What happened when I found Marie Kondo's book beneath a pile of books...and other 2022 surprises

It's a whole new year again. Wow, I can hardly believe we're here, can you?! Hello 2023.

I'm not sure about you, but a lot happened for me in 2022:

• I lost my dear clinical mentor (so unexpected and painful),

• sustained my own injury (also painful.. but always helps me relate to my patients),

• read about 60 books (never done that before),

• fully tidied my entire home Marie Kondo-style (definitely never did that before),

• and moved across the hall to a bigger, brighter clinic office space.

Oh, and I even found this super fun dress to wear for a winter white attire New Year's Eve neon party in Vail, and totally rocked it!

I sure learned a lot, grew a lot, even cleared a lot of space.

It's amazing all the stuff we can go through in a year.

And how valuable space can be.

Injuries, as I learned again for myself this year, can be times of forced-space-making. Allowing you to deal with things you might be neglecting by running off to work out all the time (raising my hand), or just need to go through, like grief.

I like to remind my patients when they first come in that this is a time of opportunity, like most frustrating and challenging things are.

I can't say I've ever been the type to clear and create space. I'm more of a clutter-is-my-middle-name kind of cat.

I've felt pretty darn comfy in my piles of notes and articles, full schedule of rushing to this or that, and leaving home for a 20 mile run rather than staying put to go through mail or, don't even say it, clean. I got into habits of prioritizing certain things during grad school.. aka not cleaning or mail.

But I did it, and it makes me want to holler a resounding “we can do hard things!” Thanks Brene, you're right, we can.

And it turned out to be so much more than dealing with piles of papers and an overflowing shoe closet. That Marie Kondo, she knows what she's talking about.

I discovered what I like, where I've been, and, well, who I am. Wow, I know, right.

In all this space, in my place and in my head, there was room for new stuff to come through.

New ideas, inspirations, and excitement, and that's what's been going on for me over the past few weeks. Writing, building, creating. It's kinda wild, actually, and I've been riding the humongous waves of inspiration as best I can.

I even said "YES" to a fancy schmancy winter white attire New Year's Eve neon party.

Instead of hanging in my PJs and hitting the pillow before the clock strikes 12 (a common NYE past time), I got weirdly excited, found this fun dress online, and totally rocked it at the party!

It's both surprising and delightful what can come through when there's space to see it.

It also gets me thinking about the body, ‘cause if you know me you know how I love my body analogies.

Your physical body, just like your home, benefits from space.

If clutter clouds your mind and efficiency in your home, then things like inflammation and muscle tension cloud the systems in your body, making it harder for them to function.

They can still function, just like I could still get around spare boxes or find that one sweater in my unorganized drawers, just not as well. Not at the optimum level of smoothness.

Or until they can't. Like plaque building up in the arteries over time and narrowing the tunnel, blood can still get through for awhile, until that pipe is too clogged and much bigger problems ensue.

When there is space in the body, nerve signals can get where they need to go without limitation, muscles can both contract and expand fully and with ease, your posture can be upright naturally and without pain, and blood can flow through to and from the heart.

Things just work more smoothly.

Like me, knowing exactly where to find and put my bodywork lacrosse ball every single day (I never really had that where'd-I-put-my-keys problem).

Ah, s p a c e….

Doesn't it just sound nice?

What comes to mind when you think about space? Any experiences with having, or not having enough of it?

How can you bring a bit more space into your life today? (Hint: you can simply take one intentional breath right now).

Wishing you a brilliant new year full of health, growth, and at least a little teeny

tiny bit more s p a c e ,

~ Lara

Also, have you signed up for my Heal. Listen. Learn newsletter yet?