Dear Rose # 2 - When we finally put ourselves first

Rose is an amalgam of us - women in their 40s, 50s, 60s and beyond who are looking for somewhere they are seen, heard and listened to.

Dear Rose,

I think I told you about how I’ve been dealing with some pretty bad anxiety lately. It makes sense, as I’m still in recovery from grief and the years of "giving" I did before that. A wise friend said yesterday that it takes the same amount of time you spent caring to recover from the care. Think about that, all you mums out there.

This recovery phase means my resilience is low, so when stressful and unpredictable things happen, my nervous system goes into high alert. I’d like to think I’m getting better at this self-care stuff as I age. When I knew I was going to have an extremely busy weekend because of my business, I arranged to have today off work.

Old Em would’ve compartmentalized and thought, "Nope, you are busy because of your business. That has nothing to do with your day job, so you have to power through, young lady." But New Em knows that both "Business Em" and "Day Job Em" are the same person—and she needs a break.

It’s okay to take the easy route. It’s okay to be soft. It’s okay to take an extra rest. It’s okay to put your nervous system first. Ideally, I wish it hadn’t taken me 52 years to work all this out, but better late than never, right?

So, if you need to hear this today, it’s just a reminder to be gentle with yourself, dear Rose. Your nervous system will thank you.

Love,

Em xxx