Sometimes reaching a point of sheer brokenness is what it takes to find our better, happier and healthier self. I am honored to welcome Shannon Marie to share her story.

Ready to take back control of your mind and your health so you can love the body you’re in? 

About 8 years ago, I woke up just like any other weekday. I got out of bed and began getting ready for my day. As I stood at the sink in the bathroom washing my face, I remember looking up and being startled, not even recognizing the woman looking back at me.

It shook me to my core and I remember falling to the floor, weeping, while I sat there. I begin crying out, asking how did I get here, how is this even possible, I just don’t understand, I remember begged and pleading with whoever was listening…why, how, please help me!  The night before my husband of 10 years asked for a divorce, and I didn’t blame him, my PCOS had caused so many things I was so ashamed of, weight gain, and no energy or desire to do all the things we once enjoyed doing together and then there were the many failed attempts to conceive. 

I remember as I cried on the floor, thinking to myself if I couldn’t recognize the woman looking back at me how could I expect him too? And if I didn’t love that woman looking back at me how could I expect him to love her! 

This mirror message that morning changed my life forever. I had spent a lot of time avoiding mirrors, I didn’t want to see how much weight I’d gained, I didn’t want to look in the mirror because when I did I saw failure, I saw someone who wasn’t good enough, who felt hopeless and wasn’t happy. I kept seeing her until I didn’t even recognize the woman I once knew.  I hid my pain, my tears, I hid how things were falling apart in my life and my marriage, and I hid it so well that most people in my life had no clue how badly I was struggling.  They had no clue about all of the awful things I was telling myself.  Until this day when it all came crashing down, literally on my bathroom floor, and I could no longer hide from the mirror message any longer. 

I knew at this moment, that I had to take back control of my life, my health, my mind, and my body. I knew that I didn’t want to feel this way for another day.  I knew it all started with my mindset and how I felt about myself, how I loved myself. I started working on myself, my mind and learning to love myself, I was finally able to take back control over my health, my mind, and my body.  As I begin to fall in love with myself all over again, the most amazing thing happened…so did my husband.  We were able to rekindle our marriage and went on to have a beautiful daughter.   

This story is not unique to me. I have met many other women that relate as if I’m telling parts of their story. Where in my story do you see yourself?  Where do you want to see change?  If you could rewrite your story, edit it or even change it altogether, what would that look like?  What would your mirror message say?

The good news is that you can because everything begins and ends with you, your thoughts, your emotions, your words they all become your reality. 

Once I allowed myself to be consciously aware of my thoughts, emotions, and words, I realized I could create a new reality and each and every time that I didn’t like the way things were or looked, I HAD the choice to reclaim what I really wanted and choose again.  

What are you choosing?  How can you choose different, to love yourself, to take back control of your health and love the body you are in? 

Here are 5 steps action steps to help you to regain control over your mind, your health, and your body!    

Get clear on what you really want?

What are your desires for your health, your body, and your life 

Why do you want this? What does it mean to you?

Example:  Let’s say you want to enter into a race or achieve a certain weight loss goal. Write the goal down and always incorporate how you would feel to achieve this goal. How would achieving this weight or fitness goal allow you to participate differently in life? What does it mean to you or why do you really want it.  Until we can connect this in our brains, we associate our desires with areas that we have failed this in the past. We need to rewire the brain and help it to understand why this is important to us and then remind ourselves daily that we can achieve where we take action. 

Write out 10 things that you want to experience or ways you can take back control of your health and your body.

Example: I’m going to commit to going to the gym 4 days a week, letting go of the outcome of weight loss and instead of knowing that a side effect of you going to the gym 4 days a week is that you are going to feel better and you are going to lose weight.

Be consciously aware of what you are saying in your thoughts and your emotions because they do create our reality. Shift your mindset when it doesn’t support your end desire.

Often, we focus on the things that are not working or are going wrong.  Example: instead of focusing on the thing you may be struggling with such as being overweight, instead of what if you told yourself that you are healthy and love the body you are in. This will help you to make better choices throughout the day and further support the new mindset healthy-self positive cycle!  

Envision yourself as the best version of you.

Journal about what your, best version self’s, ideal day, body, health looks like. Example if you were wanting to run a race, journal about how you prepared yourself and your body for it, signed up, and what you felt like on race day, how you were dressed, who was there supporting you, how you and your body felt once you accomplished running the race.  This also helps you think about all of the action steps you need to do to prepare for this big day, maybe it’s hiring a trainer, running daily to build up your strength and momentum to run this long.

Be constant in working on the things you desire for your life, health, and body.

Be a master of your masterpiece!   Plan for your health, your life and the body you desire.  Example: meal planning and prepping, hiring a coach or trainer to help you stay consistent and give you someone to be accountable too.  

At the end of the day, it’s not about the goal or the destination. It only matters if we found joy, fulfillment, and self-love in the journey. This mindset shift gives you back the control of your life and leads to being soulfully successful in all that you do.

Cheers to you and taking back control of your mind, your health and your body and loving the body you’re in!

Shannon Marie is a mama, wife, international bestseller and Success Coach.  Shannon is obsessed with helping women own their gift, awaken to their highest potential, authentically and confidently Show up & Shine in their lives and businesses so they can be soulfully successful!