I purchased my pendant through the Women in Christian Leadership group started my Jeanne Porter in Dayton, Ohio. I joined the group at the end of 2021 as I knew God was preparing me for a significant change and I knew that I would need a network of women leaders around me and a structure of intentional community to plug into as God’s plan unfolded. I had no idea just how many changes would take place in 2022 and as I start Dec 2022 I’m having a bit of whiplash from all of the disruption in my life – every aspect has been touched and many parts of my life like my career path are completely different and uncertain.
Yet with all the change there is a lightness, a time of rest and a period of healing that has also taken place that I wasn’t even aware I desperately needed. I had no idea just how close to exhaustion my body was, how mentally frazzled I had become, how numb my soul was to nearly everything around me… God knew, my husband knew, most of my family knew… I wasn’t listening to any of them. So now I’m healing. I’m doing a better job of listening. I’m writing, eating much better. Sleeping like a person who has walked for years in a wasteland. I’m finding myself, my heart, mind, soul… a little more each day. And I’m sharing my story as a way to break the stigma of burnout. Of martyrdom. Of perfectionism. Maybe I can help someone to recognize the signs before they get to where I was and can find balance earlier. Maybe I can help systems to support women leaders in better ways that I was supported.
Karin