Wellness is described as the state of being in good health, especially as an actively pursued goal.   

​Crafting gently keeps the mind active and encourages you to try new things in a safe, low-stress environment of a project chosen for pleasure.  Repetitive movements, such as crocheting, induces a relaxed state, similar to yoga or meditation.  The repetitiveness helps keep the mind calm and distracts the brain from the numerous negative messages that we tell ourselves everyday.

By keeping your hands busy you reduce anxiety because you are focused on your project not your problems or perceived problems. (Most problems are a result of your thoughts not facts, but that is a post for another day 😁)

Did you know that fibre crafts are shown to improve Alzheimer's disease, insomnia, depression, anorexia and was prescribed to WWI soldiers to helped with PTSD?

The colours and textures are pleasing to the senses and a finishing a project has great benefits:

• a boost of pride
• a connection with tradition
• increased self-confidence
• improves ability to problem solve
• encourages your sense of perseverance
• & your belief that you can achieve your goals

​To celebrate fibre crafts I have included my Nisbet Throw crochet pattern for free, just click on the button below for the pdf.  I can't wait to see your finished projects, please tag #nisbetthrow so I can see them.  😀🧶

Life is a lot like fibre arts.  It is a journey of twists and turns, full of life lessons, character building exercises and there is beauty watching it grow and unfold.  

Just like in creating with fibre, the colours and textures are pleasing to the senses.  Your sense of smell is an important trigger to your wellbeing.  Having a diffuser running with your favourite scents can help you find peace and calm - check out my favourties here: https://www.myyl.com/carolyncarleton  

Last year I found myself scrolling a lot.  I was checking the news all the time, wanting to keep up on the latest COVID reports.  I was trolling through social media to find connections and to constantly check on everything.  Completely wasting a lot of time.

Finally I got to the point where I had to stop watching the daily news reports, I had to stop listening to people who were always speaking from the negative.  

I have always tried to look at situations from the positive.  Focusing on the negative - always seems to bring more negative.

​I had to consciously make a choice as to how I was going to deal with social media and my news consumption. 

Here is a list of steps that I took:

1. I turned off notifications.  The red dot gets me every time.  If I see it, I have to make it disappear.  So I went through my notifications for my social media and turned them all off.  I do not always have to be available to everyone at all times.  Once I got started I went through every app on my phone and set the notifications appropriately for each app.  
2. Unfollow. Then I went through my social media accounts and I unfollowed quite a few people on Facebook and on Instagram and I hid a few peoples stories, I don't need to see them walking around their house everyday telling me their every move.  I unfollowed "influencers", my bank account can only handle so much influence.  😂  If I didn't recognize the account, then I unfollowed.  I even unsubscribed from a bunch of emails that I never read but would show up weekly in my inbox.  It felt like a really good cleanse.
3. Time for change. I went through a change in my business last year and so I decided to go through my Facebook groups and pages that I followed.  Everyone changes over time and there were a lot of things I didn't need to follow or be a part of anymore.  Some groups were not monitored well and I found them quite frustrating, so I left.  I'm sure no one noticed that I was gone, but it felt good to not have to scroll through content that I was no longer interested in. 
4. Limit your time scrolling.  This is a hard one because it becomes a habit, you see your phone just sitting there so you have the urge to pick it up.  Then the next thing you are doing is scrolling through all the apps, and then wondering how the phone ended up in your hand.  A couple of tricks to limiting your time.  Only scroll standing up, you will spend less time scrolling if you are standing and set a timer.  Some apps have timers of how long you spend on it in a day or use the timer on your phone.  It is amazing how quick you can loose 30 minutes.  I was speaking with someone on the weekend and they do not go on any social media on Sundays.  I think that is a good habit that I would like to start.
5. Break the habit.  In order to break the habit I had to replace the desire to pick up my phone with something that I wanted to do more or something that I should be doing instead.  First thing in the morning I would sit with my coffee and scroll, now my mornings are filled with my current Bible Study or 30 minutes of yoga and I have my coffee when I sit down to work.  One of my goals of 2021 is to spend more time reading, so at night when I have to urge to sit and scroll, I pick up a book instead.  Once I start reading I usually don't want to quit.  So now I am spending more time doing things that are good for my mental wellness and you know what?  I am not missing out on anything that is happening on social media.

Social media has it's benefits and it can be good, but when it gets in between you and the one life that you have to live, then there is a problem.  I think most of us have a problem finding that balance.  

This week I am asking you to take a little self check and see how you are doing.  Click below for a checklist that I created.

Have you read Flooded?  What are your thoughts?

 I am thankful that I write down my thoughts in my journal.  When you look back at past entries you are able to zoom out on your life and see the broader picture.  When you are in the middle of living your day to day, your focus is too blurry.  Being able to see more of how your journey is unfolding helps you see a little bit clearer.  

Years ago when my husband and I left the first church we were pastoring, I remember going through a time of mourning, which led to counselling and a journey of healing.  At the beginning of this journey I remember Dustin holding me while I was crying and we were talking through life and what our future could hold.  I remember saying that I wish I could see 10 years down the road, and be able to say what a great learning experience that was.  

Well that was 22 years ago, I don't know if I can say that it was a great learning experience but it was something that we learned to work through together and brought Dustin and I closer in the early stages of our marriage.

As I have been coming through the hurt from my experience in 2018 and moving into the healing stage I have been reading through past entries in my journal.  Here is an excerpt from May 2019:

How often we get in the spiral of confusion and we don't know how to move forward.  Sitting in confusion gets comfortable and then we feel that there is no way to make a decision so we choose not to make a decision.  Then we get stuck and then we just don't know how to move forward.

I can remember writing this journal entry.  I was suffering in silence at this point.  I didn't want to admit my struggle to anyone because I didn't want to feel shame or to be judged.  I chose to continue to suffer for months with so much inner turmoil.  I didn't pray because I thought God didn't care, when I did speak to Him there was so much anger in my voice, and hatred in my words.

The inner turmoil was that I felt like something was missing, that there was more going on in this situation and I didn't understand.  I longed to return to the scriptures and to listen for that still small voice but I couldn't get the thought that this "message from God" I received - told me that I wasn't wanted by God and I had no place teaching in His name.

I carried this feeling of rejection for a long time.  We are all searching to understand who we are and how we fit into this world.  I had lost my place and I started to change.  I must have so many people confused on my Instagram account because I keep changing my name and the content so much.  Sorry about that.  I have been trying to find my way.

The title of this post is hurting to healing.  I have been hurting for a long time.  My thoughts have been so negative and the deep wound of hurt is going to take time to heal.  But I am starting to heal.  I am starting to find my way back.  I am starting to feel more like myself again.

I am thankful for friends that I was able to have a safe place to share, they support me in prayer, and encourage me to open my Bible everyday.  My healing is found in the scriptures.

I will continue to share my journey here.  I know when I was struggling I didn't know where to go for help.  I hope that I am able to give support to those that don't know where to go or who to talk to.  

Seriously why did I not know about this! 

It took a trip to the ER because I thought my uterus was falling out to find out what was happening to me!  Perimenopause no joke and so many deal with this without knowing it is coming in order to prepare themselves.  Seriously start stocking up on personal supplies now because you will use the whole supply in one day.

I don't want to freak anyone out but I have talked to so many women my age and have found out this is so common. 

You should have seen the poor male triage nurses' face when I ended up in the ER.  He looks at me and says, "You are here because you are having your period?"  I look at him like the young naïve man that he is and tell him that my uterus is falling out and I have been having my period for over three weeks and I have gone through a six month supply of pads and tampons.  He still doesn't understand and I end up waiting in the ER for five hours.  Finally, I was brought in and put in a room and my female doctor comes in and I tell her my tale and she starts an IV immediately, orders blood tests, and started a magnesium drip.  Thank God for Canadian health care.  My test results come back showing that I was incredibly anemic.  Which would be why I was sleeping all - the - time. 

One of the first questions my Doctor asked was how my Mother experienced menopause - not really a subject that ever came up.  This was all new territory for me, I had no idea what my body was going through.  But if you have experienced this than you know if you know - if you know what I mean.

Honestly I don't understand how it works - it just does. It ​contains pure frankincense, bergamot, and peppermint essential oils.  It's all natural - from plants!
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I don't sell Young Living, I just have an account to purchase products for myself.  If you know someone that sells Young Living contact them about this miracle oil and order it.  If you want a link to purchase it you can click below to my link.  I just signed up to get the diffuser and some beginner oils and then added the progessence oil.  I have been using it for two months now and I have only used a 1/3 of the bottle.  Honestly, how effective it has been for me, I would buy it monthly if I had to.  Best investment ever!

So there it is, probably more than you want to know about me.  But is a something that needs to be shared - I'm all about helping others.  Enjoy!​