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Discovering the Mind-Body Connection to Healing Chronic Illness with Debbie Emick

Apr 5, 2021

Debbie Emick shares how she discovered the mind-body connection to healing her chronic illness. Following her intuition allowed Debbie to process the repressed trauma of her childhood, ultimately healing her mind and body at once. Once she stripped away all the protections in which she surrounded herself, Debbie exposed her her most authentic, vulnerable self. Furthermore, she moved beyond superficial health, toward something more meaningful and sustainable. Consequently, Debbie says her adversity was her greatest gift, pointing the way to her freedom all along. Finally, Debbie’s book, The Other Side of Perfect is a brutally honest and revealing peek into the life of a woman whose multiple diagnoses and bleak prognosis would be the surprising source of her ultimate liberation. 

Episode Highlights: 

  • Debbie is a podcast host and talks about her podcast: One Life Live It.
  • She and her husband started the podcast to empower people to take steps today and not wait for "one day".
  • They interview people who live outside the norms of what society expects.
  • Next, Emily says she lived the life she "should" be living until she was 56.
  • Also, it's never too late to create the life you want now.
  • Next, Debbie shares the discovery of her autoimmune disease and how it made her question the actions she was taking in her life.
  • She learned she valued time more than possessions.
  • It's sad to be toiling away and unhappy.
  • So often less is more.
  • Debbie talks about symptoms she was experiencing that she couldn't ignore anymore.
  • At one point she was feeling worse and taking 9 prescriptions 3X a day.
  • She finally took back her own power and experimented to figure out what was going on with her health.
  • Ultimately she made a decision to walk away from her teaching job thinking that would improve her health.
  • Still, she was in pain and sick.
  • Then, Debbie worked on her mental and emotional health.
  • Finally, the physical pain started to leave her body.
  • Most days, Debbie is pain free.
  • She discovered that perfectionism and people pleasing was her way of coping.
  • And, she made a decision to let those behaviors go.
  • Traditional medical doctors didn't always support the wholistic approach.
  • Debbie explains how a chiropractor helped her with energetic work.
  • It's common, especially for women, to be dismissed by doctors.
  • Next Debbie talks about how she learned about emotional effects on our nervous system by reading many books.
  • Emily asks Debbie to share some gifts she discovered along her journey.
  • The greatest gift was getting super clear about what she valued.
  • Awareness and breaking unconscious cycles was the second gift.
  • Breaking unconscious cycles takes time and awareness is the first step.
  • Also, we can learn to notice what our mind is telling us without judging.
  • Once you start noticing the mental patterns, you can detach from them.
  • Next, Debbie answers Emily's question "Who are you?"
  • Debbie talks about her book The Other Side of Perfect.
  • To heal, Debbie had to address some childhood trauma and trust her intuition.
  • Next, Emily asked how her journey impacted her marriage.
  • How does one listen to their intuition?
  • Debbie says meditation is a part of her healing.
  • Also, slowing down was hard for Emily and Debbie.
  • At first meditation was just something to check off the list for both Emily and Debbie.
  • Next, Emily asks Debbie how others can support someone with an autoimmune disease. 
  • Finally, Emily describes the Spoon Theory.
  • Unfortunately, there are a lot of women in the "Spoonie" Community.

 

Resources Mentioned: