Just like a musical instrument needs to be tuned,
we need to “re-tune” ourselves to live in our greatness
and show others the way.

Yesterday was one of those days that needed near constant re-tuning, at least for me.  Outside things kept bombarding us and tried to influence our day in ways that just didn’t quite fit in or were part of the “plan for the day.”   Fortunately, the ability we have to “reset,”  “re-tune,” and move on has become so much easier as the days go on.

For example:  we’ve moved a few pieces of furniture around (including Mom’s chair) to make it easier for her to get around with the walker and to provide a few extra steps  for movement and exercise and most importantly to be away from the blast of cold air when the front door is opened — but in my efforts to make things “better” I forgot how bright the sun shines through one window with the winter sun and it’s causing some issues with it being too bright for Mom’s eyes even with the blinds being closed.  She was terribly uncomfortable yesterday.

She enjoys the warmth her new corner of the room offers, but the light  streaming in is just too bright and was causing her some discomfort.  Even after moving the chair a little bit to get it out of the streaming light, there were still some problems.  Breathing, resetting, re-tuning and letting her choose how to resolve the problem was so effective.  I’m sure she won’t remember her part in the process today, but I will and I will remember her expressions as her ideas were considered and found to be the best resolution for the problem.  I relish those lucid moments!

It’s okay to have big feelings…..how we deal with them
makes a big difference in the outcome.

It’s been a while since we’ve experienced a major anxiety attack.  I’m very grateful.  For in those moments, it’s very apparent that the “trigger” brings some strong feelings/emotions to the surface that aren’t usually seen during our “regular” days.

Yesterday, we saw Mom struggle with some pretty strong emotions for a brief spell.  When this happens, she experiences tremors and these were strong.

We’ve been working on how to handle those moments of  overwhelm.  Before I had time to react, I saw her stop in her footsteps; she took a deep breath, slowly exhaled and repeated the process two more times.  The Parkinson-like tremors she had been experiencing were gone.  I observed the smile that spread across her face as she recognized she had made it through with amazing success!

For many, this would be an easy process.  This is a relatively new practice for her — but she’s learning it and it’s taken hold.  I’m in awe!  She’s pretty dang AWESOME!  Major anxiety attack averted.