Utopia – the name of a fictional island possessing a seemingly perfect socio-politico-legal system as described by Sir Thomas Moore in 1516. A world which everything and everyone works in perfect harmony.

Now we know that Utopia/health/wellbeing has a different meaning for each and every individual.

Please consider the Health Belief Model from the 1950s.

http://www.ohprs.ca/hp101/mod4/module4c3.htm

Do you see that perception is important? Individuals have life experiences that have culminated to this point in time where each and every person has a different perception of what is happening based on their own beliefs. When we take the time to determine what the individual’s perceptions are we can then facilitate positive change by acknowledging those beliefs.

“But I don’t have time to do my job now. How can I possibly fit this in? I can’t make people quit smoking or check their sugar or go shopping with them and make sure they don’t buy bacon or Doritos!”

No, you can’t. Even if you tried you would likely burn out and probably quit your job.

Recently I was quoted as saying that there should be a public service announcement that goes out to the population explaining how we are changing practice and why. I have been beating the drum of what we should be doing for a long time now. Instead of focusing on what I do want, I have been beating the drum of what I don’t want. For those of you who believe in the Law of Attraction, you know that this never works.

This is my attempt at clarifying what I do want. When I was first guided to ask myself this question, I was befuddled. I never remember consciously considering what I wanted. I feel like most decisions and behaviors were shaped by shame, guilt or obligation. I was a work-a-holic and numbed myself with staying very busy. I did not have time for the luxury of having fun.

After months and months of cleaning up what feels good and what doesn’t feel good through cleanses, body work, meditation, mindfulness and practice, practice, practice, it became crystal clear that what mattered to me most felt like freedom; freedom to make decisions that help me feel better, freedom to travel, freedom to enjoy my husband and my kids, freedom to paint, garden or cook, freedom to watch really sappy movies or take long baths, freedom to live simply but with purpose and intention and freedom to spend time with positive people who do meaningful work and who I can trust.

Utopia to me feels like comfort, feels like ease, feels like freedom, feels like abundance, feels like appreciation, feels like love, feels like joy, feels like freedom to feel all of these things.

So how do I trust myself to make the right decision? By seeing how it feels. What thought or behavior helps me feel better and why? What are my long held beliefs? Are they still true? Is it what I want for myself?

I spent time creating a workshop called “Feel Better”. The recording is 2 hours long and available at http://www.allteam.org Some of you may have attended a workshop in person. I am grateful for that.

Can you describe your Utopia? In the following posts I will be describing the step-by-step method that I used to feel better and take control of my own health and wellbeing. Friends and family may be confused by all the changes. It has been quite an evolution and I never meant to be cryptic or mysterious. I have simply been doing the work instead of talking about it. I apologize if anyone has felt slighted. If you are interested, this story helps me share the hard stuff with individuals who may have been following the same rules I did. It is my attempt at being vulnerable without judging myself. People who know me well have heard me say “it is what it is”. “You don’t know what you don’t know until you know it”. “You make the decisions you make at the time you make them because it was the best decision at that time”.

I now trust myself to make decisions that are in alignment with my own intuition. Practicing these strategies have instilled a sense of hope that I did not think possible.

I am living in a state of appreciation.