As a therapist, my focus is to be curious about how we cope when life gets the best of us: what we do, who we turn to, and who we become. Circumstances over the last few months have given me insight into how I manage when life tries to get the best of me.

Back in May life threw some curve balls my way. My uncle (my #1 childhood cheerleader) received a sudden diagnosis of liver, pancreatic, and colon cancer. Barely 4 weeks later, and even more suddenly, he passed away. On the heels of his death came the out of right field diagnosis of my grandmother's (my last surviving grandparent's) stage 4 breast cancer. While still juggling work commitments and gearing up for my own training for the June Lake Half Ironman, I had the added strain of my boyfriend being abroad in Tanzania the entire time I was receiving all of this upsetting news.
 

Needless to say, I was on emotional overload. Having my significant other far away was challenging, and my mind was definitely preoccupied. Even though I was sad, I felt ok. I felt ok because my family and I turned to each other for support. Thanks to technology, I was able to communicate with my boyfriend nearly every day. I also realized that what helped me probably most significantly was my training for the June Lake Half. 

Spending all those hours in the morning working out, sweating out the stress, watching my times improve each week, helped ground me into a flow that felt like a calm resilience and strength. There are times when I believe priorities need to be temporarily rearranged, including fitness and training. However, for me during these particular life challenges, triathlon training was the right prescription for my mental and emotional well-being.

In spite of the sadness I felt, I was still able to see all of the things that were going right and be grateful for all of the people and resources that helped me stay strong during a time where it may have been easier to crumble. 

This process I went through a couple of months back is a process I assist my clients with constantly. In the end, life is about adapting to transitions. Being able to know what tools work best for you during times of stress, finding the positive, and recognizing what you have to be grateful for are essential to getting through life’s growing pains.