Courageous Self-Care: The Origin Story
+ a big change I've been telling you was coming... it's here! (if you were already in the know about Courageous Self-Care; if you're new here, come join the fun!)
Big news (that doesn’t greatly affect you but is oh-so-different on my end):
The Courageous Self-Care newsletter is moving over to Substack! I’m taking the leap! Calling on my courage! Yay me!
If you’ve been receiving the Courageous Self-Care newsletter by email already, not much will change on your end.
Here’s what’s staying the same:
💜 You’ll still get the Courageous Self-Care newsletter on Tuesdays by email
💜 It will still be filled with laughter-inducing-moments
💜 It will still include strategic self-care tips and ideas that will transform your life
💜 There will continue to be offerings for the most effective, powerful, and transformative self-care
What will be different:
➡️ option to become a subscriber (more on that below)
➡️ I will be including more of my passions in my posts like super-healthy food, book recommendations, spiritual perspectives on movies, and whatever else my fascinating mind dreams up
➡️ umm… I think that’s about it
So, about this subscribing. It’s completely optional. If you just want to continue to receive my weekly newsletter, do nothing. It will arrive in your inbox as usual.
If you want to support the newsletter and get some perks, you can become a subscriber for $5/month ($8/month CDN).
What does a subscriber get?
⭐️ Super secret bonus content
⭐️ The ability to comment on posts
⭐️ Access to all the posts (if you don’t subscribe, they disappear after 2 months, just like a wine stain on a shirt (best-case scenario, of course).
So, that’s that.
Now, on to the origin story of Courageous Self-Care.
Once upon a time, I had a business called Dance Ugly, Dance Awkward. It was all about moving through perfectionism using organic movement (although I couldn’t explain it that succinctly at the time).
It was going well. So well, in fact, that my clients were having breakthroughs that I couldn’t quite explain. I had a web TV show called The Ugly Awkward Dance Show - that was fun; I gave workshops all over North America, and life kept getting better and better. It was exciting and whirl-windy.
To help myself figure out why my clients were experiencing such success, I decided to write a book. It flowed out of me with great ease and I had it written and published within 90 days. It even became a #1 International Best Seller. Imagine that!
Shortly after that, a client told me that when they went to my website (that I had designed myself and put tons of time and effort into), it came up as an attack site. Basically, it said, “Run away from this site as fast as you can! If you stay here, bad things will happen!”
I was mystified. Why did my website want to attack people?
I had someone technical look into it and discovered that my website had been hacked. I guess that someone really didn’t like ugly awkward dancing and so they inserted thousands of malware bits onto my site. Boo.
The technical person also said that the malware was so bountiful that it would be impossible to remove all of it. Then I learned that the site was blacklisted by Google. No more ugly awkward dancing. 😭
For a few days, my mind was on overdrive. How was I going to fix the problem? My main concern was that I had made supporting videos for my book How Ugly Awkward Dancing Changes Everything, and I was very concerned about people not being able to access the additional content. It was all very dramatic (in my head).
One night, as I lay in bed wide awake in the wee hours, trying to uncover the solution, a life-changing thought popped in. “Nobody cares but you.”
Now, that thought might not sound very helpful (or kind), but it was a game-changer for me. I realized it was the truth. I was making the whole thing a huge deal but it wasn’t. At all. What a relief!
That epiphany helped me let go. It became clear that I was getting a Universal 2x4 over the head. Dance Ugly Dance Awkward was complete. The hacker was an angel in disguise, helping me move on to the next thing. I felt much better.
The question then became: What is the next thing?
Here, I’ll condense the timeline and details. Essentially, the next iteration became Flawed, Fabulous, and Free. It felt amazing! I changed everything; new website, new copy, new images, new brand, new blog.
A short while later, a new idea popped in while I was on an airplane, flying to a day of coaching with my mentors, Marci Shimoff and Debra Poneman. Courageous Self-Care. I thought it sounded like a great retreat.
What emerged from the coaching, though, was that it was the actual next step. I started to cry.
“Why the tears?” asked Marci.
Sniffle… “Well, I’m going to seem like a total flake. I’ve already gone from Dance Ugly Dance Awkward to Flawed, Fabulous, and Free. Now I’m going to change again? What will people think?”
That’s when I got to make my first courageous decision: It doesn’t matter what other people think; it matters what my heart says. That’s it.
I courageously decided to follow my heart (and embrace any perceived flakiness).
Ten years later, Courageous Self-Care continues to be my focus. It’s the longest I’ve ever done anything, actually. It continues to evolve and I get to go along for the ride.
I chose self-care because I knew I would benefit. As a high achiever, it’s very easy for me to get to work and go, go, go. Set a goal! Work hard! Accomplish the goal! What’s next?
It has been more challenging to make space for the things that allow me to pause, integrate, and celebrate. I’ve found that it takes courage to slow down, to reflect, and to align with my inner guidance.
Courageous Self-Care has invited me to embrace spirituality and to learn to come from my center. It has made my life rich, vast, and fulfilling.
It has become my guiding light and my innate way of living. Everything I’ve ever wanted has emerged by practicing Courageous Self-Care and if something works for me, of course, I just have to share it.
Here are some of the most unexpected and rewarding ways I’ve grown, thanks to CSC:
🥰 my inner critic turned into my inner cheerleader
🥰 I’ve become more bold and less timid/reserved
🥰 I no longer feel the daggers in my heart of taking things personally
🥰 I understand how the Universe works and my role in all of it
🥰 I feel completely aligned, fulfilled, and on purpose
🥰 I’m very clear on my gifts and talents, and how I can best make a contribution
🥰 I have no pain, stiffness, or aches in my body
🥰 I have overflowing energy all day long
🥰 I take no medication
🥰 My relationships are exceptional
🥰 I love myself unconditionally and think I’m totally adorable
🥰 Opportunities and abundance easily flow into my life
🥰 Life keeps getting better and better
I want these things for you, too. I’m happy to show you how to do it. Stick around!
Let’s all benefit from that angel hacker and use Courageous Self-Care to create the most appealing, lovable, vibrant version of ourselves.
The world needs more people who know how truly awesome they are.
The world needs you to fully and deeply understand that self-care is not selfish.
The world is counting on you to prioritize your own well-being so that you have abundant energy to make your contributions from a place of overflow.
I’m here for that. I hope you are too.
With expansive love and exciting courage,
Christina
🕺🏻Creator of Courageous Self-Care
🕺🏻Wildly opposed to fanny packs
🕺🏻 Daily consumer of sea vegetables
PSST! Be sure to tune in next time when we go into what Courageous Self-Care really is. If you’re new around here, you’ll get a much better idea of what to expect and if you’re old around here, this is brand-new hot-off-the-presses content. Either way, it will be entertaining (hopefully) and informative (definitely).
Upcoming Courageous Self-Care Sessions
Fri Jan 24: Sacred Success Friday Review
Mon Jan 27: 9D Breathwork - Unleash Your Power
Tues Jan 28: Remote Healing Open House
Mon Feb 3: Online Yoga Class (Yoga for Divine Alignment)
Apr 27-May 3: Panama Retreat (1 spot left!)