Against the Grain Nutrition: TED Talk Tuesday

Today, I don’t want to write too much
because I want to share a video instead. It is Brene Brown’s TED talk on
vulnerability, and it is amazing. It is confronting, but also motivating and
inspiring. I have watched it a few times now and each time, I walk away going “Yeah
– I AM enough!”

Image by Steve Maraboli via Pinterest

Brene states that connection is our reason for being – it is what gives purpose and meaning to our lives. She mentions that shame is the fear of disconnection. The thought that “is there something about me, that if other people see it, then I won’t be worthy of connection?”

I felt this way before I wrote about my hypothalamic amenorrhea journey. I thought that if people realized that I am not in 100% health myself, then they’ll think I’m a fraud. I mean, how could I be an expert on health if I couldn’t even get my own shit together?

Brene talks about having a sense of courage – to tell the story of who you are with your whole heart and to allow yourself to be imperfect. She says, so eloquently:

“We can’t practice compassion with others until we treat ourselves kindly”

So in fact, my going through this journey, having the courage to tell my story and to lay out all of my imperfections on the table for the whole interwebs to read about (and they have evidently been the most popular posts on my blog – kind of scary and a bit confronting, really), has led me on a path of self-love, forgiveness and releasing fears, which in turn has strengthened my ability to practice love, forgiveness and compassion with others. And I can tell you; it is a huge weight lifted off my shoulders. Not only am I gentler on myself, but also I definitely do feel more connected with others.