Seven Daily Habits

7 daily habits, that will change your life;
1 – wake up 
2 – complain less
3 – teach others
4 – roll with change
5 – be on time
6 – practice kindness
7 – stay positive

Just How Do I Define Invisible Illness…….I Do It By #lightingtheflame 🔥

So how do I define invisible illness; I could say it’s an illness or disability that is hidden or not apparent, but that doesn’t even begin to define what some of these illnesses really are, or how they impact the many millions that live with them everyday. You see, some people with sight or hearing disabilities may not wear glasses or hearing aids, BUT they are invisibly disabled.  Someone that may have to sit day in, day out because they have chronic back or joint problems sitting, can be categorised as having a invisible impairment. Invisible disability/ illness creates so many challenges for the people that live with them. There are so many more examples that I could give to define a invisible disability. The reality of invisible illness or disability, is that they can be so difficult for others to recognise or acknowledge. This makes it  difficult to understand the cause of the problem or problems, because they can’t see evidence of it in a visible way. So these invisible conditions have been captured under an umbrella term that captures the whole spectrum of hidden disabilities, known as ‘invisible illnesses’. Having so many illnesses and conditions under the one umbrella, means it is so hard to decipher and diagnose what is actually happening to a person that presents with unseen symptoms.

People with invisible illnesses can find it difficult to  make others understand how their  symptoms of such things as extreme fatigue, dizziness, pain, can be so debilitating.  This misunderstanding, will in many cases be met with hostility, judgement and stigma by the bigger community and world.

People living with invisible illnesses and chronic pain are often accused of faking or imagining their disabilities. These symptoms are real, they can occur due to bouts of chronic illness, chronic pain, injury, birth disorders, they can even just come out of the blue and most importantly are not always obvious to the onlooker.

 Many millions of people around the world, have a medical condition which could be considered a type of invisible illness or disability. Let me explain it this way, there are many that have a chronic medical condition of one kind or another, some of these people are not considered to be disabled, as their medical conditions do not impair their normal everyday activities. These people do not use an assistive device and most look and act healthy. So I’ve explained one side of illness invisibility, this is the other side, the side that causes and increases what can be debilitating physical or mental impairment that can lessen one or more major life activity.  

It saddens me that when somebody sees a person in a wheelchair, wearing a hearing aid, or carrying a white cane, it tells us a person is impaired in some way. But for people living with invisible illness and/or disability living is a bit more difficult for many people in the world to acknowledge. 

Invisible illness and disability can and do significantly impair normal activities of daily living.
Examples of Invisible illness Disability vary, here are just a few;

• Chronic Pain can be the cause from a variety of conditions. A few reasons for chronic pain may be because of back problems, bone disease, physical injuries, and many more reasons. Chronic pain may not be clear to people who do not understand the specific medical condition.
• Chronic Fatigue is a type of disability that refers to an individual who constantly feels tired. This can be extremely debilitating and affect every aspect of a persons every day life. It is totally invisible to the greater community.
• Mental Illness is a term for many illnesses of the mind. Examples are depression, attention deficit disorder, schizophrenia, agoraphobia, bipolar and the list goes on. These illnesses can also be completely debilitating to the person suffering and can make performing everyday tasks extremely difficult, if not impossible.
• Chronic Dizziness is often associated with problems of the inner ear, chronic dizziness can lead to impairment when walking, driving, working, sleeping, and other common tasks.

I hope you are beginning to see that being invisibly ill, effects many areas of health which effects many areas of life. Many people living with a hidden physical or mental challenge are still able to be active in their hobbies, work and even be active in sports, but their are others that struggle just to get through their day and cannot work at all. 

I want us all to be able to come together in understanding the true level of invisible illness and disability. Because, when we do we will truly begin to see awareness and support bringing better research and thus treatments. 

I will finish today with a list of invisible illnesses that I’ve been creating to show the world just how wide the umbrella is…….but even I may have forgotten some. If I have, please let me know and I will add your illness/disability to the list;

INVISIBLE ILLNESSES 

ADHD

Anxiety disorders

Allergies

Arachnoiditis

Asperger Syndrome

Asthma

Autism

Bipolar disorder

Brain injuries

Chronic fatigue syndrome

Chronic pain

Chromosome Duplication

Chromosome Triplication

Coeliac Disease

Conversion Disorder 

Crohn’s disease

Depression

Diabetes

Ehlers Danlos Syndrome

Endometreosis

Epilepsy

Fibromyalgia

Food allergies

Fructose malabsorption

Functional Neurological Disorder 

Hypoglycemia

Inflammatory bowel disease

Interstitial cystitis

Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Lactose Intolerance

Lupus

Lyme Disease

Major depression

Metabolic syndrome

Migraines

Multiple Sclerosis

Multiple Chemical Sensitivity

Myasthenia Gravis

Narcolepsy

Personality disorders

Primary immunodeficiency

Psychiatric disabilities

Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy

Repetitive stress injuries

Rheumatoid arthritis

Sarcoidosis 

Schnitzler’s Syndrome

Schizophrenia

Scleroderma

Seizures 

Sjogren’s syndrome

Transverse Myelitis

Ulcerative Colitis

Invisible illness and/or disability creates challenges for the people who have them. I’ve said it before and I will say it again and again, the reality of these conditions can be difficult for others to recognise or acknowledge. You may not even understand the cause of the problems, because you cannot see evidence of it in a visible way. So, I say to you – YES, YOU out there in the big wide world, if you can’t see something, how can you judge it! Let’s begin walking together supporting those that are impacted by the many forms of invisible illness. Let’s raise awareness and bring about more real life research so better information and treatments can be formulated to change the way we all see and relate to invisible illness and disability.

If you’ve liked this post, please let me know and if we haven’t connected on social media, let’s do so here;

http://www.facebook.com/TheBarefootGoddessAU

http://www.twitter.com/just_1_goddess

http://www.instagram.com/the__barefoot__goddess

Much love to you all
TBG 💋

Healing – WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT!!??

Healing, WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT!!??

I got your attention, didn’t I! 

But, truly this is a question that I’ve asked myself many times and it’s the question that many people ask me because, when you live with chronic pain, illness and disease, healing is an unanswered question! 

Simply, though healing is the process of becoming sound or healthy again after a period of illness and/or darkness. Healing is a gift and everyone has the right, to receive it. Once you begin to receive this gift that healing is,  you learn that it is a complete and beautiful process. When in the full process, healing allows a flow of energy, that deals with ‘illness and disease’ at its most deepest level and frees you to work in and with yourself most effectively, so that gets you true and profound results.

So stepping into profound healing helps us with the range of conditions, that we are endeavouring to step out of. It is also a process of relaxation, which helps our bodies to heal authentically and very vulnerably at its own pace and in its own way. When we find true and profound healing, we find the cause of all our pain and suffering and that let’s us release so much, pent up emotional, physical and mental damage. 

Healing is about restoring balance in health and life and therefore is about expressing feelings, allowing us the process of being able to fully connect with the ground that we stand in, letting us regain the control that we need at any particular time of life whether we are in crisis or not.

So working out how we commit to healing is the question. If we are experiencing true healing for the first time we may need more time to learn how to relax into the process and enjoy the full benefit. As we step into that healing, we dabble into a variety of philosophies and resources and it is about trusting that process and learning as we go. 

So, whatever, the process is that we take with healing,  it is so important to keep contact with existing doctors especially if we have conditions that require mainstream medical treatment. Healing complements all conditions (mainstream & alternative) and it is about allowing positive benefits into life’s challenges and experiences. 

This thing called healing is gentle and will never do harm when you allow it to do what it needs too, so step in, take a deep breath and let the process take you on its journey. So my question to you now, is ‘have you connected into a healing  process that helps you’? For those that have not found a healing process that works you may be interested in a upcoming challenge that I am launching that helps you begin the healing process. This will be found on my Facebook business page at http://www.facebook.com/TheBarefootGoddessAU but I will also be sharing more and more healing tips across on my other social media channels;

http://www.twitter.com/just_1_goddess

http://www.instagram.com/the__barefoot__goddess

Whatever the path is that we walk, we all have the right to receive the gift of healing- so let us make sure we do.

Much love

TBG 💋

Childhood Adversities Do Cause Chronic Illness…..

I’ve lived with chronic illnesses for more than 15 years…….well actually longer than that. Some of these illnesses were able to be treated adequately, many others untreated because even medical practitioners were not able to best understand how the illnesses were affecting me. This left me feeling let down and more and more alone. I kept walking the journey looking for ways to be healthy but this path is difficult, wiping out all facets of normal living. It was last year after my rheumatologist pushed me over the edge, that I couldn’t take it any more – YES, I attempted suicide! 

That suicide attempt was actually a positive and the first key that gave me the steps to true healing. The circumstances of last year allowed more reviews of my health and it was then that a neurologist sat with me and asked me a very  important question and one that would begin a new journey to better health that I hadn’t known for years perhaps ever. The question was “Do you remember any childhood trauma’s or stresses”? Well, my answer was easy – “ fuck yes , excuse my language” 

This specialist went on to explain to me that adversity in childhood can lead to a chronic state of fight and flight which creates levels of toxic inflammation and illness. Researchers have found that when stress hormones flood the  body and brain of a child, they alter the genetic makeup and basically re-set the stress response to “high” for life. So I was beginning to get answers to why high levels of inflammation manifested into cancers, autoimmune illnesses and neurological disorders like mine. 

This new research is fabulous, because it gives evidence of how a life time of physical, mental and emotional abuse can severely impact adult health. The percentages of people experiencing adverse childhood experiences are high and yes, include the obvious sexual and physical abuse, but even stress with growing up with divorced parents, mentally ill parents and having a parent who belittled you, increases the likelihood of being diagnosed with serious illness as adults. This research is showing that when medical practitioners acknowledge and discuss patients’ childhood traumas openly, their patients find healthcare that significantly reduces a need for doctor visits, because they can heal. The negative is that despite this very important and positive research, linking childhood stress to adult chronic health, the majority of the medical community acts as if these findings don’t exist, making it difficult for patients to validate health issues and find help to heal. Perhaps the bulk of our mainstream medical practitioners fear teaching this new research as it will open the door to bringing psychology into the medical treatment room.

As, one patient that has walked the plank with chronic illnesses for way too long, now learning that a lot of my childhood stresses have been why I became so ill, is also why I now stand up and speak out as a advocate for better healthcare. What is needed is  a global awareness campaign. This global awareness campaign would be to educate  medical practitioners and the general public on just how childhood trauma can cause chronic adult illness. Once this can be achieved, we can truly help those who feel paralysed by their past, so that they can achieve the healthy lives they deserve.

 I know having a medical practitioner that considered my mind and body very important, gave me trust about learning how certain mental and physical health tools could assist causes and symptoms of some of my long term health issues. This gave me such a profound revelation in how my childhood had caused a destructive chronic health downturn, but it also finally helped me to begin to truly heal mentally, physically and emotionally. 

With this research linking childhood adversity to chronic adult illness being used more openly by our medical community, think of how much money we might save in our health care system, if we seriously consider the role that past trauma plays in medical illnesses, instead of waiting a lifetime for it to show up in difficult to treat illnesses and diseases that ruin lives sometimes permanently. More and more, medical research is recognising proven interventions for recovering from trauma, even years after events have occurred so please help me as I build what I want to be the biggest global awareness campaign that is going to change the way we assist chronic illness health treatments around the world.

I would love for you to like and share this post and if you haven’t connected with me, please do so on my social media channels;

http://www.facebook.com/TheBarefootGoddessAU

http://www.twitter.com/just_1_goddess

http://www.instagram.com/the__barefoot__goddess
Much love

TBG 💋

Essential Oils; Mankinds First Real Medicine…

Across modern time, humans very often have looked for healing tools in all the wrong places. The most powerful tools  for healing are found right here on the green fields of earth! Mother Nature knows more than we humans will ever know and she provides everything we could ever need to heal, maintain and protect our health. Something synthetic, made from chemicals in a lab will never work better than what nature creates.

 Essential oils were mankind’s first medicine. I have read that the practice of using essential oils dates back to ancient Egypt and even the bible references them, particularly with the oils of frankincense, myrrh, rosemary and hyssop being used to anoint and heal the sick and wounded.
Essential oils are liquids that have been distilled from plants, seeds, bark, leaves, flowers and fruit. 
Benefits of essential oils are endless and give an abundance of therapeutic and medicinal aid. Here are a list of the benefits that I’ve come up with;

• Essential oils contain little bubbles of oxygen (molecules) that help transport important nutrients to weakened cells. 
• Essential oils are powerful antioxidants.  Antioxidants create unfriendly environments for free radicals.
• Essential oils are antibacterial, antiviral and antiseptic. Essential oils have been proven to destroy bacteria and viruses and at the same time restore balance to the body. 
• Essential oils  have the ability to pass the blood-brain barrier, meaning they can be effective for treating brain injuries and diseases like Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, MS, functional neurological disorder just to name a few. This is why essential oils such as frankincense and sandalwood can help increase the amount of oxygen in the limbic system of the brain.
• Essential oils are aromatic, so when diffused they provide air purification and remove toxins in the air. They also increase ozone and negative ions in the air that inhibits bacterial growth.
• Essential oils help promote emotional, physical, and spiritual healing. Having diffusers running in my home I have noticed a definite rise in energy. My insomnia, fatigue and chronic illnesses have all been reduced since using the essential oils.
• Clinical research has been shown that essential oils can quickly raise the frequency of the human body, restoring it to a normal healthy level.

There are many ways to use essential oils. One way is to use them through topical applications. On waking, I apply them to all my pulse points in the morning, and I will  reapply them multiple times throughout the day. One of my favorite essential oils is Peppermint. The peppermint plant is a hybrid of watermint and spearmint and was first described by Carl Linneaus in 1753. A high menthol content like that found in the doTERRA Peppermint essential oil distinguishes the best quality Peppermint from other products. Using topically it allows for a immediate pick up. It helps focus and concentration. Place one drop in the palm of your hand and massage into the skin then inhale for a quick pick-me-up when ever required. It promotes healthy respiratory function and clear breathing.

 Using essential oil on feet is excellent because they are an area of the body that absorbs oils fast due to the large pores. Other quick absorbing areas are behind the ears and on the wrists.

 I’ve left diffusing oils to last because simply there are so many ways to diffuse. Firstly putting a few drops on a tissue and inhaling. You can dro a few drops into hot water and breathe the vapours in. You can put oils into a electric diffuser or use a oil burner. No matter how you diffuse, they are all great ways to utilise the benefits of essential oils. 

Essential oils are a journey that allows a beautiful healthy happy life in mind, body and soul. I wish you well in yours. If you would like more information please don’t hesitate to get in touch with me through email, harmonishakti@gmail.com or through my social media channels;

http://www.facebook.com/TheBarefootGoddessAU

http://www.twitter.com/just_1_goddess

http://www.instagram.com/the__barefoot__goddess

Sending an abundance of peace, love and natural healing to you all. ✌🏻❤️

TBG 💋

I’ve Been Gifted & Now I’m Gifting You, The Art Of Meditation….

Today I recorded my first set of healing meditations.

This has been a huge step for me, as it has put me on a platform of knowing that through mindful action I have learnt to control my inner most thoughts and it has set me on my newest path to determining a true quality of life.

Through meditation I have found the ability to control those words that nobody else can hear. By learning how to turn down or better turning off that inner voice, I’ve been able to shift not only my internal actions but also my external happenings. In doing this, I am improving my brain functions that have been severely impacted by a range of of chronic illnesses over many years.

Meditation heals and it has allowed me to go within my own self, learning how my thoughts, feelings and actions can be breathed clearly and freely without stress and judgement that the busyness of modern world gives.

Meditation changes lives and it has changed mine! It has brought me a new level of awareness and a form of gentle art that is changing the way I do things. It allows me a sense of positivity that absolutely brings me peace of mind through an internal light that has been switched on giving me so much happiness to my healing journey. This is why everyday I wake to meditation that sets the foundations to the rest of my day. To ensure my day stays as it starts I will stop for shortened meditation sessions. These shorter meditations are also great, if external stresses come flowing across life! Of course, just as I did when I awoke I also allow meditation in before I go to sleep. These moments of going inwards allows me to let go of all the daily thoughts and actions,  in readiness for my mind and body to rest.

Meditation has given me a gift that I shall always be grateful for and that’s why I would like to offer you the same gift. If you would like to try using meditation to help your healing journey please email me at harmonishakti@gmail.com
Much love 

TBG 💋

Please follow my social media channels;

http://www.facebook.com/TheBarefootGoddessAU

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Currently Sitting In Melbourne, Australia Raising The Volume For Me & You….

I am currently sitting in Melbourne, Australia pondering my path. That path has taken me on a long and winding journey! It’s been filled with pain, suffering and abuse – somehow squeezing the life out of me with multiple invisible illnesses that nearly destroyed me mentally, physically and emotionally! But, just as I thought the lights had gone out and the final curtains had fallen, I was given another chance at health and life!

That life, now sees me healing, recovering and building strength within me, so that I can also help others to heal and build strength in themselves too! 

In healing myself and others, I am also awakening my dreams of educating the greater world about what it’s like to be ill with health conditions that nobody sees and very few understand. This education process that I am embarking on is going to be ground breaking awareness like the world has never seen and in successfully doing this, I am going to breakdown the stigma that hurts everyone of us that lives with or who has lived with and particularly for the special souls that lost their lives because they couldn’t go on!

My life in recovery, is filled with daily strolls along the sandy shores with my beautiful husband, doing yoga and meditation, speaking up to inspire and motivate the millions of women (and men) that live with these chronic health conditions! I fill my days teaching the importance of living mindfully and happily with inner health. My journey is about intuitive and holistic living using mindfulness, essential oils and clean nutrition and as I now wander around the globe my tribe grows and becomes bigger and stronger. The Barefoot Goddess foundation is going to be world renowned in the work it does for healing and educating the world about invisible and mental illness and in doing so I will be reducing and quite possibly eliminating suicide!

I no longer play small, because the world and its goddesses need the barefoot goddess!

This is my life and I do it for everyone of you that are living with the hardship of invisible and mental health! Walk with me by connecting with me on my social media channels;

http://www.facebook.com/TheBarefootGoddessAU

http://www.twitter.com/just_1_goddess

http://www.instagram.com/the__barefoot__goddess

Let’s walk together raising the volume and breaking down stigma and throughout the journey living the lives that we love!
Much Love

TBG 💋

Stick Your Affirmations Out Into The World….

Affirmations are our guides to changing health and life in every aspect! You can support your own wellness too, just by creating and using your own personal affirmations!

I’ve learnt from personal experiences, what happens when what i think and tell myself has either supported or undermined my health and my life’s journey. Positive thoughts,  speech and feelings have helped my immune system become stronger allowing my healing to become as I want. 

So what are affirmations? An affirmation is basically a positive statement of what you wish to be true, stated as if it is true. Affirmations are a powerful method for linking the mind and body connection, creating realities for our inner most self.

Saying to myself  everyday , “for me to heal, I need to do what I’ve never ever done before” was my first affirmed statement that I used to find a true healing regime and I can tell you it helped me speed up my healing and even boosted my health and immune system.  I began writing my affirmations onto sticky notes and stuck them everywhere- on my purse, my walls , fridge, mirror – everywhere! By seeing them, i began to believe what I was reading, what I was seeing! I continue to do this everyday and what I affirm, is what becomes! It’s the secret to my health and life success!

So how do you start crafting your own positive affirmations, well simply be specific to your own life’s desires. Here are a few ideas to get you started;

• Keep them simple. 
• State things in a positive way.
• Whenever you see your positive statement, say it out loud or perhaps journal about it each day.
• Stay strongly connected to your affirmation.

Have a go at writing and acting out your own affirmations and remember that perseverance and repetition are the keys for affirmations to become your reality! 

If you like or resonate with my words give me a like or even a share! Perhaps even connect with me across on social media;

http://www.facebook.com/TheBarefootGoddessAU

http://www.twitter.com/Just_1_Goddess

http://www.instagram.com/the__barefoot__goddess

Always remember life is about hope, healing and chasing life!

TBG 💋

Meditation, You Are My Intimate Friend….🙏🏻

Tonight, as most nights I sat with stillness – yes meditation AND can I tell you what I deciphered is that my meditation is sitting intimately with thy self saying hello beautifully and blissfully. 
Being able to develop and create such a internal connection is a special kind of inner relationship that leads me to being able to make amazing magic in life, despite the crippling hurdles that have been met.
I say to you, if you are struggling take a moment or maybe a few and let the journey with mindfulness take you away. Let it take you to you, through your breathe in every beat! What you will find is a friendship like no other AND it’s a friendship that can greet you whenever you choose to take its hand…..
Are you ready?
If you like my rambles, be sure to give me a like and maybe a share. Also connect with me across on my social media channels;

http://www.facebook.com/TheBarefootGoddessAU

http://www.twitter.com/Just_1_Goddess

http://www.instagram.com/the__barefoot__goddess

Stay healthy, mind, body & soul,

Harmoni 💋

My Why, My How….They Keep Me Awake, They Keep Me Alive!

I should be sleeping or at least resting but something inside me is burning! That something could be the radiation filtering within me, doing its job to kill of angry malignant cells within my brain and the ever growing tumour.

BUT it’s not…….

That something is my desire to do something, so bright for this world and it is becoming my most highest value in and of my whole entire life! 

I have many that inspire me BUT nobody has to motivate me anymore-that’s now deep within my cells.
I keep coming up with many new ways of doing it. New ways of showing the world how to never give up! New ways of educating myself and the world. My why is so big that my how’s are now also taking care of themselves and for so long it was those that held me back!

If you know your why, don’t be afraid of the how’s! Journal with rambled notes, affirmations and intentions and as you keep wandering, walking and working you will align that very why with the how and even the when!
Just do it, I do and it finds the way!

I hope if you like my ramblings, you will like and share my words. Also please connect with me on my other social media channels;

http://www.facebook.com/TheBarefootGoddessAU

http://www.twitter.com/Just_1_Goddess

http://www.instagram.com/the__barefoot__goddess
Wandering Towards Wellness Globally!
The Barefoot Goddess 💋