207 - Bee Stings, Pool Drama & The Fertile Void: A Summer of Rest, Renewal & CASY Camp Magic - Beyond Chronic Burnout: The Talk Show for Women & Their Helping Professionals

Episode Transcript
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(00:00):
Hey there, beautiful humans, andwelcome to a very special summer
check in episode of Beyond Chronic Burnout.
If you're new here, welcome my sparkly friend.
I'm Carol Dean Whittington, yourhost, your guide, and your
fellow human navigating burnout,recovery, joy and all things
unmasking during menopause as well.

(00:23):
And if you're one of our long time unveilers, I am so glad
you're here with me today. Today's episode is going to be a
little bit cozier, a little morepersonal, and filled with
updates, invitations, and one very exciting new project I've
been keeping under wraps for a while until now.

(00:46):
But first, let's talk about thatdarn bee sting.
So a couple of weeks ago I was stung by a bee.
As you all know, last episode I shared with you, not my first
time getting stung, but this oneknocked me out flat.
Honestly, I thought I was doing better really.
Then boom, the next day I couldn't even get out of the

(01:09):
stinking bed. And you know what?
I listened. I listened to my body.
I didn't push, I didn't guilt myself, I didn't try to force
productivity. That would have been a long time
program I've been working through.
I just rested, rested without worry, honestly, and it felt so

(01:31):
stinking good. And let me tell you, that one
extra day that reset, it was everything it really was.
It was everything because the next morning I woke up and I
actually felt like me again. I felt so much better.
And it was such a good reminder.Even when we're doing better,

(01:53):
healing is not linear, rest is not lazy, and sometimes most
productive thing you can do go completely offline and just be.
Which brings me to another curveball from life lately, Our
pool. And it's not one of like those

(02:14):
fancy in ground gunite or anything like that.
No, this is just one of those above ground pools that we got
from Sam's. But oh friends, we had to
completely drain it. That's a lot of water.
A heavy winter storm had washed away the sand beneath one side
and it was living like someone stumbling home from an all
nighter on Bourbon Street. So between the rainstorms here

(02:38):
in central Alabama, the bee sting, a few other unexpected
fun plot twists in the life of me.
We finally got the pool re leveled and just in time for
more rain. I mean seriously, it has done
nothing but rain here. Like every day.
We finally got a window where you get the pool levelled and

(03:01):
then poof it has rained every day since again.
But you know what? I am really so ready to float
and rest and play and soak in joy when that sun finally peaks
out again. Before we get into all the
details of Casey Summer camp, I want to share a little wisdom

(03:22):
from my Rose Oracle deck. This is so beautiful.
I love this. I got it from Hay House a couple
of weeks ago. They had a sale and it's called
the Rose Pocket Oracle and it's from Rebecca Campbell.
And these cards are so beautiful.
This is really about tapping into your divine feminine.
And I'll tell you I I tend to run more masculine energy.

(03:44):
And so for the last year, I've been incorporating, you know,
like I shared in my conversationwith Kanan a couple weeks weeks
ago, I've really been incorporating more of this
feminine side to get more harmony within my life.
Because let's be honest, you allknow I tend to run on the hot
side, right? Not just like discounting
perimenopause there. So the card I pulled earlier

(04:09):
this afternoon before recording specifically for this show was
The Fertile Void. And when I pulled this card, I
mean, it's really dark if you'rewatching on on YouTube or
Spotify video, it's really beautiful, but it's dark.
And I thought the fertile void, huh?

(04:31):
And my friend Randy always says,you know, look at the card, look
at the image first before you read what it it's guiding you
towards or what it's about. But the card at the bottom says
the fertile void, inner winter and we're in summer.
I know rest, patience and potency.

(04:52):
And the image is roses above andbelow, and it's sort of this
dark void area, but in the center there's this golden glow
of a seed. Here's what the guidebook says.
This is a very auspicious card. It holds the potent golden seeds

(05:15):
of a new beginning and the aftermath of an end.
We're called to have patience and enter a state of deep rest,
repair, regeneration, and acceptance.
To let a part of our lives, or even who we once were,

(05:36):
metaphorically die in order to seed, sprout, bud, and bloom
again. There's often a letting go, a
grief or mourning involved, a death of self, or what once was
the ending of things that were once important, Relationships,

(06:00):
jobs, identities, ways of being.The Fertile Void asks that we
honor endings to begin again. It's a crucial part of growth,
and new isn't possible without it.
In the card, you can see the golden seed crackled in the

(06:21):
dark, fertile womb of the soil. It's easy to mistake this phase
of growth as one where nothing much is happening.
But beneath the surface of the winter soil, things have never
been more active. Winter is a phase of initiation,

(06:41):
renewal, and rebirth. When we're going through a
period of inner winter, we experience this too.
We metaphorically go undergroundby coming to a standstill and
allowing ourselves to recover and rest.
We don't realize it, but this isthe most important part of our

(07:05):
growth, and it takes faith and surrender to do it.
Trust the sureness of the soil. The new is being woven without
you having to micromanage every move.
Trust the sureness of the soil. Be cradled by the great mystery.

(07:27):
This is a very tender, powerful time.
Self inquiry question is how canyou surrender into the great
mystery? Perfect as that, this card is
about trusting that even when you feel like you're doing

(07:48):
nothing, you are becoming. It's about giving yourself
permission to not be who you were, let go of what no longer
fits, and to open up space with a version of you that's
emerging. That's exactly where I am as we

(08:08):
embark on this summer. This is my season of gentle
transformation, Loft yeses, deeprest, play, laughter, floating
and becoming. So if you're in a season like
that too, or you're just starting to maybe recognize it,

(08:28):
welcome. You're right on time.
It's interesting because I thinksocial norms are that we're
supposed to be constantly blooming, we're supposed to be
in this constant state of productivity and there doesn't
seem to be intentional rest or pauses.

(08:51):
I think for me, what's really been beautiful is that as as we
move into June and we're halfwaythrough the month, we're really
in the height and we're getting ready to hit, you know, the
height of summer here. We think of summer as like the
blooming, you know, everything'swinter and the spring is where
it's emerged out of the soil andthe summer is where it's growing

(09:14):
and blooming and thriving, you know, and then the fall is where
it begins to, to pull back, havethose inner seasons as well.
And winter can show up in the midst of summer sometimes.
And I'm really excited about this particular inner wintering
season that I'm in right now because I sensed it coming and I

(09:37):
paused to recognize it, which issomething totally new to me, by
the way. This is, you know, this
self-awareness has really amped up in my life And, and it's
really been a blessing, But it's, it's definitely still very
new. I'm, I'm still learning to walk.
I'm still, you know, toddling onmy feet on this one.
But I started to sense it, and Ipaused to check in with myself

(10:00):
and I started to recognize therewere really things in my life no
longer serving that were no longer me.
And it became this place that I could say thank you to it, you
know, much like Marie Kondo. And she's so magical where, you
know, when she's going through and cleaning out and purging,

(10:21):
which is another thing I'm doingon my break this summer, sort of
at cleaning my environment, thatenergetic cleaning of my
physical space and closets and things.
But Marie Kondo always talks about, you know, the things that
you really love but that aren't serving you anymore, that you
pause to thank them, to express the gratitude for how they

(10:42):
supported you, how they served you, what they gave you while
they were there and then to release them, to donate them to
what away if it really isn't something that can serve another
person. And that's something to kind of
pause and think about right now,too.
What are the things that are no longer serving you?

(11:03):
Is there an inner wintering it might be emerging for you as
well? And how do you begin?
How do you begin to practice andallow space for that seed to
really do what it's supposed to do in natural progression?
Well, I have an idea, something I've been working on for a few

(11:28):
months now. So let's talk about what I'm so
excited to share with you. KC Summer Camp, your compass to
self-care. You've probably heard me mention
Casey before. That's cultural autism studies
at Yale. And I absolutely adore this
group. I love the directors, Don and

(11:49):
Roger, and everyone in this group is just truly an amazing
human. And I was invited to speak there
last December and immediately I just fell in love with the
community. And it's rare to feel so
welcomed and seen. It really is.

(12:10):
And it, or at least it has been for me.
So when Doctor Don Prince Hughesand Doctor Roger Jao asked if
I'd like to direct their very first summer program focused on
self-care, Oh guys, that was like a total easy yes for me.
I was like, heck yes. I love that.
I want to do this. That's going to be so much fun.

(12:32):
So end of this month, this Sunday actually, and normally in
July I take a break. But instead of taking my usual
vacation for July, I decided to Co create something just for
you, designed by autistic adultsfor autistic adults.

(12:53):
And let me tell you, it is trulymagical.
Here's what Casey summer camp looks like.
It's a six week on demand, pick your own adventure experience.
We've got trailblazer talks every week exploring self-care
through autistic culture. The norms, the values, the

(13:13):
symbols, the rituals of autisticculture.
And those are super short. They're 30 minutes or less.
They're prerecorded. So there's no having to navigate
your calendar. You just do it when it works for
you. You get a trail map coloring
page. Y'all have had so much fun
creating this. A navigator's journal to take

(13:35):
you through a deeper step each week based on what you've
learned in the talk, and even printable badge pages to track
your journey however you choose.Because these badges, you've
already earned them. You don't have to earn them.
They're already yours. You can color them in and you
can play with him however you want.

(13:56):
Adam Doctor, Adam Haslett and I were talking about it and he's
he's got this really great PB and J segment that y'all are
going to love. And he and I were talking about
the badges that are like, Oh my gosh, these are so much fun.
He's like, I'm going to cut mineout and put them on a sash like
the kid from up. And I'm like, yes, I was
thinking of doing the same thing.
I was going to make a little sash and color them in and cut

(14:17):
them out. And so however you decide to
play with those, I mean, post a picture share.
We would love to see your creativity and fun and how
you're doing this. There are fun bite sized
activities and deeper dives. So you can do what works for
your energy and curiosity level.Each week you can choose what
you want to do. You can bypass something if it's

(14:39):
just not your, your bag, you know, or you maybe you're just
not into it that week, that's totally OK.
You get to do what you want to do.
If you show up for one thing or you do one part, that's OK.
You show up halfway through or at the end, no big deal.
It's here, it's not going anywhere.
It's going to live on the YouTube channel in a playlist
and it's also going to be in theKC Facebook group, which you are

(15:00):
invited to join as well, my friends.
And yes, it's totally free. It's absolutely free.
I was like, OK, so you know, there's, there's not any funding
for this. That's OK.
I'm going to do this because my heart says this is what we need.
We need this as autistics and part of that inner wintering and

(15:22):
we're not recovering restoration.
You know, so often we're we're giving these platitudes and
empty self-care suggestions, right?
Like take a spot, you know, unplug, don't, don't commit
yourself to so many things. Well, self-care is so much more
than that. It is it's really a different

(15:42):
experience and it's it is an absolute necessity for us as
autistic humans, especially withCo occurring health conditions.
That's you too. So this whole adventure this
summer, it's about you finding what works for you from a
perspective that's probably going to serve you way better
than some empty platitude of self-care.

(16:06):
So the campfire kick off is thisSunday, June 22nd at 4:30
Central time and we're going to be meeting on Zoom.
You'll meet our amazing trail guides and get a sneak peek into
what's ahead like, what's the schedule going to look like?
What are the topics, who are thespeakers?
And you can register at the linkin the show notes below.

(16:27):
This is not your typical just doyoga kind of self-care program.
This is custom built for neurodivergent brains and bodies
who want to feel good, feel comfortable, get into our
comfort zone without the pressure, without the guilt,
without the oh, I really should be doing this, Uzi.

(16:48):
It's creative, it's culturally rooted, and it's yours to
explore. So here's what to expect while
I'm at summer camp with all of you.
We're taking a gentle pause in our regular Wednesday Wednesday
solo episodes until August, but we're still going strong with

(17:09):
our social Saturdays and our Things That Really Matter series
with my fabulous Co host Becca Laurie Hector each month.
Those conversations are rich, relevant, and full of insight
into the everyday experience of autistic women and the
professionals who support us. So keep tuning in.

(17:30):
And if you haven't already, hit that subscribe button on YouTube
or your favorite podcast app. And if you have a moment and
you'd love to give us a five star rating and we've earned it,
I'd be so grateful if you take amoment to review the show, give
us a star rating, leave a littlecomment, let us know what you're

(17:52):
loving about the show because that helps other people find us.
We've got some powerful new episodes waiting for you and
more on the way this fall. Before we wrap up, I want to
leave you with a couple of questions for reflection.
We got to do a little water and nourish here.
So what does self-care really mean to you?

(18:17):
What does comfort feel like in your body?
What kind of care feels like a yes and not just another Should.
If you're looking for space to explore, that KC Summer Camp
might be the perfect playground for you this summer.

(18:37):
And if you want to connect in real time, our Unveiler
Kaleidoscope community meets this Sunday, June 22nd, same day
as our KC Kickoff. But this is earlier.
It's at 2:00 PM Central time, it's month's topic movement,
it's free, it's supportive, and it's one of my favorite places
to just be with you. So what's next for me today?

(19:03):
Well, honestly kind of been a bit of a Domestic Goddess today,
if I do say so myself. I have a few more alerts of
laundry, we're almost out of socks, and then I might finally
finish organizing that closet I keep absolutely picking at.
This is real life, y'all. And real life is allowed to be

(19:23):
slow, soft, and stretchy, especially when you're becoming
someone new. So wherever you are in your
journey, whether it's resting, running, creating, or just
breathing through the day, I hope you give yourself
permission to explore, to become.

(19:47):
We'll see you this Sunday at thecampfire or at Unveiler's
Community, or next time on the show.
Until then, be kind to your system and keep unmasking with
care. Subscribe, share, and remember
you deserve a life that feels like yours.

(20:08):
Thanks for being here. It's been quite all right.
Energy Mastery, Let's turn the tide Stop shelf guests dropping
wisdom bombs. Join us next week where the
energy's strong beyond crying burnout.
We're breaking free podcast pumping full of energy tips and

(20:30):
tricks to boost your fight fast pace and fun.
You'll feel alive. Energy Mastery Come along for
the ride behind the ON. Join us as we form our top shelf
guests. I need to energy for our best.

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207 - Bee Stings, Pool Drama & The Fertile Void: A Summer of Rest, Renewal & CASY Camp Magic

Episode Transcript

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