn’t in pain or even nauseous. I just felt very, very ill.
Eventually, I summoned enough energy to phone a friend and ask her to take me to the emergency department at the nearest hospital. All I could tell the doctor was that I “felt dreadful”. He gave me a thorough examination and asked lots of questions, but I could see he was as nonplussed as I was. The only problem he found was that my blood pressure was slightly high, so after an hour, he told me to go home and rest.
In the next 10 days, I landed in the emergency room twice more. On the second occasion, I had managed to drive myself to an appointment with my eye doctor. When I collapsed in her office, she put me in a wheelchair and told her receptionist to take me to the Emergency section in the hospital next door! This was the only time I found anything remotely funny about my situation.
Again, the doctor on duty could find nothing wrong, but this time he had me admitted to the hospital immediately and ordered a brain scan. That evening, my blood pressure measured 224/110 (very high) but the nurse who took it didn’t seem alarmed, so I decided I would not be, either. After a sleepless night, I had the scan, which declared me to be perfectly healthy.
My own doctor was equally puzzled. He arranged for two urine tests that came back negative. Then, after a couple of telephone discussions with a specialist, he decided it would be helpful if I had exploratory surgery for a suspected four-syllable condition in the region of my liver (I declined). All this time, I continued to have peaks of very high blood pressure and he would sometimes phone me in the evening to ask how I was.
By now, six weeks had passed and I thought I might be dying. I would wake in the mornings feeling normal but within hours my heart would start racing with my ears singing, face flushed and body hot. I had no appetite and sometimes just walking to the kitchen to make a cup of tea seemed impossible. I felt weak and very ill most of the time.
A friend suggested I get a second opinion from Dr B, who combined conventional and alternative medicine in his practice. He, too, could find nothing wrong with me, but he sent a blood sample away to be tested for vitamin and mineral deficiencies. The cause of my problem was revealed: I was very low in vitamin D. Instead of having a healthy level of about 70, I had a dangerously low level of 8.
I went to the pharmacy with a prescription for vitamin D3 and magnesium citrate (without calcium). It’s recommended to take them together because they are synergistic and magnesium is required for the conversion of vitamin D into its active form.
Within 48 hours, I could feel the difference. A week later I was ready to run around the block. I continued to take the two vitamins for several months as insurance and I have remained in good health ever since.
While writing this, I thought I would do a little survey of my own, so I asked 15 friends and acquaintances what they knew about vitamin D. Thirteen of them looked blank before remembering a connection with sunshine and rickets. Another had a friend who had taken it but she didn’t know why. And one had actually been prescribed it by her doctor but had stopped taking it because she felt she was on too many medications.
Vitamin D seems to be the forgotten vitamin. Most people are more familiar with vitamin C and the B vitamins (especially B12), but recent research suggests that D3 is coming into its own and could help with a whole raft of health problems; it might even help prevent some chronic diseases.
The owner of a health shop told me that 15 minutes in the sun around 12–2pm every day was sufficient to keep normal levels topped up. I was then living in a flat with a sunny garden, so that was easy, although I could not tell how much it was helping.
I have moved to a retirement home and these days, just in case, I take my newspaper into the garden three or four times a week when it’s sunny. I had my D levels tested a month ago and they were good.
I’ve read that quite a large percentage of the population is under-supplied with vitamin D, which isn’t surprising when you consider how many people nowadays spend their lives in offices with artificial lighting or in accommodation without gardens.
When I told my doctor about what I felt was almost a miraculous recovery, he was too polite to say so, but I could sense the word “coincidence” hovering in the air. But, believe me, this was no coincidence. Two inexpensive little bottles of pills brought me back from the brink.
Article featured in WellBeing Magazine 178
The post Almost a miracle appeared first on WellBeing Magazine.
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Almost a miracle
by | | Curated Content
September 1st 2025
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WellBeing Magazine
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Diagnosed with MS at 22, one woman shares how natural therapies, self-discovery and resilience transformed her journey to health and wellbeing
In 1997, my life changed forever. As a healthy 22-year-old, I was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, a condition of the central nervous system affecting the brain, spinal cord and optic nerves. According to the doctor there was no cure and how MS would affect my functioning, the frequency of relapses and level of impairment were all unknown.
My first episode of immobility was confusing. For the first time ever, I experienced the disconnect between mind and body. At work in an office with all eyes on me, my mind knew I needed to walk but my legs were unresponsive. My foot dragged. I tripped, holding on to anything I could to make it back to my desk.
From this moment, my life was dominated by my condition. Everything I did or didn’t do was because of MS, whether experiencing a relapse, recovering from a relapse or envisaging the next period of dysfunction. I was filled with fear and frustration. MS made living the life I’d created difficult and my dreams for the future seemed impossible. My career, my inner-city lifestyle, even plans for overseas adventures all assumed good health. But that was no longer a given.
As the relapses became more frequent and aggressive I became more and more despondent. I was at a loss as to how to stop the avalanche of poor health. All I could manage was to tweak my existing life. I wasn’t willing to compromise my corporate career, so I withdrew socially to conserve energy and hopefully prevent another relapse.
It didn’t work. I was merely reacting to symptoms and, a few years after being diagnosed, I had a massive relapse. This meant months in hospital, initially bedbound then confined to a wheelchair. I was petrified I would never walk again.
Eventually, I regained mobility and “walked” out of the hospital, determined never to return. I decided my health and well-being could no longer be an added extra; instead, somehow, they needed to be central to all aspects of my life.
For me, this shift was instigated by exploring natural therapies. Meeting people with different approaches to wellbeing challenged my existing frame of reference — the filter I’ve always used to understand health, wellbeing and life.
The perfect example was my first experience with intuitive healing, which encouraged me to embrace the unknown. My logical and rational mind couldn’t make sense of what was happening. I couldn’t see the energy or chakras or where the blockages were. I didn’t understand how the practitioner received messages about past lives, insights into childhood experiences or visions about my future. In my existing framework, it didn’t make sense, yet it felt right.
I knew these sessions were providing clarity I’d never experienced before. I learnt to stay grounded and became aware of the flow of energy through my body. I also became increasingly intuitive, tuning in to what my higher self was saying, which in turn enriched my life.
I don’t write as an expert on a particular natural therapy. I’ve tried intuitive healing, kinesiology, Psych-K, The Body Code, neuro-physiotherapy, osteopathy, myotherapy, Feldenkrais, Chinese medicine and acupuncture, mindfulness meditation and various diets. For me, it has been the learnings I’ve taken from all of my experiences that continue to improve my overall being — physically, emotionally and spiritually. My learnings from natural therapies include these benefits:
Being present. When diagnosed, my mind raced ahead. I feared that walking sticks and wheelchairs would be my future. Learning the importance of staying in the now, I no longer envisage every possible catastrophe. What’s the point of worrying when it may never come to fruition? And if it does, I’m now confident that I’ve gained insights to ensure that I will not only cope but grow
through the experience.
Quietening the mind. Staying calm in the midst of uncertainty is invaluable. A quiet mind has made it easier to follow my heart, be aware of energy and signs around me and make decisions that feel right — feeling rather than thinking my way through life.
Embracing difference. My life path is different from what I had envisaged, but embracing that difference has been freeing. It has also given me the confidence to explore new approaches to wellbeing without worrying about what others may think. People may question the validity of some natural therapies, but that doesn’t mean my experiences aren’t valid and right for my journey.
Focusing on self. After my diagnosis, my focus was external, researching and learning about MS. However, such thinking didn’t acknowledge the impact I could have on my prognosis. Knowing that my response to MS will define my life experience has been the motivation I needed to continue working on myself. Taking time to focus on myself isn’t selfish; it’s necessary.
Being proactive. I’d always been reactive in my health and wellbeing. If sick or injured, I’d go “get fixed” then continue until the next interruption. I no longer sit and wait for another relapse but keep my mind and body healthy with massage, exercise, meditation, clean eating and osteopath appointments.
It has been 20 years since my diagnosis. My life is unrecognisable, with changes in my career and relationships, overseas adventures and a sea change. Although at times I struggle with walking long distances, the relapses have stopped. I feel good. I feel healthy. And I am genuinely excited about my future.
MS has become a vehicle for self-discovery. Although I continue to be guided by a neurologist, natural therapies have opened my mind to new ways of understanding and experiencing my life. This has undoubtedly improved my overall wellbeing and created opportunities I never dreamt of when diagnosed with MS.
Article featured in WellBeing Magazine 174
The post Life interrupted appeared first on WellBeing Magazine.
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Life interrupted
