Our next self-reflection question in this category is: "What is my purpose?" Always a loaded question and one that brings many people to therapy. Sometimes it comes from a point in crisis; when we begin to ponder existentially why we are here. Sometimes it comes into our thoughts as we often encounter this question in the books we read or the shows we watch. It can be a frustrating question when we can't link passion with purpose, or a futile question when people around us ap

Sometimes I wonder: "If you could give your younger self one piece of advice, what would it be?" Although it is not lost to me that part of my response to this question comes from aging, maturity and gained experience, I would still say that given the chance to tell my younger self a piece of advice, it would most likely be "Be true to yourself." I can look back and see that I didn't always do that. Sometimes it was knowing that something felt off, yet I stayed in the safety

Last week in our self-reflection series, we explored the lessons we have learned about ourselves from the difficulties we have faced in our life. That got me to thinking about: What have I learned about myself from my moments of pure joy? My experiences of bliss? By the time my girls and I got to Gunstock Mountain Resort in New Hampshire for our zip lining experience, I had already ziplined a few times. Mostly on excursions on our trips south, the ziplines were manageable and

When we think about our current circumstances of trying to navigate through a pandemic, it can bring to mind other times in our lives when we have faced challenges or difficult situations. This can lead us to reflect on the question: "What have I learned about myself through the difficulties I have faced in my life?" My immediate reaction to this question lies somewhere in the answer of resilience. Overall, the challenges in my life have made me stronger, and yet why is that?

Our next question in our self-reflection series is: How do I want my life to look versus how do I want it to feel? This is an interesting question as it lands smack down in the middle of our consumer-driven, keep-up-with-the-Jones' societal messages. Our instinct might bring us to think about the house we live in or the car we drive, the brand names on our clothes or having 'the best' of something. This is how our life looks to others. And yet how it feels is a better in

Today's self-reflection question coincides with yesterday's blog post: "What lesson have you learned from being a parent?" When our oldest daughter was two and a half years old, we moved her from a crib to a toddler bed. A cute, little bed that was perfect for her - and that is when her sleeping issues began. I don't know if it was leaving the safety of the crib (although that is my best guess), but night after night, I would eventually hear her little feet tromping into our

In our continuing series of questions to reflect on, today we explore the thought: "Write about the place you call home." When I think about the current home that I live in, I think about its peace. I have views of the forest and the river. I love the grounded elements that we chose in terms of colour and texture; the walls and shelves feature treasures from all of our travels. I share my home with my loving and supportive partner, and my gentle and soulful-faced Great Dane.

There are times in our lives that we can look back with regret. Perhaps we wish we could take back something we said or did; perhaps we left something unsaid, perhaps we wish we could have done something and now it is too late. "If given the opportunity, what would you go back and rewrite?" I appreciate the way this question is worded as it implies that our story includes choice. Perhaps there is a wrong that can be righted, or we can set a goal in relation to a regret. Mine

This question is for all the people pleasers; it's for those of us who have trouble with the word "No," and can tend to take on too much as a result. "Am I honouring myself while serving others?" Very often, we can become people pleasers because of our internal need to give; to take care of - hence the propensity to say "yes." When we feel naturally inclined to help; we get meaning and purpose from serving others. This is a lovely quality and one that we don't want to comprom

Today's self-reflection question is one that feels timely to me: "What is life asking of me?" Right now, I would answer that by saying that life right now is asking that I keep things simple . Working from home and keeping up a routine that allows me to get outside and feel refreshed. Daily prayer in the morning, walks with Cricket, finding time to read, cooking supper every evening, drives for a DQ treat, shows in the evening with Kurt. Life is asking that I stay in touch w

In our self-reflection series, we move to Question 12: "What are my small victories this week?" Based on our current climate of social distancing and staying at home, it is important to recognize our small victories. Mine include: not eating the rest of my birthday cake in one sitting. (This is actually a big victory as it was double chocolate.) having a positive attitude about postponing my birthday plans on Sunday. (We are all doing our part!) figuring out the technical sid

When we look back at what has shaped us, we can ask ourselves this question: "Who has had the greatest impact on my life?" We all have pivotal people. We have people who have shaped us, influenced us, helped to move us in direction. There are times when the answer is easy and we are able to list those who have loved us unconditionally and who have supported us in our growth. But there are times when the person who has impacted us has done so in unhealthy ways; where the impa

Here is the next question in our Self-Reflection series: "When did I last push the boundaries of my comfort zone?" When my girlfriends and I turned 40, we headed to Anna Maria Island in Florida for a long weekend. Part of our adventures that weekend was the suggestion by Kim that we try parasailing, but the caveat was that we all had to go - which for my friend Tara and I was out of our comfort zone. After some deliberating, it was decided that we would go; Tara and I would

Today's self-reflection question taps into what we have learned in our lifetime. The growth that we continue to experience as we age, will bring to us knowledge about ourselves and the way we process the world. The question: "What are five things I have learned?" will likely change as we enter different stages of our life. As a 48 year old, here are my answers: I have learned that despite who surrounds us, has shaped us, or continues to love us - we are for ourselves, the gre

Yesterday's post looked at some self-reflection questions for 2020, today we look at some gratitude prompts for 2019. Taking time to jot down our answers reminds us that even in our challenges of the year, we have found moments to be grateful for: A memory I am grateful for: A person in my life this past year who made a difference to me: A change in the past year that I am grateful for: A strength of mine that I am thankful for: Something that comforted me in the past year: S

Coming upon the turn into a new year, we often begin thinking about New Year's Resolutions. This post is similar, but instead are listed a series of simple statements that we can use as smaller stepping stones to bigger goals: A book I'd like to read: A movie or TV series I would like to re-watch: A self-care activity I would like to increase: A new food I would like to try: A new place I would like to visit: A creative activity I would like to try: A healthy habit I would li

Today, in our ongoing series of self-reflection questions (the rest can be found in the categories section), we focus on: "Am I achieving the goals that I've set for myself?" Soon we will be entering a new year. As 2020 approaches, we can begin to ask ourselves if we have been working towards the goals we have set for ourselves. Sometimes those goals come in the form of New Year's resolutions; other times they may have been goals that are more general in nature such as "I wan

In our ongoing series of self-reflection questions, we come to this one: "Have I made someone smile today?" It is not difficult to get caught up in the activity of our day - routines to stick to, timelines to make, we have to get the kids to their activities, suppers to prepare and houses to neaten. Sometimes we rush from our homes to our jobs and back to our homes again. If we are stretched too thin, we run the risk of becoming frayed; leaving us feeling drained and hardly i

Today's question deals with our past: "Am I holding onto something I need to let go of?" Past hurts, resentments, feelings towards someone. Past failures, regrets, mistakes. Emotional ties to an ex, emotional ties to someone that has hurt or mistreated us or a loved one. We all have instances in our past in which we are given the opportunity to hold onto things. The bigger question is "Have we allowed them to stew?" Ultimately this self-reflective question is not about the p

Today's self-reflection question is an interesting one: "Does it really matter what others think of me?" Interesting because I would say that the answer is "It depends." If we tend to suffer from low self-confidence or self-worth, we can often spend far too much time worrying about what other people think of us. We begin to fear that others are judging us, which can lead to denying invitations to social functions or gatherings. If we tend to lean into perfectionist tendencies