What doesn't kill you makes you stronger

Pharmacists have not been immune to the unprecedented circumstances that have evolved since the spring of 2020 in Canada. In fact, we’ve been on the front lines of healthcare more than ever before. As the pandemic continues, I’d like to share my own personal struggles, failures, successes and mindsets in the hope that you can walk into 2023 with grit, resilience and a renewed belief in your superpowers, no matter what your personal circumstances are. My name is Laura Heath, and I have been a hospital pharmacist for almost 24 years. Somewhat uniquely though, I am also a Certified Life Coach and Certified Health Coach providing Corporate Wellness Services as well as Coaching Services for women who identify as emotional eaters. However, just like you, I am more than my professional titles. My identity is one of a mother, wife, daughter, sister, and a human being navigating the most difficult year of her life. 2022 exposed me to intense, difficult emotions. I experienced tremendous loss with the passing of my mother in June of this year, after a brief illness with cancer. My mom's best friend and sister passed away last month. My oldest son moved away to university. Covid-19 hit my household. And this month I broke my left ankle and sprained my right ankle playing volleyball, resulting in surgery, and now weeks of recovery and rehabilitation. I don't tell you this so you can feel sorry for me. I tell you this because I want you to understand that THESE ARE THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF MY LIFE right now. Think about your own life since the start of the pandemic. What are your own personal circumstances? And more importantly, how have you responded to the weight of those circumstances? Are you buffering difficult emotions with extra food and drink? Are you sitting at the edge of burnout in your job? Are you going into each day with the mindset of grit and resilience, or defeat and overwhelm? I've spent the last three years coaching women who identify as emotional eaters how to heal their relationship with food. And I'm really good at it. But, when I lost my mom, I stumbled. I used food sometimes to suppress the grief. I ate through my sadness, even when I wasn't hungry. And I could have given up... called myself a failure or a fraud...checked out til 2023 or told myself that I couldn’t handle the stress any other way. But the great thing about the circumstances of your life is that each step is one of impermanence. "This too shall pass." So instead, I dug into what I teach and what I know: It is what it is. You are stressed because you care. Now use this stress to facilitate your learning and growth. "Where there is deep grief, there was great love. And in the words of music superstar Kelly Clarkson, What doesn't kill you makes you stronger! I doubled down on taking care of myself. I ate foods that nourished my body. I moved my body every day. I practiced meditation and gratitude. I examined my thoughts and feelings through journaling. I leaned on my closest friends and family. And most importantly, I cultivated a mindset of GRIT and RESILIENCE. I purposefully CHOSE TO BELIEVE that STRESS IS ENHANCING. The research on grit, resilience and stress is empowering. If you are sitting in overwhelm, feeling defeated or burned out, or wondering if you’ll ever feel “normal” again, I’ve got great news for you. Now is the time to change your mindset. The most profound things I’ve learned in becoming a life coach are these: “Your thoughts create your feelings. And all thoughts are optional.” So, if you are waiting for the perfect time to change your mindset, it's now. It's when you're at your worst. It's when you feel out of control and burned out. It's when the circumstances of your life are hard. I challenge you to adopt a stress-is-enhancing mindset. You look at stress as an opportunity for growth, and see the potential for stress to have a positive impact. You believe that stress facilitates your learning and growth. It enhances your performance and productivity. You feel that the effects of stress are positive and should be utilized. You even believe that stress will improve your health and vitality. All of these statements are supported by scientific research. As you think about your experiences of working throughout this pandemic it’s quite possible you will be able to recall firsthand how stress has had enhancing effects on your psychological growth. Research suggests that your mindset about stress is a critical variable in influencing your response to it. If you believe in, and focus on, the enhancing possibilities of stress, your outcomes will tend toward positivity. In 2023 are you willing to choose to evoke an enhancing mindset actively and deliberately in the face of stress? Wherever the stress in your life comes from I want you to start by simply acknowledging its presence. Next, offer yourself the opportunity to reconnect with the positive motivation or personal value behind your stress. Remember, you are stressed because you care. Now, you are in a position to utilize your stress in a way that enhances your experience. Since your thoughts create your feelings, how can you think differently about stress that results in opportunities, learning and insight? How can you grow? The majority of pharmacists I’ve spoken to since 2020 tell me that they are “stressed.”At times during the last year I’ve worn that stress like a badge of honour, believing it was debilitating and overwhelming. Using the power of mindset, I’ve been able to shift to a place of awareness, growth and fulfillment. I acknowledge the hardships of the past year, but I choose to continue to pursue that which creates meaning in my life, trusting myself to handle the stress that may follow. What doesn’t kill me makes me stronger. I wish the same for you. Read more about Laura: Pharmacist turned health coach took a leap to help patients We're thrilled with the response to our Write to Win reader writing contest! Thank you to everyone who has submitted stories, blogs and poems. Each week we'll publish one reader's entry and in March, the editorial staff of CanadianHealthcareNetwork.ca will choose three winners for a grand prize of a $500 gift card and two honourable mentions for $250. Read more about the contest and how to enter here.

What doesn't kill you makes you stronger

Register for free access or login.

Related Topics