Digging Out to Restore Your MOJO
Isn’t it interesting that the Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary defines the antonym to the word MOJO as a “curse, hex or a spell?” In my Louisiana terms, I’d call it gris-gris (or a voodoo cloud on my thinking…)
I don’t know about you, but I can definitely identify times when I’m distracted, overwhelmed or my brain is too consumed to think clearly and feel fully like myself. I had never thought of it as a spell, but that is sometimes a very fitting explanation. The reason that I am writing about this topic with such clarity right now is that I’m working my way through the back end of a voodoo haze.
My 48-year-old husband was stricken down with a stroke on November 26, 2019; he then spent 24 days in the hospital and inpatient OT, PT and Speech rehab. Blessedly, he’s on an upward towards regaining his strength and rewiring his brain. His is a testimony of tenacity, determination and inspiration.
In this process, I wanted to write down my experiences to share and motivate. Typically, writing is a therapeutic outlet for me. However, my thinking vessel was completely dry from exhaustion. I had nothing creative to offer and there were many self-critical thoughts replaying in my head. When I did have a client deadline in the first several weeks post discharge, it took all of my power to muster up the energy to be present and execute. Even the smallest tasks left me feeling as though I was thinking through mud.
With some self-awareness about it and then having given it a name, here’s what I did/I’m doing to begin to dig myself out:
1. I allow myself the time needed to heal by giving myself the grace that I so desperately need. This has been the most challenging for me. I’m a Type A+++ personality. I gets—t done! Operating at a slower pace isn’t typically in my DNA. However, I have had to learn to speak nicer to myself.
In fact, it occurred to me one day recently that if I were speaking to a beloved friend the way that I was talking to myself in my head that that person would no longer want to be in my company. That jolt brought me back to reality!
2. I catch myself when in worry and/or doubt about the future. In 2017, I called it my Surrender Year — I embraced whatever was in the path before me. That mindset taught me to live for the manna of the day. This recent incident reinforced my need to allow life to flow and then take advantage of the path that lies ahead.
3. I look for, and live in, appreciation for even the smallest of victories. When you live with an attitude of gratitude rather than lack at the foundation of your being, then you exude and attract peace and contentment for being in the moment.
We have been working to define our new chapter, and my MOJO has revealed herself several times in the past two weeks through opportunities to serve my clients. Am I fully restored? No; I’m not delusional. It’s still too recent and fresh; I expect that it will return in waves.
Neither of us may ever get to exactly who we were before, and that is ok. Too much life has transpired in the past 70 days since before his stroke. We aren’t the same people — however, I predict that we will be better, even stronger from the experience so that we can be a resource and serve others…
Are you stuck and trying to restore your MOJO? If you’d like to discuss this with me, then contact me at dlandry@authentizity.com.
