Hi Reader!

Not that I needed the confirmation to be honest, but holy hell THE BODY IS AMAZING!

I had an absolutely wild experience back in April that just confirmed what I’ve always said but in like one of those holy crap, can’t deny, kind of ways?

So, I went home to Boston (Lexington if you want to get technical) for my mom’s dance recital, something I do every year. I usually get home on Wednesday, learn my dances Wed/Thurs then show time Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. So it snowed, like legit snowed, on Thursday APRIL 4th (?!) but that’s not the wild part. Friday morning, I woke up spinning. No, there was no 'snow-day party' on Thursday night. I woke up at 8am with vertigo. Womp womp.

Devastated is an understatement. It had been 2 years since the last time I had a vertigo episode. I was in a bit of a panic but dug real deep into my years of dealing with chronic pain, migraines, and reminded myself that stressing, and panicking were only going to intensify the symptoms. I humored doing the Epley Maneuver but in the past that has often made things worse before they got better. So I reached out to my neuro friend Missy to get some more ideas on things to try and confirmed that what I needed to do was stay calm and do whatever I could to regulate my nervous system.

So that’s what I did. I laid (elevated) in bed listening to the new Beyonce album. I put some heat on my feet, rubbed some oils on my neck and just tried to breathe and be still (no pun intended). My brother arrived around 3:30pm. We had to practice our family routine, this was a good time for me to test out the dizzy-factor.

So, my presentation of vertigo is positional. This means the full on spinning is generally only triggered when I'm lying down on one side. I was relieved to find that as long as I was upright I wasn’t actively spinning. Things were a little off, like when you get off a cruise ship and the ground feels a little more shifty than usual. I was afraid to do any of the six hundred turns choreographed in the dance but went for it and was surprised to find they were doable.

Long story short. I made it through 5 shows. I emceed the shows, danced in 2 routines each performance, and worked the wings on stage right. I was/am completely unsure how I did it. Adrenaline is my best guess. What was wild was that I would dance, and be relatively okay, but once I came off stage things would be a little whirly. A dear friend actually became my official shoe-helper because the one time I bent over to try and take my shoe off, I almost went down.

Here’s the thing. I was carrying SO MUCH GUILT.

Like on the one hand I felt like I was breaking all the advice I give to clients… rest when your body needs rest, don’t drag it along. But on the other hand, I flew 3000 miles across the country to do this and I didn't want to let my mom down. I also don’t know how many more chances there will be to share the stage with my family and didn’t want to miss this one.

I know that what I did next made a huge difference in how the weekend went.

To rectify the guilt spiral I took some time before each show to have a little talk with my body. I asked for its help to carry me through the shows, I offered my gratitude for doing what it could, and I promised it that once I got through the shows I would rest.

I’m dying to geek out with a vestibular/neuro specialist about all of this, but until then, I feel pretty confident that the relationship I have with my body played a huge role.

As an active human, you are bound to have your plans interrupted by injury or distress. Nervous system breakdown, pain, anxiety, stress, these need to be honored as ways your body is communicating with you. It's all about intention. Like, sometimes you have to let a friend down, but if there's no malice, and it's coming from a good place, with compassion and understanding, things generally work out. The same goes for your body. Sure, sometimes you have to push through but that doesn't mean you have to drag it along, you can hold its hand instead. The relationship matters.

I guess the moral of the story is that life is unpredictable so ground yourself in compassion ❤️.

Do you want to improve the relationship you have with your body? Please let me help! It's never too late to do the work.

What’s Coming?

I’m hard at work writing and filming the rest of the content for my upcoming online, on-demand, course Stronger Than Before: A 5 Week Postpartum Recovery Series! I’m so excited! I’ve loved doing this series in-person, and will continue to do one or two a year, BUT, not everyone is local, not everyone has free time at noon, and I want this series to reach as many moms as possible.

Are you interested? Do you know someone that could use this work? Please spread the word!

Gonna wrap this email/short novel up now. I really hope you have a wonderful Monday and if there's anyway I can help make the day better, let me know 🤗

Stand tall, Breathe Big, Be Kind.

Ps. If I’ve helped you over the years, I would love to ask for you help and support to get the word out about my services. Whatever site works best for you 🫶🏼

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Robin Naughton

Owner, Breathe Fitness
3679 Voltaire St, Suite D
San Diego, CA 92106
​619.494.0247​

Website: www.breathefitlife.com​
​Instagram: @breathefitness.sd // @ergomomics​
​Facebook: @breathefitlife // @ergomomics​

Feel Better // Move Better // Enjoy Life