No matter who you are or how good your life is, shit happens. Soul-Driven Sorceress or not, things fall apart. Something throws a monkey wrench into the works or comes out of left field and blows things out of the water. And you're left thinking what the hell happened and what do you do now. You can relate, right? We've all experienced the madness.
Recently, I found myself in one of those spaces where things went from bad to worse.
If you're new here or don't follow me on social media, you may not have heard about my mother-in-law and her Alzheimer's. It has been getting to be a struggle taking care of her on a daily basis. Then, the situation escalated, and did so in major fashion.
First, I had to leave work because she flooded their house. Near as we can tell, she mistook the toilet for the washing machine and stuffed a pair of pants in it. She then panicked and flushed multiple times. When Lance got there, over an inch of standing water was in the bathroom. It had also spread to the pantry next door, the hall, and the bedroom across the way. That resulted in us having to call a flood abatement company to come out and take care of the situation. After speaking with them, all of the carpet and linoleum in the area needed to be removed, as well as the insulation under those areas, and then replaced.... to the tune of about $6000!
But wait, it gets worse....
No sooner did we leave to head back home, when dad calls to say mom's fallen. We double back to find her collapsed in the walk-in closet. She's hit her head and is complaining of pain in her shoulder, back, and hip. Fast forward to the ER and we find out she broke her hip. Now, we're juggling home repairs, orthopedic surgery, where to get mom into rehab, what to do with dad, and what are the short- and long-term implications. Oh, and there's canceling the surprise birthday party we had planned for them. The one with 45 plus family members coming in from as far away as Oklahoma. Everyone needed to be notified, and the catering and venue canceled. To say it was a shit show is putting it mildly!
It isn't easy to gather your wits about you when your life goes tits up and you're standing knee deep in crapola.
But, if I've learned one thing, it's that being a Soul-Driven Sorceress helps. Here's why...
You're more connected with your intuition/higher self which allows you to see things from a different perspective, as well as know which direction to pivot, provided you pay attention to it.
You can recognize the deeper meaning behind the situation or, at least, connect with Spirit for answers.
You know how to shift yourself into more joy by actively initiating activities that feed your soul.
But what if you're not a Soul-Driven Sorceress yet? What can you do when you're in struggle mode? Here are some tips to help you out...
Sit down with paper and pen. Ask Spirit/The Universe/God/Goddess or whatever higher power you believe in to explain the why of your situation. Write down everything that pops in your head.
Ask a trusted friend, advisor, or mentor for their perspective on what's happening.
Jot down a few of the things you love to do that don't take up a lot of time and do them!
Spend some extra time on yourself. When you're stressed out is when you need quality self-care the most.
Let yourself feel all the emotions that come up for you. Scream. Cry. Let it all out. Then be gentle with yourself. No self-flagellation. No beating yourself up.
Oh, and the biggest one of all, ask for HELP if you need it!
Life happens. When shit hits the fan you have two choices: wallow in the muck or dig yourself out of it. When you're a Soul-Driven Sorceress, you know YOU get to CHOOSE whether it makes you or breaks you. You control the outcome. So, get back up and keep plugging.
As for mom, the message I received was that Lance and I were struggling with the need to put her in Assisted Living, so Spirit decided to step in and do it for us. (It's not always easy to make the best decisions when you're emotionally invested in the outcome. It's so easy to overcomplicate and overthink things.)
The flood abatement team finished their work. Mom went to a rehab facility. A contractor came in and completed the home repairs. The catering companies and venue were sympathetic and let us cancel without penalty. We are in the process of getting Dad some help at home. And Lance and I continue to figure the rest out as we go because, in the end, that's all any of us can do. One day at a time...
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