By guest blogger Elizabeth Di Cristofano
As a Functional Medicine Certified Health Coach, Elizabeth sets out to inspire women, specifically women over 40, to take back their life and vitality by getting to the root cause of their overall health. Health and wellness has been in Elizabeth’s world for the last decade and has evolved as soon as she turned 40. Elizabeth’s career was mainly in the corporate world, a career that was not sustainable and in the midst of her starting her own health journey she experienced burnout. Taking on a mind/body approach, Elizabeth started incorporating optimal nutrition, meditation, journaling, daily workouts and movement and practicing setting boundaries all in which helps her thrive in everyday life. Elizabeth started building her own business in her forties and offers her services as a Health Coach to help high achieving and high performing entrepreneur female 40-60 years old who needs to operate at peak state in order to meet the high demands of corporate, family and social life - an area in which she is really familiar with. She is a host of an alternative health and wellness podcast called The Root Of Our Health, which ties in with her mission of changing behaviors by empowering entrepreneurial women in their 40’s and beyond to know their self worth! For more information visit Elizabeth's website www.elizabethdicristofano.com
I can’t tell you how much I enjoy laughing, I mean who doesn’t?
However, with our lives as hectic and serious as it can get, laughter (and even smiling) tends to be hidden from our faces. As the joker from the movie Batman Returns asks “Why so serious?” I mean really, why the hell are we so serious all the time?
Ok, really that question is pointed to me. Why the hell am I so serious all the time? Life was meant to be lived and have fun, but I have been piling on the expectations and the “shoulds” to the point where I sometimes ask myself why? The better question is “what would happen if I don’t…?” Who would I be letting down? No one, that’s who! Example, what would happen if I don’t eat healthy all the time? What would happen if I don’t do all the things on my to do list today? Why do we tie our worth to what we do instead of who we are?
Achievement is great if you know how to celebrate the wins, but when the wins become just another reason to want to do more and become more, then we miss the point in our lives.
We chase the outcome instead of enjoying the process and realize who we become as a person. And this is where burnout happens – I know because I’ve been there. Chasing the next big thing because I thought I was not enough, so by doing and accomplishing all the things, then I am worthy.
I could not be so wrong!! As I get older I understand now, sure it’s great to want to grow, learn and achieve, but it’s even better if we stop, breathe and share the celebrations. Who wants to be the only one at a party?
That’s where my WOMENT came in! Instead of being on my lap top all night in front of the tv last night, I decided to meet up with a friend I haven’t seen in over a year – and we live an hour away.
Sure Covid had something to do with it, but all in all we were both busy and I use that term not as a badge of honor but as it is what it is. However, busy will not get time back from people you care about, your loved ones, your true friends, your community, your own family and even yourself. “Busyness” is what we do to distract ourselves from really being ourselves.
When I met up with my friend, I was reminded how much fun life can be as we laughed and laughed and laughed. My smile came back and I all of a sudden realized what all I was doing was for. Laughter was my medicine to get me out of this hamster wheel of doing where I eventually was just being!
