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Does money stress us out?

Life stresses me out

I often come back to this space when things are on my mind. I always want to continue writing when things feel important. Many years ago, when I was living alone, barely making ends meet, and needing something to keep me busy, I started this blog. 

It is a diary of sorts of what has gone on with me over the past decade. That I am truly grateful for. At one time this space was being used to earn money. It was the only focus I had at the time. When I started to make money, it became a very different space for me. It no longer felt like a place to escape and connect. It was a job. 

Last night as I was falling asleep I had a conversation with my husband about my stress and how I couldn't quite pinpoint what was causing it. I lay there for a few minutes and it hit me. Money. 

I grew up being taught that when you make a lot of money that means you are successful. I also grew up with the belief that you do not quit your job unless you have a new one lined up. Money was going to make me happy so I needed to make sure I was always making lots of it. 

I stayed in my first "real" job for almost 10 years. I never made enough money, but in my small town, there really wasn't much else. If I didn't decide to move, I probably would still be working there if I am being honest. 

This move is where my money stress began. Things of course did not go as planned and things became a struggle. I was chasing the money just to survive. I have worked 2 and 3 jobs at a time just to meet the bare minimum. I made many job changes for better-paying jobs with bigger titles. As I got to the top of that mountain I realized, I was not that happy. I was able to support myself, making lots of money, but the happiness wasn't there. The stress increased. What was wrong?

Often times when we get bigger titles with more money, that comes with more responsibility. Now I am not saying I don't want responsibility, please don't misunderstand, but what I do mean is I took work home with me. I always felt like I needed to be "on". I never just turned it all off to relax. 

When you don't take the time to shut down and relax, you stay in a state of fight or flight. This isn't healthy. We live in constant stress and in turn, it causes health issues, anxiety, poor sleep patterns, etc. 

in October of 2021, I quit working full-time and went down to part-time. By the summer of 2022, I made the choice to 100% quit working for someone else and to work only for myself. Almost as quick as I quit that job, I committed to another person to help out part-time. 

I continue this pattern as I continue to heal myself and the money wound I have. When I "help" people out in business, I tend to take on all the stress that I wanted to leave in having a job. This time around I have started to finally put up boundaries. I will not bring home my work because I run my own business and that is what I work on at home. 

It has been a learning curve, but it is something that I realized has limited me to succeeding in my own interests. Being an entrepreneur is a new thing but it is also something that tests you in every aspect of your life. I would never give it up for anything, but it reminds me of how far I have come. 

Every day I learn a little more about my comfort levels and what I am willing to do to succeed. I wish I could help everyone all the time to succeed in business and in life, but I realized by doing that I can't succeed myself 100%.

I am less stressed now making less money than when I was at the top of my career. I am much happier now that I realized a lot of that stress came from bringing work home and always worrying about what others would think at my job. Now I focus on the important tasks and get them done - both in my business, my client's businesses, and my life. 

I am not saying that being successful at your job is wrong, but I want it to be okay for you to feel unhappy even when people assume you have it all. Having it all doesn't always mean happiness. 

When you start feeling unhappy or stressed out in your job and it continues on with no end, it is time to get quiet and see what has changed. Allow yourself grace as you put up boundaries and make choices that may feel uncomfortable. 

If you need help in this area and would like to do some coaching or energy healing, schedule a free consultation with me and we can get it sorted out. 

Talk soon!
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30-Day Challenge to Change Your Mindset with Joy

As we settle into Fall and prepare for the cold season + holidays and all the things that come in November and December, it is a good reminder to take a moment to pay attention to yourself a bit so you can keep your cool when stress starts to creep up. Whew, was that a run-on sentence? It might be. You understand though right? Sort of how you feel by the end of the year.. Am I right?

Anyways, working in the profession I am in, which is coaching people back to joy, I recognize it is VERY easy to believe nothing is joyful when you hit a certain point in your life. We often hear how becoming an adult means we no longer get to have fun. That simply is just not true. 

We work our tails off to get good jobs, make more money, support our families, please others, and so on and so forth. It really does make adulthood seem pretty awful. 

My job as your coach is to give you a different perspective through exercises and activities. Finding balance in being a hardworking adult and also having "me" time and moments of joy isn't impossible if you have the tools to do it. 

Last week while I was sick with a nasty cold I had this bright idea. Host a challenge to get people back into a place of joy. Then I thought, wait, there needs to be more than just the self-care/gratitude aspect to this. So as I coughed my brains out on my couch, chased my pre-schooler, and also did all those adult responsibility things I mentioned above, I drafted out what is now a 12-page workbook. 

This workbook holds 30 days of exercises and prompts to really get you focused on what gratitude and joy mean to you. What brings you joy and what doesn't. It connects your joy to memories that help you recognize what you are missing today. 

SO yeah.. I went a little deep for a free challenge, but ya know what? You're worth it. I know it is hard to put life aside to focus on yourself, so I hope offering you this workbook will help you take a few minutes out of your day to really do that. 

Get yourself signed up today. I promise you won't regret it! If you aren't already following me on social media, find me on Instagram and Facebook for more mini-coaching sessions!  (Also the form below for some reason is not showing name/email in the input boxes. Your name goes in the top slot and your email in the second. Or you can click here to sign up!

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What is Reiki?

Reiki


It is the word of the year, or so it seems. You may have noticed the word Reiki being thrown around a lot in social places like TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook. Just yesterday I was in a live chat room on TikTok for ASMR where Reiki was included. It was fascinating to me and I love how much attention this energy modality is getting. But what is Reiki?

I am a Reiki Master and have been since 2017. Reiki was something that I was aware of because I have been studying alternative medicine and holistic options for years, but when I was attuned to it, not many people knew what it was and what I could offer. 

Today I want to give you a basic rundown of what Reiki is and how it can help you. I also want to make you understand how it is used and how I specifically use it in my own life and work. It can be overwhelming when you hear about something over and over again but don't truly understand how it works. 

First and foremost, Reiki is not related to any religion. You do not have to be a specific religion to receive Reiki or to be attuned to Reiki. Reiki comes from the Japanese words Rei and Ki. It means simply Universal Life (Rei) and Energy (Ki). 

You must be attuned to Reiki in order to channel it as a practitioner. The energy does not come from the practitioner, but from source. Source can mean several things depending on how you view the energy of the world. Some believe it is God. Some believe it is the Universe. There is no right or wrong to where this energy of light comes from. 

The important thing to remember is that Reiki energy is not bad or harmful. The energy you receive is not your practitioner's energy, they are just a channel. This means they are not giving you their energy and they are not able to receive any of your energy either. It is a source of light. 

Reiki is done with the palms of the hands and can be done in-person or can be sent a distance, meaning you do not have to be present, but must give consent to receive it. It works best when you are able to be in a quiet space in a relaxed, comfortable position. 

It is safe for children, pregnant women, and animals. It is safe for those who do not like to be touched as Reiki can be performed with light touch or with the hands hovering above the body. 

Now that you know how it works, how can it help you?

The simple answer is this:

Reiki is a healing technique that promotes relaxation and reduces stress and anxiety. The energy flows through your body which improves the flow of balance of your energy to help support healing. 

So that means it is used for lots of things as Reiki flows where it is needed. Here are some common uses for it:

  • Better sleep
  • Eases depression, anxiety, and stress
  • Strengthens the immune system
  • Energizes and balances the body
  • Increases the rate of recovery from injury or surgery
  • Creates a safe space for those working through trauma or grief
  • Promotes a calm and safe space for those at the end of their lives
  • Helping animals cope with stress when injured or scared (Or really anything listed in this list)

Reiki is being used in places like hospitals, nursing homes, hospices/palliative care, animal shelters/vets, wellness centers, and in some instances schools. (I have provided some links for sources on how Reiki is being used in these settings).

I perform Reiki on myself daily and offer it to all of my coaching clients. I believe it helps acclimate my clients back into their daily lives after our sessions. It helps move the emotions they may have felt and remove blocked energy in the body. Life coaching is very personal work. Emotions come up that we don't think about ahead of each session. Our goals and dreams are tied to emotions and it is nearly impossible not to stir them up when we are setting goals and overcoming challenges. 

I offer 1:1 coaching sessions with Reiki as well as individual Reiki sessions. Both are available in person or remotely. You can book both here. If you have questions please send me an email at hello@zenbetweenthechaos.com. 

I hope this was helpful and you can feel a better understanding of Reiki and how it can be helpful in everyday life. As always, I am here to answer questions and love to hear about your experiences. Share in the comments if you feel called!



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Who am I as a Spiritual Guide?

Spiritual Life Coach
Hey. I'm Trish, your spiritual guide. Over the time I have been blogging I have slowly moved into a place of self-awareness on my path to my spirituality. I have always known there was a higher power out there that brought balance to me and the earth. My faith was in source and the love it shined down on us. I have always believed in magic and manifestation, and often had moments as a child where I would zone out and ponder my purpose (I can remember back as early as 6 having these thoughts). I grew up all over the United States as my dad was in the military. I experienced all sorts of cultures and traditions as well as superstitions that came with them. I recall an event when I was 7 years old, someone told me of a woman who lived in the woods in South Carolina near our home. I was told she had a pet alligator that would eat children. It really made me feel uneasy. Everyone reassured me that it was just a tale and wasn't true. People rarely ever saw alligators in the area.

The next day I went down to the park. The woods from the story bordered this park. On the edge of the park where the woods began, was some water from recent flooding. I remember looking down into the water, and looking back at me were 2 big eyes. It was indeed an alligator. I will never forget that moment. Now let me tell you why I am telling you this story. In my work, I often refer to animal totems and tracking events (synchronicities). The alligator represents protection. It sends a message that you are protected and have attached good luck to yourself. This is a good representation of my life since that moment. I clearly walked away from that event unharmed, so protection and luck were all around me. I often think about situations in my life where things could have gone very badly, but somehow I got by unscathed. One example was a car accident I had 15 years ago. Helicopters were called, tons of emergency personnel arrived, and I walked away from the accident with non-life-threatening injuries. They expected the worst (I have pictures of the car, it was unrecognizable). When we are aware of things around us we are more in tune with what is and isn't about to happen. I have studied many modalities over the last decade to keep myself aware. I started the journey to help others by taking a 200-hour yoga teacher training (and took another over the pandemic just because), which opened my awareness of myself and the world around me. Shortly after completing my training and certification, I found out I was pregnant with my first child, something I didn't think was possible.

From there I had a very traumatic period that was the result of postpartum depression that really put me into what felt like paralysis. I didn't know how to move forward and I was called to study Reiki. I went on to be attuned as a Reiki master. I found my power again. As we loomed closer to the pandemic happening, I hired a life coach to deal with stuff that had me stuck and feeling pretty undesirable in all areas of my life. I felt like a failure. I was unhappy with my job. I was unhappy with my health. I was unhappy with my parenting. When I asked my coach almost a year after completing work with him why he didn't do certain exercises with me (at this point I was training to be a coach myself) he told me I was in such a delicate place when we started our work that he knew all I needed was someone to talk to and lots of Reiki to help get me balanced. It was in that moment that I realized that is what is wrong with a lot of coaching programs I had seen. They just followed a checklist of things to do. I knew when I was helping people I wanted it to be personal to their needs. I didn't ever want to leave any professional meeting with a client feeling like I just checked the boxes to get it over with. If every single one of my sessions went exactly the same way, I was doing something wrong. I am a guide for each person I come in contact with. I am not someone to tell you how to live your life, but someone to help guide you to the results and desires you want. At the end of the day, you are in control and I am there to help it be a little bit easier. As my awareness continues to expand as I do this work, I always want to remind you that intention can make or break any situation. We must experience both success and failure to sustain a happy life. I will never tell anyone I work with that they will be happy 100% of their lives after working with me. Happiness isn't sustainable 100% of the time, but happiness is a choice. You will get tools when you work with me to choose happiness even in the most challenging moments of your life. If you have interest in exploring more of what I can offer your path at this moment in your life, please take a look at my services. I am available for 15-minute calls to chat about what would work best for you. Stay well friends and keep your head up high. You are magic and everything you do matters.

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The Fun List

Ways to have fun

Are you struggling to find ways to have fun? Have you forgotten what fun is? In the past 2 years, we as a collective have gone through numerous shifts and changes in our daily lives. Some of us were already struggling to find ourselves and the things that brought us joy and fun. 

Last week I was challenged by my own coach to make a list of things I enjoy doing for fun. At first, I was taken aback by this. Fun? What's that? 

I had to sit there perplexed for a moment before my coach had me turn it into an exercise that helped me define what fun was to me today. 

I would like to share the exercise with you today in the hope it can help awaken your inner child and bring some fun back into your life. 

The first thing I would like you to do is to get a piece of paper. I feel like this is one of those exercises that need to be written down.

Define what the word fun means to you. This is important. Once you have a strong definition that is related to you, continue on with the exercise. 

Create 3 columns or sections and name them in this order:
  • Things I have enjoyed for fun (Past)
  • Things I do for fun now (Present)
  • Things I would like to try for fun (Future)

You want to have a minimum of 25 things that are considered fun to you. These 25 items can be scattered between the 3 columns. You can write as many as you like but shoot for 25 to start. 

Now you are probably sitting there thinking, this is hard. And to be honest, that is okay. I had some trouble too. But I want to give you some ideas on things that can be fun because you want to be able to implement some of these things into your daily life. 

You don't want all of your fun activities to require lots of planning and money to happen. You want to focus on fun items that are available to you now. 

Here are some examples: 
  • Crocheting
  • Dancing (In your living room of course!)
  • Singing
  • Painting
  • Visiting local attractions
  • Hiking
  • Going out to eat
  • Roller skating
  • Coloring
  • Having a get together with friends

Now that you have defined what fun is to you and made your list of 25 or more items I want you to pick 10 of them that you can implement into your life over the next 30 days. Some of them should be things you can do daily to bring fun into your life (Like dancing in your living room!).

I can't wait to hear about all of the fun things you implement into your life and would love to hear some of your plans. Leave them in the comments! Let's bring joy and fun to everyone who reads this!

Have fun creating!


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