As a fan of the books and Ted Talk by Brene Brown, I have been thinking about what vulnerability is quite a bit. Being vulnerable and sharing how you deeply, truly feel or maybe taking an action on something that felt more than way out of your comfort zone is part of a process that not only feels hugely scarey but can be a massively life-changing process.
As a homeopath I have been deeply privilieged to witness the vulnerability of many of my clients and I will let you into a secret….. those who feel safe and ready to talk from their hearts are those that really make big leaps in a return to a state of wellbeing they deserve.
It’s not easy to sit in front of a stranger and share stories of how you felt at major-life changing moments, such as going through a divorce, losing a large sum of money, committing a crime, betraying someone or being a victim. It’s really incredibly hard to talk about the death of a loved one, grief, shame and fear. However, storing and trapping these emotions can create a whole wrath of health issues.
I know because I have spent hours with my own homeopath and in other therapy sessions myself talking through some of my own vulnerabilities as a human being too.
We all have topics that just get to us.
We all have a comfort zone that from time to time we just want to sit within. But this doesn’t help us grow.
Because I sit and hold space in my clinic for both adults and young people who have experienced many issues that are for them beyond comprehensible I believe that as a practitioner I must do things that frequently remind me of this deep emotion – vulnerability. It keeps me level and on the same page.
Last week I did something I found really challenging and exposing. I released a set of short videos to my clients about looking after their health. I took the plunge and put it on my personal Facebook page too. Come Sunday evening I had the worst ever vulnerability hangover. Why, you may think? Because we all have that inner child that likes to nag at us and say we are not good enough, we are imposters. Keeping ‘Little Jo’ quiet sometimes is no easy feat!
2 years ago I did a talk at a national Weleda conference on how my daughter had had life-changing surgery to about 300 people. Once it was over, I was more relieved than you can ever know. I spoke from the heart about how Amaya was in pain and had to give up running, but how surgery had turned it around for her. The emotion was intense, the vulnerability hangover was of gigantic proportions, but what really made it for me was that I inspired a lady in the audience to become a homeopath! And I inspired a lady whose daughter was going to have the same surgery. Being brave and vulnerable was helping others. It was so worth it.
I want my clients to feel that my space is one that vulnerability is welcomed within. Sometimes it can take time to open up, working at your pace is key. Remedies can support you through both the release and the build up of emotions. But trust me – letting them go is well worth the anguish. Vulnerability is empowering! But remember it doesn’t have to be talking on stage about something, it can be just admitting to yourself that you need help with something that is holding you back.
I am currently almost complete in my Holistic Life Coaching Diploma course which has been a challenging process, involving lots of reflective work as well as supporting those at their most vulnerable and am now part of a group coaching programme called Tribe Builder, which I know will be pushing me to my very edges, but I’ll let you into another secret – exploring what lies outside the comfort zone is exciting and I’ll take the vulnerability hangover because I know it’s worth it!
