Now it’s coming to the end of the year, it’s a great time to self-reflect, to appreciate all the opportunities you have been given to learn from the experiences you have had this year, good or bad, and also, most importantly, the things you can be grateful for.

What are the positives YOU can take from 2018? What can you be grateful for? What things have gone right for you this year and would you love to continue into 2019?

For me, it’s funny, just thinking about how things were a year ago, although I thought I had all the healthy eating stuff sorted out, there was much more to come over the course of the year as I developed a gluten intolerance, and have also cut a lot of dairy out of my diet and keep milk based products to a minimum – I still do love cheese and find that one hard to completely give up! What I eat really affects how I feel, which is why it’s so important to me to eat the right things that fuel my energy and keep my gut healthy.

I have really had to up my game when it comes to self-care this year, as there was still more work to be done with having to constantly manage my chronic pain and low energy… I discovered some great new ways of improving my energy and motivation, and more importantly, my self-belief!!!

I also discovered a spiritual side of me that I never knew existed, and never thought I would find growth mindset as fascinating as I do, something I am so passionate about that would incorporate everything I have learnt for almost 2 years since the beginning of my journey to self-discovery…

All the things I love to do that make me feel good inside, I have realised that I can make other people feel good too by simply sharing it, and there is so much more to learn too.

Nowadays, I am in a constant state of learning, embracing the student mentality and just going back to basics in my mind. I have also really been getting to know my own basic needs, and in doing this, I have grown to understand what other people like me might be lacking in their life, and am really passionate about making a difference in other people’s lives as I have seen first-hand (and felt) the difference in myself over this time, and would love for other people to experience the joy of growing their mindset too as it has been quite a fun ride though you do need to put the work into it every day and be consistent with it. I never realised quite how much I enjoy learning new things until recently, even if it is just little things!

When people talk about what it means to be creative, I have always thought I’m not good at art, but I never realised how much music could influence me as much as it has done, and I can do art, though I would never claim to be an artist, I’m just not good at creating something on paper from scratch, though I have recently discovered musical art which is fun.

I have also developed a love for writing and find it a really great way to express myself in the moments I get to myself to really think about what is whirling inside my head – I love getting things out of my head and onto paper, and then that feeling of looking back at what I wrote and then surprising myself with what I have come up with.

Plus it seems that I am really drawn to teaching, although it hasn’t always been that way… For years, I came up with many reasons for not being able to teach, including my hearing loss, which was a valid reason for me, but now, it just feels like it is something that comes natural to me, learning then implementing what I am learning to then teach others the same thing I have learnt myself, to INSPIRE other people… I never realised how much I am able and love to inspire people. I love that feeling when I know I have inspired people to make change based on something I have taught them – it’s amazing!

I also never realised how much I would enjoy just creating a course with all the materials I have absorbed, read, and practiced myself too in real life, to create something incredible that I hope will really make a difference in other people’s lives. Time will tell as I am developing the course, and seeing what kind of shape it will take, and working out how I can manage to fit it all into my hectic life with 3 kids, around all the life admin, chores and childcare!

All very exciting stuff that I am hoping to bring into 2019!!!