There are no accidents.
Me popping into your inbox right this moment, you reading this post wherever you are, the weather where you live, that person who just phoned out of the blue…
There. Are. No. Accidents.
How do I know this? There are too many serendipitous reasons to list, but a few that spring to mind are the parallels of my podcast episode that dropped on Monday this week – “Living From The Neck Up” – and the experience I *just* had on my friend @jake_currie’s Instagram Live. (Here’s the direct link if you wanna watch it.)
Both of these experiences are centred around our body’s innate wisdom and the important role it plays in our often “neck-up” world. Next door to that are the Angel Cards I pulled straight after the IG live (beautifully related and perfect). And the list could go on, but this is not a Days Of Our Lives soap opera, so… Moving on…
Jake and I have been mates since 2019 when we both did TCP together (Jim Fortin’s Transformational Coaching Program) and learned that we have a lot in common – apart from being Aussies in a very USA/CA-heavy crowd – we both surf, take a driving role in our self-healing, and have been fascinated by and involved in personal development work for YEARS.
So why the IG Live?
The past few weeks I’ve encountered some randomly appearing/disappearing lower back pain, and the weirdness of it randomly coming and going – plus the fact that it has been quite resistant to treatment (stretching/osteo/yoga) – has led me to conclude that rather than having a physical root cause, this particular pain has an emotional/mental root cause.
I started a conversation with Jake about this earlier today, because this is his area of expertise. (Look him up: https://mindbodymasters.com) After explaining how I could work with him 1:1, he then generously offered to do a live coaching session on the ‘Gram, to which I promptly said “YES!” and during which, my mind was utterly blown.
In the space of about 20 minutes, I learned about how my subconscious mind has stored emotional and mental trauma in my body, and my lower back pain was the result of an emotional conflict between my emotions/thoughts, and my reality. From when I was about 20 years old. (Seriously.)
With Jake’s coaching, on this IG Live, I sat in awe as the process he led me through took my pain from a 5.5/10, acute, sharp, difficult to bend over kind of back pain, to a 1/10, barely perceptible, only slightly stiff movement at the edges of my back’s range of motion.
This is not a paid ad. But I love Jake and his work, and I’m so grateful to him I feel compelled to pay it forward with this write-up.
But even further than that, I want to impress upon you the power of our minds, and the power of our thoughts and beliefs to create our reality – even in our physical body!
While we were in our session I had 2 particular things come up that were emotionally linked to the back pain. The first one was the unexpected conflict I felt when I didn’t get supported at around ago 20 by my Dad, when I wanted to drop out of my IT degree and pursue something different. And the second was that I was now in a position where – like back then – I was dealing with a large degree of uncertainty, and needing to trust and rely on my own inner wisdom and guidance in my choices about how to move forward in my career as a coach.
One of the key parts of this that I’ve been working on in my meditation is returning to self-confidence, instead of the self-doubt gremlins that can assail us when we are building something new.
Which brings me to my Angel cards that I drew literally straight after the IG Live finished:
Card 1: Have Confidence. As if I need to explain this further, based on what I just shared about my meditation.
Card 2: Opportunity to Forgive. This is all about the conversation I had with Jake, about the lack of support I felt from my Dad in my 20’s, and that I now have the opportunity to forgive him in my mind and heart. (Of course I forgive my Dad! He’s no longer on the planet, but the forgiveness is still there, and benefits me.)
Card 3: Trustworthy Guidance. The ultimate assurance that my own inner wisdom has all the answers I need to move forward on the right path.
And finally, the latest episode of my podcast is all about “Living From The Neck Up“, instead of fully listening to and being in partnership with our bodies. What better evidence could I ask for, than my lower back reminding me and signalling to me that I need to release the emotional trauma from my 20’s, and embrace my own inner wisdom?!
There. Are. No. Accidents. !!
So let’s bring this all home.
It’s IMPOSSIBLE to live an Illuminating Life without ensuring our physical health and movement is pain-free and unrestricted. We are all on our own journey of health and wellbeing, but frankly I know how grumpy and out of sorts I get when I experience physical pain… and I imagine the same is true for you too.
So in order to live your most Illuminating Life, I have these two questions for you:
What are you tolerating with respect to pain and your physical health and wellbeing?
Where can you start making improvements, and who do you need on your side to help you on that journey of evolution and growth?
Jake is now officially on my team, along with a carefully curated group of amazing humans who support me and my health.
What about you? Who is on your team? Who do you lean on to help support your health and wellbeing?
Cos here’s what I know to be true: Our health, like the quality of our lives, is up to us. We are the ones who have ultimate responsibility for the quality of our physical body and life, and as fellow Illuminators, I encourage you to use that responsibility wisely and powerfully.
Until next week, friends!
With love and gratitude,
Israel. xo