As a doula with 13 years of experience, I've noticed a pattern toward the end of pregnancy: a woman goes through a "nesting period" where she has an uncontrollable urge to purge her home and her life. Once, I found one of my clients (then 8 months pregnant) in her basement, throwing away boxes of stuff, reorganizing shelves, and scrubbing them clean.
When I walked in, she saw me and burst into tears. "I can't stop cleaning," she said.
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I explained that this is totally normal. When your life is so full of what no longer serves you, there is no space for anything new to flow into your life. Another one of my clients bought a house and redecorated the whole thing by herself.
I thought about this recently, when something crazy took over me, and I purged my house of just about everything: old vitamins, spices, make up, clothes, papers, and furniture. Suddenly it dawned on me, that much like a pregnant woman, I was making space for the new. And we can all do the same to bring in the birth of a new year.
Here are some tips to help you make room for greatness:
1. Take inventory of your life.
Notice what's working, what needs adjusting, and what needs to go. Look at the way you've been living and doing your life. We can't change anything if we aren't aware of what needs changing.
2. Detox your body.
Get rid of any toxins in your body and quit those bad habits that are preventing you from feeling good and being all that you can be. Establish healthier habits, feed your body organic nourishing whole foods, and take supplements that feed and fuel you.
3. Distance yourself from the negative.
I look at my friendships as a target. My inner circle surrounds the bullseye, and others fill the levels of circles that go further out. Ask yourself: who drains you, who brings you down, who isn't supportive, and who is no longer a match? You don't want people in the bullseye crowding out the folks who are supportive. Figure out who needs to be moved to the outer circle?
4. Clean house.
Clean out your closets, kitchen and bathroom cabinets, shelves, desk and whatever else is taking up space in your home. Throw away all toxic products and replace with toxin free products, scrub down your house with non toxic cleaning supplies. You will feel like you have more room to breathe.
5. Patch the energy leaks.
Notice where (or with whom) you are spending too much time, money, or energy and feeling drained. Where can you create more structure and establish better boundaries?
6. Find balance.
Are you moving your body or taking enough down time? Are you working too much and not having enough play or you time? Where can you make the shifts so you can have more of a balanced life?
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Lori Bregman, founder of the Rooted for Life Pregnancy Coaching Program, a complete body, mind and spirit support system that helps women through fertility, pregnancy, birth, and into new mommyhood. As a doula, healer, and life/pregnancy coach, Lori has over 20 years of experience helping clients transform their lives.Throughout her career, Lori has studied with and learned from some of the most renowned healers and spiritual teachers across the world. These teachers have shared with her their wisdom, from spirituality, intuition, body/mind awareness, herbs/vitamins, aromatherapy oils and the healing power of foods to doula work, bodywork, yoga, and numerous other forms of holistic healing. She has always been especially drawn to working with pregnant woman and new mothers, and geared much of her learning toward pregnancy, childbirth, and parenting. Today she has built a thriving career based on her passion for fostering healthy moms and healthy babies .