January 24, 2024 • 42 mins
When Selena from MyLoopyLife found herself facing the realities of lupus, she didn't just learn to live with it—she learned to thrive. This episode is a heartfelt exploration of her journey from the shock of diagnosis to a life of empowerment and purpose, offering a personal glimpse into the power of transformation that awaits anyone experiencing chronic illness. Selena and I peel back the layers of emotional resilience and discuss how reclaiming control of one's life is not just possible; it's a path to discovering extraordinary inner strength.
Connect with Selena:
Selena • Lupus Warrior, Advocate + Coach (@myloopylife) • Instagram photos and videos
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Connect with your host, Court:
Court | Podcast Host (@journeytolimitless_) • Instagram photos and videos
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
You really have the ability to create the life that
you envision for yourself.
You have the ability to takecontrol of your life, no matter
what that looks like for you andthat can be something that
sounds very sticky, depending onwhere you are on your chronic
illness journey.
But chronic illness doesn'thave to take away your life from
(00:23):
you.
It can feel like it, but itdoesn't have to, and I think
that we lose a lot of controlwhen we're first diagnosed, but
we can gain a lot of controlback.
Speaker 2 (00:35):
Hey, girlfriend, welcome to Journey to Limitless
podcast.
Together on this show, we're ona mission to build belief in
ourselves and live a life offreedom, despite what tries to
hold us back.
I'm your host, court, anempowerment coach, travel
enthusiast and a chronic illnesswarrior who, over the last
seven years, has built a lifethat I'm so obsessed with and
proud of.
But it definitely has not comeeasy.
(00:55):
So on the show, we're going tokeep it real as we talk about
adapting positive mindsetsthrough hardship, taking action
towards our dreams and findingpeace and freedom from hustle,
culture and chronic stress.
Are you with me?
Let's get going on your ownjourney to Limitless.
I am so excited that you're heretoday for another episode of
(01:15):
Journey to Limitless podcast.
Today we have Selena from myLoopy Life joining us and I am
just so stoked that you're herefor this conversation.
Selena is a lupus warrior andshe went from surviving in 2019
to now thriving and her journey.
She really felt empowered tonow help other women on their
(01:36):
lupus journey through hercommunity, my Loopy Life, and
also her coaching programs.
So today's episode, selena andI talked about the whole
experience of being diagnosedwith a chronic illness the
grieving process, how it is whenyou're first getting diagnosed,
and also we talked about thethings that have been really
impactful for her on her journey, because we know, no journey is
(01:59):
ever the same and this is why Ilove bringing people on to talk
about their experiences ofturning their pain into their
power, and I do have a lot ofpeople on to talk about chronic
illness because, yes, no journeyis the same and there's going
to be little tidbits ofempowerment and inspiration that
you will get from this episode,so I think that you're going to
love this episode.
I absolutely loved havingSelena on and I actually
(02:23):
connected with Selena because alistener of Journey to Limitless
reached out to me and requestedto have Selena on the podcast.
So, if you're listening, thankyou so much for reaching out
because, truly, thisconversation, I loved connecting
with Selena and I think thatyou're really going to love this
episode as well.
So I hope that you do if yourequested this episode.
(02:44):
But, either way, if you also arelistening to this and you have
someone that you would love tohear a podcast episode from, you
can always reach out to me.
That's your, that's yourinvitation.
If you have someone in mindthat you think could be a good
fit for the podcast.
We can have a conversationabout it.
You can always DM me onInstagram.
I'm at journey to limitlessunderscore and while I'm there,
(03:06):
while you're there, you can alsogo ahead and connect with
Selena.
So, like I said, her Instagramis at my loopy life.
That's M Y L O O P Y L I F?
E and you can connect with bothof us.
And if you love this episode,you can always take a screenshot
of your listening right now andtag us in your Instagram
stories to spread the message.
So let's go ahead and getstarted.
(03:28):
Selena, I'm so excited thatyou're here today to share your
journey with Lupus and how youhave really empowered yourself
and turned your pain into yourpower.
So, before we get started, canyou just kind of just share a
(03:48):
little bit about yourself andwhat your journey with Lupus has
really looked like from you foryou from the start?
Speaker 1 (03:55):
Of course.
Well, first of all, courtney,thank you so much for having me
here.
I'm really excited to share mystory and, for those of you that
are listening, hi, I'm Selena.
I'm a Lupus warrior, advocateand coach for women who are
living with Lupus, as well asthe voice and vision behind my
loopy life.
My loopy life is a platformthat has always just been
(04:18):
created to be a space where myexperiences on my Lupus journey
can help serve others, and I'msuper grateful for being able to
have this platform and for thecommunity that we've built
together.
It's been two years since Ilaunched my loopy life and we
just continue to build thisspace as a community, so it's
(04:41):
definitely been a wild ride fromthe shock of the diagnosis to
just changing my life to reallybe one where I can talk the talk
and walk the walk of, you know,living with empowerment and
purpose.
And if there's anything that myLupus journey has really taught
me, it's that every challengereally brings a chance to learn
(05:05):
and grow and really just get toknow yourself better.
So, just to shed some light onmy diagnosis and really where I
started I was diagnosed withLupus in 2019.
So it's been four years on thejourney, which it's been a
roller coaster, and you knowtime flies when you're living
(05:25):
with a chronic illness.
For sure it's been a rollercoaster, but when I was first
diagnosed with Lupus, I wasexperiencing symptoms for what I
recognized at that point.
For six months I was in and outof doctors offices really just
(05:45):
trying to get to the bottom ofwhat was happening, because
Lupus is a very interestingdisease that mimics a lot of
other diseases, so they neededto rule out things such as Lyme
disease and blood cancers andjust anything else really that
could have been going on.
What led me to go really getchecked out?
(06:06):
I was experiencing asignificant amount of water
retention, so I gained about 20pounds of water weight over the
course of a weekend, which wasvery interesting.
Like I'm a lean person, solooking at me as a stranger, you
may not have realized that thatwas happening, but it certainly
was, and that really made itreally difficult for me seeing
(06:30):
being in and out of the doctorsoffices because they were like,
oh, you look fine, right, andthat's like this famous line of
living with an invisible illnessyou're fine, you look great,
you know.
So that was really difficult forme and I was experiencing
symptoms like, sporadically,some swollen lymph nodes, a rash
that was misdiagnosed asrosacea.
(06:51):
I was the infamous lupusbutterfly rash that goes across
the face, and I had just gottenback from a trip to Mexico.
So I thought that it was asunburn and it lasted a lot
longer than a sunburn typicallywould have.
But Once I started recognizingthe swelling, I brought myself
to the emergency room, becauserightfully so at this point.
(07:14):
But I was a little bit of ahyper-contra-lock, I think.
So I really was like, okay, Ithink this is a bug bite, but
I'm going to the emergency room.
Like I was so hyper-fixated onmy body which thank God I was
and they told me that it was anallergic reaction to take some
Benadryl, and that was when,after the weekends, it really
(07:36):
just traveled up my entire body.
So after all of that testing, Iwent through a hematologist or
rheumatologist, ran the initialautoimmune antibody labs, and
once that came positive whichwas no surprise really, I have
autoimmune disease runs heavilyin my family they sent me over
(07:59):
to a rheumatologist to do theappropriate testing for lupus
and I also was showing symptomsof kidney involvement.
So I was referred to anneurologist as well and after a
kidney biopsy and all that wasfinalized.
That's when I was diagnosedwith lupus.
Speaker 2 (08:15):
Wow, I mean, it's just, there's so much that can
go into when you first starthaving symptoms to getting a
diagnosis where sometimes youknow there's a lot of
anticipation, there's a lot ofworry.
I mean, what was going on inyour mind when you were kind of
told all of these differentdiagnoses and then it ends up
(08:37):
not being it and things weren'tgetting better.
Like what was your, you knowyour mindset, like as like
leading up to the diagnosis?
Speaker 1 (08:47):
Leading up to the diagnosis, I was very scared
because I really did not knowwhat was happening with my body
and I was getting half answers.
It could be this, it could bethat let's go to this doctor,
let's go to that doctor.
I was really physically unwelland exhausted and I really just
wanted to get to the bottom ofeverything, but it was very
(09:07):
scary.
You know they're throwing outterms that at that point I have
no idea of what that means forme.
And you know, when you're onthe diagnosis journey, all of
these things run through yourmind of like before you have an
answer.
Well, what is is my life over?
What's my life going to looklike now?
(09:28):
And it's coming from all anglestoo.
Right, I mean, I have aphenomenal support system.
Thankfully that was alongsideme through my diagnosis journey,
but they were very scared too.
So being worried and being kindof surrounded by worry sucks,
you know.
Speaker 2 (09:46):
Yeah, especially because, I mean, you were young,
I think, because I was alsodiagnosed with ulcerative
colitis in 2019.
And I think that we're the sameage I'm pretty sure, 29 now.
So being diagnosed at 24, yeah24, yeah, so being diagnosed at
24, and really any age.
But I think, especially in likeyour early twenties or in your
(10:08):
twenties in general, likesometimes it can be like why is
this happening?
Like there's all of my friendsare able to go about life
normally, like what is going onwith my body?
I just want to get to thebottom of it.
And yeah, you have thatmentality of like my life is
over, like in my life I'm evergoing to be able to go back to
normal.
And so when you finally got thediagnosis, what like how did you
(10:35):
feel when you actually got theexact diagnosis that you needed?
Speaker 1 (10:39):
Well, I definitely had a slight sense of relief,
right, because you're on thisjourney of trying to figure out
what is wrong, yeah, but it wasalso very scary for me.
You know, I was at the time Iwas a elementary school teacher
in New York City, so I was in mysecond New York teaching.
I was in my first year of gradschool.
My social life looked a lotdifferent than it did post
(11:02):
diagnosis, and it was just thisconstant wave of all of these
thoughts of like my life is over, I'm not going to be able to
finish grad school, or what's mycareer going to look like.
Like you have all of theseplans for yourself and then a
chronic illness comes alongsuddenly and you're like, okay,
well, what now?
(11:22):
You know?
And then there was that mix ofrelief, because there was
obviously there clearlysomething wrong, but also it was
like I don't really know whatthis could look like for myself
in the future.
Speaker 2 (11:35):
Right, A lot of uncertainty and sometimes a lot
of grief goes along with thattoo, because there is that, with
the chronic illness diagnosis,with the uncertainty, you do
question if your life will evergo back to the way that it was
before.
You're grieving the lifestylethat you had before, because you
realize that, hey, things haveto change in order to keep
(11:56):
myself healthy, things have toshift.
I'm going to have to takemedications Like it's a whole
process in order to.
When you finally get adiagnosis, like, yes, we
sometimes can feel reliefbecause that at least gives us
direction.
But sometimes that directionespecially if you you know, I
know for me, when I wasdiagnosed with all sort of
colitis, they told me that I wasgoing to be on prednisone for
(12:17):
the rest of my life and I waslike, well, that's terrifying,
like that's not what I want andwhich I'm not.
I'm not on prednisone for therest of my life.
So, yeah, I think it's justfrom there you got to align
yourself with a support systemand a team that really aligns
with you and also believes thatyou can get yourself to a place
(12:40):
where you can still thrive.
You know, it doesn't have to bethis like very scary process,
which it is in the beginning,but I think that's why it's
important to like know thatthere's people out there that
want to help you get back to aplace of thriving with your
chronic illness, absolutely.
Speaker 1 (12:58):
And the thing you know with grief, just like in
any form, is that there's notimeline on it, right?
So you're always going to besitting there thinking about
this past version of yourself,pre-diagnosis.
But if there's anything thatI've learned along the journey
is that you really are able toshift to this place where, like
I'm not just living with lupusanymore, I'm really able to
(13:21):
thrive alongside that, and it'sa process to get there, but
that's really the energy that Ijust have been able to bring
into everything that I do,especially with the my Lupi Life
community, for sure.
Speaker 2 (13:33):
Yeah.
So what did that process looklike for you of like okay, so
you were diagnosed and now youare at a place where you're
thriving in your journey, Likecan you kind of give us an
overview of, like what happenedafter your diagnosis and how you
have really led yourself towhere you are today?
Speaker 1 (13:49):
Absolutely so there it's, you know.
As anyone with a chronicillness knows, it is absolutely
a roller coaster of theirjourney and initially for me it
was denial 101.
Like there was you know, I wasin a place where I got my
diagnosis and I was taking mymedication and I actually hit
(14:15):
remission after three months oftaking my medications and I said
, okay, cool, we're in the clear, stop taking my meds.
When I did myself in thehospital plenty of times due to
that and really to just beentirely honest with myself in
the community, right like Ididn't have that aha moment
(14:38):
until the last time I was in thehospital, I really just
continued to live in a way whereI was not taking care of myself
, I was not taking care of mybody.
I was just like, okay, well,like I had a lot of unhealthy
coping mechanisms and I kind ofjust let lupus and my health in
general be on the back burner.
(14:58):
So, you know, this is because Ikind of have that light bulb go
off for myself the last time Iwas hospitalized, which was in
August of 2021.
That's why I'm so passionateabout wanting to help women like
not hit rock bottom beforeactually taking control of their
journey and their health,because that's what I needed to
(15:20):
do and I really, after I kind ofwent over that hump of not
acknowledging lupus at all, Ilearned to navigate this new
reality of mind by embracingcommunity, embracing education,
taking, you know, making surethat I'm taking the steps needed
(15:44):
to learn more about my diseaseas much as I possibly can,
because there's a lot ofinformation that's still unknown
about lupus because of the typeof disease that it is.
But between embracing educationand holistic wellness, leaning
on the lupus community that Ijoined right after that
hospitalization and just mysupport system, which, again,
(16:07):
there are chronic illnesswarriors that their only support
system is the community onlineand it is so powerful, right
Like it is such an incrediblepowerful community that I wish I
had in the beginning of myjourney because I would not, in
any way, shape or form, havetreated my disease the way that
I did for the first year and ahalf.
(16:29):
And, you know, in terms of theholistic wellness piece, I feel
like I just want to clarify alittle bit of what that looks
like for me because I feel like,you know, in the chronic
illness world it's a reallylarge buzzword and kind of like
could be looked at as like woo,boo and stuff.
So, you know, for myself andthe warriors that have trusted
(16:53):
me to help, you know, guide themon their journey, adopting that
holistic approach to get frompoint A to point B looks like
managing your chronic illnessoutside of medications, outside
of appointments, everything elsesurrounding that, but really
integrating them all together,Because there's so much more to
(17:17):
navigating the journey than I'mgoing to wake up.
I'm going to go to my doctor'sappointments, I'm going to take
my meds and tomorrow will be anew day.
Speaker 2 (17:23):
There are so many different entry points to life
in general, but life with achronic illness yeah, I feel
like our journey, selena, are sosimilar and wild to me because
I also I'm saying, because Imean I don't know just
everything like I also wentthrough a journey of denial as
(17:47):
well.
Like I got into remissionfairly quickly after starting a
medication and you know, I wasdefinitely into you know, health
and wellness practice andeverything like that.
But there were so many otheraspects, such as like healing my
nervous system and slowing downand living a more slow paced
lifestyle and just being reallymindful in my life.
That was not a piece of thepuzzle that I think I truly
(18:10):
believe impacted the flare thatI had in 2022, which is where,
nowadays, like my, my chronicillness, which is also to clitus
is like integrated into my life.
Like I.
It's like it's not like I liveevery day worried about my
chronic illness, but like I gothrough my life mindful of my
chronic illness, versus justtaking the medication before and
(18:31):
putting it on the back burnerand feeling like I can still
live my life completely the sameRight and now the lifestyle
that I live is actually thelifestyle that I've always
wanted to have for myself, but Ireally needed that push through
chronic illness right to like.
Okay, you actually have to livea more mindful life.
You actually have to.
(18:51):
And mindfulness, to me it look,it does look very similar, I
feel like, to yours, where it isnot just like taking the
medication.
I also see a doctor, for youknow what's it called Like I
don't know the functionalmedicine.
I guess functional medicinedoctor and I, you know, I, you
(19:12):
know spend time outside.
It's a whole.
It doesn't look the same forevery single person.
You have to find what works foryou.
It's a different.
I'm in for everyone.
But it is just kind ofintegrating it into your life
and kind of taking the lessons,and sometimes it can really push
you into a more aligned pathfor yourself, cause now I feel
(19:34):
way more aligned in my life, butI had to take those lessons
from my chronic illness, youknow flares.
Speaker 1 (19:39):
So Absolutely, and I appreciate you sharing that
because that's just like asimilar headspace that I've
entered and I always saysometimes you know it can sound
funny, but I always say thatlupus was never meant to be an
ending for me and it's alwaysbeen meant to be a beginning
(20:03):
because, like you mentioned,this is the lifestyle you always
desired for yourself.
However, it took hitting rockbottom to get there and create
that for yourself and as someoneliving with a chronic illness.
There's a lot of trial anderror involved because, you're
right, there is no one size fitsall formula for anyone living
with UC or anyone living withlupus.
(20:24):
It's so different for everyone.
But the overall umbrellaGetting there is the lifestyle
adaptations and figuring outwhat that looks like for you.
You know, really sitting withyourself and being present in
figuring out what mindset chipsDo you need to create or what
limiting beliefs do you havethat you don't even realize that
(20:46):
you have engraved in.
You Like mentioned the nervoussystem regulation there's trauma
plays a huge role in autoimmunedisease and just really
Learning to find that balance inyour life.
Well, also, you know, dependingon if you can, but living by
(21:06):
that 80-20 rule because youdeserve to live a life that you
really enjoy, without lettingyour disease define you, but
also keeping it in mind, becauseyou have to now.
Speaker 2 (21:19):
Yeah, and I love what you touched on there about Like
the.
What did you just say?
Oh, my god, my, it's.
What is it today, wednesday,christmas break.
My brain is like all over theplace.
But you just mentioned aboutlike the, like the deep healing
of like the emotional side of.
What I picked up was like theemotional side of disease, like
for you on your journey, when itcame to likes like there was,
(21:41):
you said, and I don't, I waslike drawing a blank of what you
just said, but what I picked upon that was like the emotional
side of disease and oh, trauma,trauma, that's what that was it.
Oh, my god, when it came to likeRealizing that trauma can
impact your disease andeverything.
Like what was there any anylike aha moments?
When it came to like thespiritual side of I'm healing
(22:05):
your chronic illness, like anyany emotional things that you
had to go back through and heal.
If you feel open to kind ofSharing, I know for me in my UC
journey, healing has not justbeen this take a pill, like we
just have been saying.
It's not just taking a pill, itis looking at the emotional
side of disease, it is lookingat our mindsets, what we have
been told.
I know for me with my UC likeI've really had to go back in
(22:28):
and learn how to not be such aPeople pleaser and kind of
seeing these patterns come up inour life and breaking them.
So I'm wondering if anything hascome up for you on your journey
.
So, that was really long-winded.
Speaker 1 (22:42):
Yeah, so there's.
There's a lot of differentthings that come into play here
for me and this piece and a lotof it wasn't didn't really
Connect or come to light for meuntil I started working with a,
a functional medicine doctor,who, of course, as we know, at
this point in holistic wellness,it's all areas of your life,
(23:03):
not just disease and, yeah,treating it.
So this part of my journeyreally did involve a lot of
inner work, being really presentwith myself and my emotions and
being able to Work through pasttrauma that I've had, whether
it was childhood, whether it waspast relationships, all of
(23:25):
those things.
That life is hustle and bustle,so you go through it and you
move through it and that's it.
But this journey really forcedme to, like you said before,
slow down, be present and andit's very difficult to sit with
those Things that you may havewanted to forget about or push
(23:49):
aside that you went through.
So I think really acknowledgingthose things, no matter what
that looks like for you, caninclude therapy right, that's
something that has been reallyhelpful for me on my journey and
processing stuff and also youbringing up the people pleasing.
I mean, that was me for myentire life and I shifted so far
(24:12):
away from that where Intoxicfor a little bit actually,
because I was kind of just likethe answer is no, like no became
my favorite word, whether ithad to do with an event or a
person or a Relationship, it wasjust like nope.
You got to go like because yourealize over time that that's
(24:33):
not worth the Negative emotionsthat come with things and if you
have control over it then thatis incredible.
So, and I'm sure, as you know,stuff like emotions really it's
like has like a domino effect onlupus, yes, but chronic illness
in general, where Start to seewhat ends up being worth dealing
(24:58):
with and not because things canthen just ripple right into
symptoms and yeah yeah, and Ithink Having self-awareness of
how you can tune into we there'ssomething as a yes or a no is
really really important.
Speaker 2 (25:13):
And for me, human design has been really really
impactful for me in that way,because I am a a Sacred role.
So for me, when I am debatingwhether something is a yes or no
, I just tune into my gut,whereas someone else needs to
tune into their, their heart,someone else needs to tune into
their mind, like we're alldifferent and I think figuring
out how you can gain, how youcan like tune into your own
(25:36):
intuition to figure out whethersomething is a yes or a no, is
really really important on thehealing journey.
Because I mean, I feel likethis is why chronic illness is
on the rise is because us,especially women, we are
conditioned to be peoplepleasers, we are conditioned to
go overboard and put ourselvesat risk and, honestly, we're
conditioned to like hustle inthis like man, man Centered
(26:02):
world and that's just not theway that us women are supposed
to Be and this is why it's onthe rise.
And there's a book that I wasreading called the heroine's
journey, which, like that they.
It said that and I was like,okay, I get it now.
Living a more slow-paced lifeand learning to say no and
listen to our natural Intuitionis one of the best ways to go
hand-in-hand with all the otherholistic approaches.
(26:24):
But Learning to slow down isand listening to ourselves is
really one of the key parts andliving a more holistic lifestyle
, which will help help us healAbsolutely, and you know there's
just a lot of difficultdecision that needs to be made
when you come to that.
Speaker 1 (26:42):
Realization of your body is literally telling you
that you need a slower-pacedlife.
And I mean from again living inNew York City.
I was an elementary schoolteacher.
That did not exist.
I did not know what that lookedlike and you know I got to a
point where I felt like I had awall on my healing journey.
So I I like just recently madea decision to start start my
(27:08):
life over from scratch.
I mean, I had six incredibleyears as a teacher in New York
City, and I Made I had to sitwith myself and make that
decision to basically walk awayfrom everything that I've ever
known for the last 20 years ofmy life, to start life over, and
(27:28):
I made a really bold move I'mnot sure if you know this, but I
made it very bold move to leaveNew York City and I now live in
Florida.
I stepped away from my teachingcareer to dedicate myself to my
own healing journey, but tosupport other Lucas warriors,
because that's just what I'vebecome so passionate about and
(27:50):
we all really deserve to, youknow, lead fulfilling lives, no
matter what our battles are.
So that became my passion, andthat was a result, though, of
Making these hard decisions, andthe lifestyle in Florida is so
different.
I'm able to, also being anentrepreneur now, but, like I'm
(28:12):
able to really live that slowlife that my body was saying
Selena, wake up, because this isgoing to look ugly if you don't
start slowing down, and where Iwas, it just was not possible
for me.
Now I see what that's like andI cannot believe that I lived a
life any differently, you know.
Speaker 2 (28:32):
Yeah, I just always believe that.
I mean, I believe that we cangain lessons from a chronic
illness diagnosis and I thinkone of the great, one of the
things that I see across theboard with people who are
dealing with chronic illness isthat lesson of like something
needs to change in my lifestyle,whether that is ending a
relationship, whether that ismoving to another city, whether
(28:54):
that is ending, you know,switching career paths to be to
allow you to live that moreslowed down life.
So I feel like there's alwaysthis common denominator of like
something here needs to shiftright.
And when we allow ourselves todo that, I see it so many times
when people are like, oh my God,I'm just living a more aligned
life after my chronic, afterafter my chronic illness because
(29:16):
I learned these lessons throughit.
I think that there's alwayslessons that we can learn from
our chronic illness and you canreally lead us down the path
that is really way more alignedwith our souls and the life that
is really meant for us.
Speaker 1 (29:30):
For sure and I think, something that came up for me
and I'm sure comes up for othersand I'm sure you as well when
you are making these decisionsright, it can be really scary
because you just don't knowwhat's on the other side.
But now, being where I am forthe last six months, I say to
myself like I wish that I knewthat this type of life was what
a small not so small, but asmall decision.
(29:53):
One decision could have madelike I could have done that
sooner.
But we're here where I am for areason and I'm definitely super
grateful because, again, itwouldn't be without LUBOS.
If I did not have to be forcedto make these decisions on my
journey, I wouldn't be where Iam now.
Speaker 2 (30:11):
Yeah, yeah, and I think finding peace and making
these decisions, like there'sgoing to be someone who's
listening to this, who maybe ishaving something come up that
they're like, oh my gosh, I needto, I need to shift this part
of my life and, yes, it can feelreally, really scary.
So is there any advice that youwould have for that person who
is experiencing that right now,who wants to make a change to
(30:31):
better their health, but they'relike I'm really worried.
Speaker 1 (30:35):
Yeah, For someone who is feeling that sense of not
really being sure if they canmake a change or if they're
feeling kind of stuck with adecision.
You know, I think just learninghow to trust the journey is
(30:56):
really important and it's reallydifficult, but I do hope that
me sharing my experience will behelpful for someone that just
needs to take a leap right.
It's really it's trustingyourself, it's knowing yourself
and knowing that, as long as yousurround yourself with
(31:17):
knowledge and understanding andcommunity and support that you
really have the ability tocreate the life that you
envision for yourself.
You have the ability to takecontrol of your life, no matter
what that looks like for you andthat can be something that
sounds very sticky depending onwhere you are on your chronic
(31:39):
illness journey.
But chronic illness doesn'thave to take away your life from
you.
It can feel like it, but itdoesn't have to, and I think
that we lose a lot of controlwhen we're first diagnosed, but
we can gain a lot of controlback once we're able to, you
know, be okay with makingdecisions, such as if you need
(32:00):
to walk away from a relationshipor walk away from a job that's
causing you a lot of stress.
So that's specific to yeah,that's definitely hopefully that
would be helpful.
Speaker 2 (32:12):
I 100% agree with everything that you just said.
I think one of the mostpowerful things is to continue
to surround yourselves withpeople, whether that's in a
virtual community or anin-person community, who are
also reclaiming their powerthrough difficult circumstances
or have reclaimed their power,because you can take belief from
that person.
I know for me and my Altitudeof Colitis journey, one of the
(32:34):
things that really got methrough was hearing stories of
women who were in very similarpositions where they were, where
they got through some reallydifficult times.
When I was in it, like Iremember I was really really
sick going through it and I justneeded some hope of like am I
actually going to be able to getthrough this?
And I heard a story of a womanwho had probably one of the most
(32:55):
severe cases of Altitude ofColitis and now she's like.
She was like crushing life andI was like, okay, there's hope
for me, right.
Or yeah, it's like surroundingyourself with people who have
really aligned themselves with.
I think a lot of people who areliving really aligned lives and
really empowering lives havebeen through some shit, have
been through some real crap,because they learn lessons
(33:19):
through it, right.
So I think it's always takingyourself out of it and like
reminding yourself that nothingis happening to you.
These things are happening foryou, right?
So how can we learn throughthese?
You just gave me a job Like howcan you, how can we start to
lean in and like, yeah, trust,trust the journey of life?
(33:40):
I think for me, you know, whenyou're dealing, when you're
dealing with an Alt, like achronic illness diagnosis, a lot
of times, especially in thebeginning, it's okay to be
sometimes in the victimmentality because that's, I
think that's kind of a part ofthe process, right?
Oh yeah, that's a part of thegrieving process.
Absolutely Reminding yourselfthat, like I know for me, when I
(34:00):
was like, why is this happeningto me?
Like we all are, we all haveour own journeys in life.
Like someone else may not havea chronic illness diagnosis, but
they are experiencing somethingelse that is painful, right?
Like we all go through our ownpainful experiences in life,
right?
So just reminding ourselveslike this is the journey that
you or I am on, so learning toaccept where we are and that can
(34:24):
help us get into a moreempowered place, it really
starts with acceptance, right.
Speaker 1 (34:31):
Yeah, and that's how you know.
It's really just the only waythat one is able to move forward
on their journey.
You can't get to a place whereyou are in control and thriving
without nailing down thatacceptance piece.
And the acceptance piece reallygoes through the entire journey
because, again, like we've beensharing about both of our
(34:55):
journeys, it's just an ongoingprocess and you have to adjust
your whole life.
But you know, I really love howyou shared about that person
that you were listening to, thatwas kind of in the rut of their
journey and got out of it.
Because this is why I do what Ido and I know, and I'm sure,
why you do what you do for yourcommunity.
(35:16):
Right, it's like, if it's for,if our stories can just help one
person, that's good enough forme.
I've been blessed that my storyhas helped way more than one
lupus warrior and chronicillness warrior, but really I
just needed it to be one for,like you just shared, that
(35:38):
person's story that you heardhas stuck with you and it's
always going to be that when youre-sensor yourself and get
re-grounded and just reflect onyour experience, it was that one
person that did that for you.
Speaker 2 (35:50):
So I love that yeah and until, and I think a lot of
times, it's just important tofind people like that, because
and, like you know, this is whyI do this podcast is I share
multiple different stories, likeI mean, I talk about, I have
people on who share alldifferent types of difficult
circumstances and limiting times, because there's going to be
different pieces that canresonate in different insight
(36:12):
and different wisdom that eachperson gets, and I think it's
just important because there'salways going to be something
that clicks with at least oneperson you know.
And, yeah, there's just so muchpower in sharing your story,
right, everyone's story is validand there's just so much power
in that.
So, yeah, I mean, along withsharing our story, we're also
(36:32):
building awareness of illnesses,right, because you know, I know
you shared in the beginningabout the signs and symptoms of
lupus, which is really, reallyimportant for people to know,
because maybe there's someonewho is experiencing, like you
know, just symptoms right nowand they're like what is going
on?
Like obviously don'tself-diagnose yourself through a
podcast, but like I think itjust helps build awareness of
(36:53):
what someone is experiencing,right, and kind of validating
what they're experiencing.
So, when it comes to advocatingfor lupus awareness and what
impact do you hope to make withincreasing understanding and
support for those with lupus?
Speaker 1 (37:05):
Well, you know, my hope, of course, is to bring you
know the understanding andsupport to those who need it the
most and, through this platform, what I do and continue to do
is create a safe space for womenand any lupus warrior, to make
sure that they feel seen, theyfeel heard and they just really
feel empowered to live a fulllife alongside their diagnosis.
Speaker 2 (37:30):
Yeah, yeah, it's just it's needed because I think a
lot, of, a lot of people, yeah,we face you know it's very easy
to feel in the beginning thatyour chronic illness is like a
life sentence, right, when it'snot, there's ways to still live
fulfilling lives.
And I think it's just importantfor every there to be an
example for every chronicillness that hey, there's
(37:53):
someone there who can kind of bethat lighthouse for you of like
, hey, I don't know if I havethe hope in me right now, but
that person can shine hope ontome that I can get through this
and I can.
Speaker 1 (38:04):
we need examples from like everyone, right, every
chronic illness, like find thepeople who are overcoming in
each one For sure, and that'sexactly what my you know, my
group and one-to-one coachingprograms were created through,
right Like that result of thecommunity that we've been
(38:25):
building, but also just meetingthat one person to kind of shed
that light on you.
And, you know, the impactreally is just to have more
people understand their disease,you know, educate themselves
about their disease, but reallybe able to connect the dots, to
take control of their health sothat they can not only thrive
alongside it but just reclaimtheir lives and elevate their
(38:47):
lives alongside it for sure.
Speaker 2 (38:51):
Yeah, I love everything that you're doing and
I appreciate the work thatyou're doing for sure.
So, to wrap up, yeah, to wrapup.
Is there a song or anaffirmation that you go to when
you need the reminder thatyou're limitless?
Speaker 1 (39:05):
Absolutely so.
Um, okay, my mantra actuallybeen coming up a lot lately and
has really been keeping me incheck when I need to tap into my
inner strength is in everystruggle I find strength, and in
every setback is a newbeginning.
Speaker 2 (39:26):
I love that.
Speaker 1 (39:26):
I'm writing that down .
I feel, like the song.
I feel like the songUnstoppable by Sia really echoes
this for sure.
It always lifts my spirits andreminds me of the warrior that I
am and have been, and who I doit for, which, of course, is
myself, but also the people thatlove me and the Luthor
(39:48):
community.
Speaker 2 (39:48):
Yeah, I love that song so much.
I always play that when I needthe reminder that I'm limitless.
Speaker 1 (39:54):
So what are you?
Speaker 2 (39:54):
currently excited about and where can the
listeners find you, to connectwith you?
Um wow, I.
Speaker 1 (40:04):
There's so much to be excited about right now.
I just wrapped up our goalsetting and get some guest
expert planning for the nextyear.
There's a lot of excitingthings in the work that I have
planned for the community andfor anyone who wants to join
along on this journey, whetheryou have lupus or any other
chronic illness, or no one lovessomeone with lupus.
(40:25):
You can follow me on Instagramat my lupi life.
We definitely have been justgetting a lot of people reaching
out, which has inspired me andmy team to open our doors doors
even wider to just inviteeveryone to connect and grow
with us Any chronic illness,support systems and loved ones.
So awesome.
Speaker 2 (40:46):
Yeah, so all the lupus warriors definitely check
out Selena and all of her workand your Instagram is at my lupi
life, but do you have like awebsite or anything that they
can go to as well?
Speaker 1 (40:58):
So coming up, but you could find any links that they
that you'd like to accessthrough the link in my bio.
Okay, Awesome.
Speaker 2 (41:07):
Yeah, definitely link all things Selena for her
Instagram and the show notes foryou If you want to go ahead and
check her out.
But thank you so much, selena,for sharing your wisdom with us
today and I just really was sohappy that we got to connect, so
thank you for being here.
Speaker 1 (41:22):
Thank you so much, courtney, for having me out for
all that you do for yourcommunity.
Just you know, through sharingyour story and giving others a
platform to empower other womenalongside you, yeah thank you.
Speaker 2 (41:37):
Thank you so much for tuning in.
It means so much to me thatyou're here and that you're
taking the time to listen to thepodcast.
If you found this episode to bevaluable to you, it would mean
so much to me if you shared itwith your friends, who you think
could also really benefit fromthis message.
You can take a screenshot ofyou listening and tag me in your
Instagram stories.
I am at journey to lemurlessunderscore.
That also gives me the chanceto connect with you and say
(41:59):
thank you.
So until next week, I hope thatyou have an amazing week ahead
of you and I'll talk to you then.
You really have the ability to create the life that
you envision for yourself.
You have the ability to takecontrol of your life, no matter
what that looks like for you andthat can be something that
sounds very sticky, depending onwhere you are on your chronic
illness journey.
But chronic illness doesn'thave to take away your life from
(00:23):
you.
It can feel like it, but itdoesn't have to, and I think
that we lose a lot of controlwhen we're first diagnosed, but
we can gain a lot of controlback.
Speaker 2 (00:35):
Hey, girlfriend, welcome to Journey to Limitless
podcast.
Together on this show, we're ona mission to build belief in
ourselves and live a life offreedom, despite what tries to
hold us back.
I'm your host, court, anempowerment coach, travel
enthusiast and a chronic illnesswarrior who, over the last
seven years, has built a lifethat I'm so obsessed with and
proud of.
But it definitely has not comeeasy.
(00:55):
So on the show, we're going tokeep it real as we talk about
adapting positive mindsetsthrough hardship, taking action
towards our dreams and findingpeace and freedom from hustle,
culture and chronic stress.
Are you with me?
Let's get going on your ownjourney to Limitless.
I am so excited that you're heretoday for another episode of
(01:15):
Journey to Limitless podcast.
Today we have Selena from myLoopy Life joining us and I am
just so stoked that you're herefor this conversation.
Selena is a lupus warrior andshe went from surviving in 2019
to now thriving and her journey.
She really felt empowered tonow help other women on their
(01:36):
lupus journey through hercommunity, my Loopy Life, and
also her coaching programs.
So today's episode, selena andI talked about the whole
experience of being diagnosedwith a chronic illness the
grieving process, how it is whenyou're first getting diagnosed,
and also we talked about thethings that have been really
impactful for her on her journey, because we know, no journey is
(01:59):
ever the same and this is why Ilove bringing people on to talk
about their experiences ofturning their pain into their
power, and I do have a lot ofpeople on to talk about chronic
illness because, yes, no journeyis the same and there's going
to be little tidbits ofempowerment and inspiration that
you will get from this episode,so I think that you're going to
love this episode.
I absolutely loved havingSelena on and I actually
(02:23):
connected with Selena because alistener of Journey to Limitless
reached out to me and requestedto have Selena on the podcast.
So, if you're listening, thankyou so much for reaching out
because, truly, thisconversation, I loved connecting
with Selena and I think thatyou're really going to love this
episode as well.
So I hope that you do if yourequested this episode.
(02:44):
But, either way, if you also arelistening to this and you have
someone that you would love tohear a podcast episode from, you
can always reach out to me.
That's your, that's yourinvitation.
If you have someone in mindthat you think could be a good
fit for the podcast.
We can have a conversationabout it.
You can always DM me onInstagram.
I'm at journey to limitlessunderscore and while I'm there,
(03:06):
while you're there, you can alsogo ahead and connect with
Selena.
So, like I said, her Instagramis at my loopy life.
That's M Y L O O P Y L I F?
E and you can connect with bothof us.
And if you love this episode,you can always take a screenshot
of your listening right now andtag us in your Instagram
stories to spread the message.
So let's go ahead and getstarted.
(03:28):
Selena, I'm so excited thatyou're here today to share your
journey with Lupus and how youhave really empowered yourself
and turned your pain into yourpower.
So, before we get started, canyou just kind of just share a
(03:48):
little bit about yourself andwhat your journey with Lupus has
really looked like from you foryou from the start?
Speaker 1 (03:55):
Of course.
Well, first of all, courtney,thank you so much for having me
here.
I'm really excited to share mystory and, for those of you that
are listening, hi, I'm Selena.
I'm a Lupus warrior, advocateand coach for women who are
living with Lupus, as well asthe voice and vision behind my
loopy life.
My loopy life is a platformthat has always just been
(04:18):
created to be a space where myexperiences on my Lupus journey
can help serve others, and I'msuper grateful for being able to
have this platform and for thecommunity that we've built
together.
It's been two years since Ilaunched my loopy life and we
just continue to build thisspace as a community, so it's
(04:41):
definitely been a wild ride fromthe shock of the diagnosis to
just changing my life to reallybe one where I can talk the talk
and walk the walk of, you know,living with empowerment and
purpose.
And if there's anything that myLupus journey has really taught
me, it's that every challengereally brings a chance to learn
(05:05):
and grow and really just get toknow yourself better.
So, just to shed some light onmy diagnosis and really where I
started I was diagnosed withLupus in 2019.
So it's been four years on thejourney, which it's been a
roller coaster, and you knowtime flies when you're living
(05:25):
with a chronic illness.
For sure it's been a rollercoaster, but when I was first
diagnosed with Lupus, I wasexperiencing symptoms for what I
recognized at that point.
For six months I was in and outof doctors offices really just
(05:45):
trying to get to the bottom ofwhat was happening, because
Lupus is a very interestingdisease that mimics a lot of
other diseases, so they neededto rule out things such as Lyme
disease and blood cancers andjust anything else really that
could have been going on.
What led me to go really getchecked out?
(06:06):
I was experiencing asignificant amount of water
retention, so I gained about 20pounds of water weight over the
course of a weekend, which wasvery interesting.
Like I'm a lean person, solooking at me as a stranger, you
may not have realized that thatwas happening, but it certainly
was, and that really made itreally difficult for me seeing
(06:30):
being in and out of the doctorsoffices because they were like,
oh, you look fine, right, andthat's like this famous line of
living with an invisible illnessyou're fine, you look great,
you know.
So that was really difficult forme and I was experiencing
symptoms like, sporadically,some swollen lymph nodes, a rash
that was misdiagnosed asrosacea.
(06:51):
I was the infamous lupusbutterfly rash that goes across
the face, and I had just gottenback from a trip to Mexico.
So I thought that it was asunburn and it lasted a lot
longer than a sunburn typicallywould have.
But Once I started recognizingthe swelling, I brought myself
to the emergency room, becauserightfully so at this point.
(07:14):
But I was a little bit of ahyper-contra-lock, I think.
So I really was like, okay, Ithink this is a bug bite, but
I'm going to the emergency room.
Like I was so hyper-fixated onmy body which thank God I was
and they told me that it was anallergic reaction to take some
Benadryl, and that was when,after the weekends, it really
(07:36):
just traveled up my entire body.
So after all of that testing, Iwent through a hematologist or
rheumatologist, ran the initialautoimmune antibody labs, and
once that came positive whichwas no surprise really, I have
autoimmune disease runs heavilyin my family they sent me over
(07:59):
to a rheumatologist to do theappropriate testing for lupus
and I also was showing symptomsof kidney involvement.
So I was referred to anneurologist as well and after a
kidney biopsy and all that wasfinalized.
That's when I was diagnosedwith lupus.
Speaker 2 (08:15):
Wow, I mean, it's just, there's so much that can
go into when you first starthaving symptoms to getting a
diagnosis where sometimes youknow there's a lot of
anticipation, there's a lot ofworry.
I mean, what was going on inyour mind when you were kind of
told all of these differentdiagnoses and then it ends up
(08:37):
not being it and things weren'tgetting better.
Like what was your, you knowyour mindset, like as like
leading up to the diagnosis?
Speaker 1 (08:47):
Leading up to the diagnosis, I was very scared
because I really did not knowwhat was happening with my body
and I was getting half answers.
It could be this, it could bethat let's go to this doctor,
let's go to that doctor.
I was really physically unwelland exhausted and I really just
wanted to get to the bottom ofeverything, but it was very
(09:07):
scary.
You know they're throwing outterms that at that point I have
no idea of what that means forme.
And you know, when you're onthe diagnosis journey, all of
these things run through yourmind of like before you have an
answer.
Well, what is is my life over?
What's my life going to looklike now?
(09:28):
And it's coming from all anglestoo.
Right, I mean, I have aphenomenal support system.
Thankfully that was alongsideme through my diagnosis journey,
but they were very scared too.
So being worried and being kindof surrounded by worry sucks,
you know.
Speaker 2 (09:46):
Yeah, especially because, I mean, you were young,
I think, because I was alsodiagnosed with ulcerative
colitis in 2019.
And I think that we're the sameage I'm pretty sure, 29 now.
So being diagnosed at 24, yeah24, yeah, so being diagnosed at
24, and really any age.
But I think, especially in likeyour early twenties or in your
(10:08):
twenties in general, likesometimes it can be like why is
this happening?
Like there's all of my friendsare able to go about life
normally, like what is going onwith my body?
I just want to get to thebottom of it.
And yeah, you have thatmentality of like my life is
over, like in my life I'm evergoing to be able to go back to
normal.
And so when you finally got thediagnosis, what like how did you
(10:35):
feel when you actually got theexact diagnosis that you needed?
Speaker 1 (10:39):
Well, I definitely had a slight sense of relief,
right, because you're on thisjourney of trying to figure out
what is wrong, yeah, but it wasalso very scary for me.
You know, I was at the time Iwas a elementary school teacher
in New York City, so I was in mysecond New York teaching.
I was in my first year of gradschool.
My social life looked a lotdifferent than it did post
(11:02):
diagnosis, and it was just thisconstant wave of all of these
thoughts of like my life is over, I'm not going to be able to
finish grad school, or what's mycareer going to look like.
Like you have all of theseplans for yourself and then a
chronic illness comes alongsuddenly and you're like, okay,
well, what now?
(11:22):
You know?
And then there was that mix ofrelief, because there was
obviously there clearlysomething wrong, but also it was
like I don't really know whatthis could look like for myself
in the future.
Speaker 2 (11:35):
Right, A lot of uncertainty and sometimes a lot
of grief goes along with thattoo, because there is that, with
the chronic illness diagnosis,with the uncertainty, you do
question if your life will evergo back to the way that it was
before.
You're grieving the lifestylethat you had before, because you
realize that, hey, things haveto change in order to keep
(11:56):
myself healthy, things have toshift.
I'm going to have to takemedications Like it's a whole
process in order to.
When you finally get adiagnosis, like, yes, we
sometimes can feel reliefbecause that at least gives us
direction.
But sometimes that directionespecially if you you know, I
know for me, when I wasdiagnosed with all sort of
colitis, they told me that I wasgoing to be on prednisone for
(12:17):
the rest of my life and I waslike, well, that's terrifying,
like that's not what I want andwhich I'm not.
I'm not on prednisone for therest of my life.
So, yeah, I think it's justfrom there you got to align
yourself with a support systemand a team that really aligns
with you and also believes thatyou can get yourself to a place
(12:40):
where you can still thrive.
You know, it doesn't have to bethis like very scary process,
which it is in the beginning,but I think that's why it's
important to like know thatthere's people out there that
want to help you get back to aplace of thriving with your
chronic illness, absolutely.
Speaker 1 (12:58):
And the thing you know with grief, just like in
any form, is that there's notimeline on it, right?
So you're always going to besitting there thinking about
this past version of yourself,pre-diagnosis.
But if there's anything thatI've learned along the journey
is that you really are able toshift to this place where, like
I'm not just living with lupusanymore, I'm really able to
(13:21):
thrive alongside that, and it'sa process to get there, but
that's really the energy that Ijust have been able to bring
into everything that I do,especially with the my Lupi Life
community, for sure.
Speaker 2 (13:33):
Yeah.
So what did that process looklike for you of like okay, so
you were diagnosed and now youare at a place where you're
thriving in your journey, Likecan you kind of give us an
overview of, like what happenedafter your diagnosis and how you
have really led yourself towhere you are today?
Speaker 1 (13:49):
Absolutely so there it's, you know.
As anyone with a chronicillness knows, it is absolutely
a roller coaster of theirjourney and initially for me it
was denial 101.
Like there was you know, I wasin a place where I got my
diagnosis and I was taking mymedication and I actually hit
(14:15):
remission after three months oftaking my medications and I said
, okay, cool, we're in the clear, stop taking my meds.
When I did myself in thehospital plenty of times due to
that and really to just beentirely honest with myself in
the community, right like Ididn't have that aha moment
(14:38):
until the last time I was in thehospital, I really just
continued to live in a way whereI was not taking care of myself
, I was not taking care of mybody.
I was just like, okay, well,like I had a lot of unhealthy
coping mechanisms and I kind ofjust let lupus and my health in
general be on the back burner.
(14:58):
So, you know, this is because Ikind of have that light bulb go
off for myself the last time Iwas hospitalized, which was in
August of 2021.
That's why I'm so passionateabout wanting to help women like
not hit rock bottom beforeactually taking control of their
journey and their health,because that's what I needed to
(15:20):
do and I really, after I kind ofwent over that hump of not
acknowledging lupus at all, Ilearned to navigate this new
reality of mind by embracingcommunity, embracing education,
taking, you know, making surethat I'm taking the steps needed
(15:44):
to learn more about my diseaseas much as I possibly can,
because there's a lot ofinformation that's still unknown
about lupus because of the typeof disease that it is.
But between embracing educationand holistic wellness, leaning
on the lupus community that Ijoined right after that
hospitalization and just mysupport system, which, again,
(16:07):
there are chronic illnesswarriors that their only support
system is the community onlineand it is so powerful, right
Like it is such an incrediblepowerful community that I wish I
had in the beginning of myjourney because I would not, in
any way, shape or form, havetreated my disease the way that
I did for the first year and ahalf.
(16:29):
And, you know, in terms of theholistic wellness piece, I feel
like I just want to clarify alittle bit of what that looks
like for me because I feel like,you know, in the chronic
illness world it's a reallylarge buzzword and kind of like
could be looked at as like woo,boo and stuff.
So, you know, for myself andthe warriors that have trusted
(16:53):
me to help, you know, guide themon their journey, adopting that
holistic approach to get frompoint A to point B looks like
managing your chronic illnessoutside of medications, outside
of appointments, everything elsesurrounding that, but really
integrating them all together,Because there's so much more to
(17:17):
navigating the journey than I'mgoing to wake up.
I'm going to go to my doctor'sappointments, I'm going to take
my meds and tomorrow will be anew day.
Speaker 2 (17:23):
There are so many different entry points to life
in general, but life with achronic illness yeah, I feel
like our journey, selena, are sosimilar and wild to me because
I also I'm saying, because Imean I don't know just
everything like I also wentthrough a journey of denial as
(17:47):
well.
Like I got into remissionfairly quickly after starting a
medication and you know, I wasdefinitely into you know, health
and wellness practice andeverything like that.
But there were so many otheraspects, such as like healing my
nervous system and slowing downand living a more slow paced
lifestyle and just being reallymindful in my life.
That was not a piece of thepuzzle that I think I truly
(18:10):
believe impacted the flare thatI had in 2022, which is where,
nowadays, like my, my chronicillness, which is also to clitus
is like integrated into my life.
Like I.
It's like it's not like I liveevery day worried about my
chronic illness, but like I gothrough my life mindful of my
chronic illness, versus justtaking the medication before and
(18:31):
putting it on the back burnerand feeling like I can still
live my life completely the sameRight and now the lifestyle
that I live is actually thelifestyle that I've always
wanted to have for myself, but Ireally needed that push through
chronic illness right to like.
Okay, you actually have to livea more mindful life.
You actually have to.
(18:51):
And mindfulness, to me it look,it does look very similar, I
feel like, to yours, where it isnot just like taking the
medication.
I also see a doctor, for youknow what's it called Like I
don't know the functionalmedicine.
I guess functional medicinedoctor and I, you know, I, you
(19:12):
know spend time outside.
It's a whole.
It doesn't look the same forevery single person.
You have to find what works foryou.
It's a different.
I'm in for everyone.
But it is just kind ofintegrating it into your life
and kind of taking the lessons,and sometimes it can really push
you into a more aligned pathfor yourself, cause now I feel
(19:34):
way more aligned in my life, butI had to take those lessons
from my chronic illness, youknow flares.
Speaker 1 (19:39):
So Absolutely, and I appreciate you sharing that
because that's just like asimilar headspace that I've
entered and I always saysometimes you know it can sound
funny, but I always say thatlupus was never meant to be an
ending for me and it's alwaysbeen meant to be a beginning
(20:03):
because, like you mentioned,this is the lifestyle you always
desired for yourself.
However, it took hitting rockbottom to get there and create
that for yourself and as someoneliving with a chronic illness.
There's a lot of trial anderror involved because, you're
right, there is no one size fitsall formula for anyone living
with UC or anyone living withlupus.
(20:24):
It's so different for everyone.
But the overall umbrellaGetting there is the lifestyle
adaptations and figuring outwhat that looks like for you.
You know, really sitting withyourself and being present in
figuring out what mindset chipsDo you need to create or what
limiting beliefs do you havethat you don't even realize that
(20:46):
you have engraved in.
You Like mentioned the nervoussystem regulation there's trauma
plays a huge role in autoimmunedisease and just really
Learning to find that balance inyour life.
Well, also, you know, dependingon if you can, but living by
(21:06):
that 80-20 rule because youdeserve to live a life that you
really enjoy, without lettingyour disease define you, but
also keeping it in mind, becauseyou have to now.
Speaker 2 (21:19):
Yeah, and I love what you touched on there about Like
the.
What did you just say?
Oh, my god, my, it's.
What is it today, wednesday,christmas break.
My brain is like all over theplace.
But you just mentioned aboutlike the, like the deep healing
of like the emotional side of.
What I picked up was like theemotional side of disease, like
for you on your journey, when itcame to likes like there was,
(21:41):
you said, and I don't, I waslike drawing a blank of what you
just said, but what I picked upon that was like the emotional
side of disease and oh, trauma,trauma, that's what that was it.
Oh, my god, when it came to likeRealizing that trauma can
impact your disease andeverything.
Like what was there any anylike aha moments?
When it came to like thespiritual side of I'm healing
(22:05):
your chronic illness, like anyany emotional things that you
had to go back through and heal.
If you feel open to kind ofSharing, I know for me in my UC
journey, healing has not justbeen this take a pill, like we
just have been saying.
It's not just taking a pill, itis looking at the emotional
side of disease, it is lookingat our mindsets, what we have
been told.
I know for me with my UC likeI've really had to go back in
(22:28):
and learn how to not be such aPeople pleaser and kind of
seeing these patterns come up inour life and breaking them.
So I'm wondering if anything hascome up for you on your journey
.
So, that was really long-winded.
Speaker 1 (22:42):
Yeah, so there's.
There's a lot of differentthings that come into play here
for me and this piece and a lotof it wasn't didn't really
Connect or come to light for meuntil I started working with a,
a functional medicine doctor,who, of course, as we know, at
this point in holistic wellness,it's all areas of your life,
(23:03):
not just disease and, yeah,treating it.
So this part of my journeyreally did involve a lot of
inner work, being really presentwith myself and my emotions and
being able to Work through pasttrauma that I've had, whether
it was childhood, whether it waspast relationships, all of
(23:25):
those things.
That life is hustle and bustle,so you go through it and you
move through it and that's it.
But this journey really forcedme to, like you said before,
slow down, be present and andit's very difficult to sit with
those Things that you may havewanted to forget about or push
(23:49):
aside that you went through.
So I think really acknowledgingthose things, no matter what
that looks like for you, caninclude therapy right, that's
something that has been reallyhelpful for me on my journey and
processing stuff and also youbringing up the people pleasing.
I mean, that was me for myentire life and I shifted so far
(24:12):
away from that where Intoxicfor a little bit actually,
because I was kind of just likethe answer is no, like no became
my favorite word, whether ithad to do with an event or a
person or a Relationship, it wasjust like nope.
You got to go like because yourealize over time that that's
(24:33):
not worth the Negative emotionsthat come with things and if you
have control over it then thatis incredible.
So, and I'm sure, as you know,stuff like emotions really it's
like has like a domino effect onlupus, yes, but chronic illness
in general, where Start to seewhat ends up being worth dealing
(24:58):
with and not because things canthen just ripple right into
symptoms and yeah yeah, and Ithink Having self-awareness of
how you can tune into we there'ssomething as a yes or a no is
really really important.
Speaker 2 (25:13):
And for me, human design has been really really
impactful for me in that way,because I am a a Sacred role.
So for me, when I am debatingwhether something is a yes or no
, I just tune into my gut,whereas someone else needs to
tune into their, their heart,someone else needs to tune into
their mind, like we're alldifferent and I think figuring
out how you can gain, how youcan like tune into your own
(25:36):
intuition to figure out whethersomething is a yes or a no, is
really really important on thehealing journey.
Because I mean, I feel likethis is why chronic illness is
on the rise is because us,especially women, we are
conditioned to be peoplepleasers, we are conditioned to
go overboard and put ourselvesat risk and, honestly, we're
conditioned to like hustle inthis like man, man Centered
(26:02):
world and that's just not theway that us women are supposed
to Be and this is why it's onthe rise.
And there's a book that I wasreading called the heroine's
journey, which, like that they.
It said that and I was like,okay, I get it now.
Living a more slow-paced lifeand learning to say no and
listen to our natural Intuitionis one of the best ways to go
hand-in-hand with all the otherholistic approaches.
(26:24):
But Learning to slow down isand listening to ourselves is
really one of the key parts andliving a more holistic lifestyle
, which will help help us healAbsolutely, and you know there's
just a lot of difficultdecision that needs to be made
when you come to that.
Speaker 1 (26:42):
Realization of your body is literally telling you
that you need a slower-pacedlife.
And I mean from again living inNew York City.
I was an elementary schoolteacher.
That did not exist.
I did not know what that lookedlike and you know I got to a
point where I felt like I had awall on my healing journey.
So I I like just recently madea decision to start start my
(27:08):
life over from scratch.
I mean, I had six incredibleyears as a teacher in New York
City, and I Made I had to sitwith myself and make that
decision to basically walk awayfrom everything that I've ever
known for the last 20 years ofmy life, to start life over, and
(27:28):
I made a really bold move I'mnot sure if you know this, but I
made it very bold move to leaveNew York City and I now live in
Florida.
I stepped away from my teachingcareer to dedicate myself to my
own healing journey, but tosupport other Lucas warriors,
because that's just what I'vebecome so passionate about and
(27:50):
we all really deserve to, youknow, lead fulfilling lives, no
matter what our battles are.
So that became my passion, andthat was a result, though, of
Making these hard decisions, andthe lifestyle in Florida is so
different.
I'm able to, also being anentrepreneur now, but, like I'm
(28:12):
able to really live that slowlife that my body was saying
Selena, wake up, because this isgoing to look ugly if you don't
start slowing down, and where Iwas, it just was not possible
for me.
Now I see what that's like andI cannot believe that I lived a
life any differently, you know.
Speaker 2 (28:32):
Yeah, I just always believe that.
I mean, I believe that we cangain lessons from a chronic
illness diagnosis and I thinkone of the great, one of the
things that I see across theboard with people who are
dealing with chronic illness isthat lesson of like something
needs to change in my lifestyle,whether that is ending a
relationship, whether that ismoving to another city, whether
(28:54):
that is ending, you know,switching career paths to be to
allow you to live that moreslowed down life.
So I feel like there's alwaysthis common denominator of like
something here needs to shiftright.
And when we allow ourselves todo that, I see it so many times
when people are like, oh my God,I'm just living a more aligned
life after my chronic, afterafter my chronic illness because
(29:16):
I learned these lessons throughit.
I think that there's alwayslessons that we can learn from
our chronic illness and you canreally lead us down the path
that is really way more alignedwith our souls and the life that
is really meant for us.
Speaker 1 (29:30):
For sure and I think, something that came up for me
and I'm sure comes up for othersand I'm sure you as well when
you are making these decisionsright, it can be really scary
because you just don't knowwhat's on the other side.
But now, being where I am forthe last six months, I say to
myself like I wish that I knewthat this type of life was what
a small not so small, but asmall decision.
(29:53):
One decision could have madelike I could have done that
sooner.
But we're here where I am for areason and I'm definitely super
grateful because, again, itwouldn't be without LUBOS.
If I did not have to be forcedto make these decisions on my
journey, I wouldn't be where Iam now.
Speaker 2 (30:11):
Yeah, yeah, and I think finding peace and making
these decisions, like there'sgoing to be someone who's
listening to this, who maybe ishaving something come up that
they're like, oh my gosh, I needto, I need to shift this part
of my life and, yes, it can feelreally, really scary.
So is there any advice that youwould have for that person who
is experiencing that right now,who wants to make a change to
(30:31):
better their health, but they'relike I'm really worried.
Speaker 1 (30:35):
Yeah, For someone who is feeling that sense of not
really being sure if they canmake a change or if they're
feeling kind of stuck with adecision.
You know, I think just learninghow to trust the journey is
(30:56):
really important and it's reallydifficult, but I do hope that
me sharing my experience will behelpful for someone that just
needs to take a leap right.
It's really it's trustingyourself, it's knowing yourself
and knowing that, as long as yousurround yourself with
(31:17):
knowledge and understanding andcommunity and support that you
really have the ability tocreate the life that you
envision for yourself.
You have the ability to takecontrol of your life, no matter
what that looks like for you andthat can be something that
sounds very sticky depending onwhere you are on your chronic
(31:39):
illness journey.
But chronic illness doesn'thave to take away your life from
you.
It can feel like it, but itdoesn't have to, and I think
that we lose a lot of controlwhen we're first diagnosed, but
we can gain a lot of controlback once we're able to, you
know, be okay with makingdecisions, such as if you need
(32:00):
to walk away from a relationshipor walk away from a job that's
causing you a lot of stress.
So that's specific to yeah,that's definitely hopefully that
would be helpful.
Speaker 2 (32:12):
I 100% agree with everything that you just said.
I think one of the mostpowerful things is to continue
to surround yourselves withpeople, whether that's in a
virtual community or anin-person community, who are
also reclaiming their powerthrough difficult circumstances
or have reclaimed their power,because you can take belief from
that person.
I know for me and my Altitudeof Colitis journey, one of the
(32:34):
things that really got methrough was hearing stories of
women who were in very similarpositions where they were, where
they got through some reallydifficult times.
When I was in it, like Iremember I was really really
sick going through it and I justneeded some hope of like am I
actually going to be able to getthrough this?
And I heard a story of a womanwho had probably one of the most
(32:55):
severe cases of Altitude ofColitis and now she's like.
She was like crushing life andI was like, okay, there's hope
for me, right.
Or yeah, it's like surroundingyourself with people who have
really aligned themselves with.
I think a lot of people who areliving really aligned lives and
really empowering lives havebeen through some shit, have
been through some real crap,because they learn lessons
(33:19):
through it, right.
So I think it's always takingyourself out of it and like
reminding yourself that nothingis happening to you.
These things are happening foryou, right?
So how can we learn throughthese?
You just gave me a job Like howcan you, how can we start to
lean in and like, yeah, trust,trust the journey of life?
(33:40):
I think for me, you know, whenyou're dealing, when you're
dealing with an Alt, like achronic illness diagnosis, a lot
of times, especially in thebeginning, it's okay to be
sometimes in the victimmentality because that's, I
think that's kind of a part ofthe process, right?
Oh yeah, that's a part of thegrieving process.
Absolutely Reminding yourselfthat, like I know for me, when I
(34:00):
was like, why is this happeningto me?
Like we all are, we all haveour own journeys in life.
Like someone else may not havea chronic illness diagnosis, but
they are experiencing somethingelse that is painful, right?
Like we all go through our ownpainful experiences in life,
right?
So just reminding ourselveslike this is the journey that
you or I am on, so learning toaccept where we are and that can
(34:24):
help us get into a moreempowered place, it really
starts with acceptance, right.
Speaker 1 (34:31):
Yeah, and that's how you know.
It's really just the only waythat one is able to move forward
on their journey.
You can't get to a place whereyou are in control and thriving
without nailing down thatacceptance piece.
And the acceptance piece reallygoes through the entire journey
because, again, like we've beensharing about both of our
(34:55):
journeys, it's just an ongoingprocess and you have to adjust
your whole life.
But you know, I really love howyou shared about that person
that you were listening to, thatwas kind of in the rut of their
journey and got out of it.
Because this is why I do what Ido and I know, and I'm sure,
why you do what you do for yourcommunity.
(35:16):
Right, it's like, if it's for,if our stories can just help one
person, that's good enough forme.
I've been blessed that my storyhas helped way more than one
lupus warrior and chronicillness warrior, but really I
just needed it to be one for,like you just shared, that
(35:38):
person's story that you heardhas stuck with you and it's
always going to be that when youre-sensor yourself and get
re-grounded and just reflect onyour experience, it was that one
person that did that for you.
Speaker 2 (35:50):
So I love that yeah and until, and I think a lot of
times, it's just important tofind people like that, because
and, like you know, this is whyI do this podcast is I share
multiple different stories, likeI mean, I talk about, I have
people on who share alldifferent types of difficult
circumstances and limiting times, because there's going to be
different pieces that canresonate in different insight
(36:12):
and different wisdom that eachperson gets, and I think it's
just important because there'salways going to be something
that clicks with at least oneperson you know.
And, yeah, there's just so muchpower in sharing your story,
right, everyone's story is validand there's just so much power
in that.
So, yeah, I mean, along withsharing our story, we're also
(36:32):
building awareness of illnesses,right, because you know, I know
you shared in the beginningabout the signs and symptoms of
lupus, which is really, reallyimportant for people to know,
because maybe there's someonewho is experiencing, like you
know, just symptoms right nowand they're like what is going
on?
Like obviously don'tself-diagnose yourself through a
podcast, but like I think itjust helps build awareness of
(36:53):
what someone is experiencing,right, and kind of validating
what they're experiencing.
So, when it comes to advocatingfor lupus awareness and what
impact do you hope to make withincreasing understanding and
support for those with lupus?
Speaker 1 (37:05):
Well, you know, my hope, of course, is to bring you
know the understanding andsupport to those who need it the
most and, through this platform, what I do and continue to do
is create a safe space for womenand any lupus warrior, to make
sure that they feel seen, theyfeel heard and they just really
feel empowered to live a fulllife alongside their diagnosis.
Speaker 2 (37:30):
Yeah, yeah, it's just it's needed because I think a
lot, of, a lot of people, yeah,we face you know it's very easy
to feel in the beginning thatyour chronic illness is like a
life sentence, right, when it'snot, there's ways to still live
fulfilling lives.
And I think it's just importantfor every there to be an
example for every chronicillness that hey, there's
(37:53):
someone there who can kind of bethat lighthouse for you of like
, hey, I don't know if I havethe hope in me right now, but
that person can shine hope ontome that I can get through this
and I can.
Speaker 1 (38:04):
we need examples from like everyone, right, every
chronic illness, like find thepeople who are overcoming in
each one For sure, and that'sexactly what my you know, my
group and one-to-one coachingprograms were created through,
right Like that result of thecommunity that we've been
(38:25):
building, but also just meetingthat one person to kind of shed
that light on you.
And, you know, the impactreally is just to have more
people understand their disease,you know, educate themselves
about their disease, but reallybe able to connect the dots, to
take control of their health sothat they can not only thrive
alongside it but just reclaimtheir lives and elevate their
(38:47):
lives alongside it for sure.
Speaker 2 (38:51):
Yeah, I love everything that you're doing and
I appreciate the work thatyou're doing for sure.
So, to wrap up, yeah, to wrapup.
Is there a song or anaffirmation that you go to when
you need the reminder thatyou're limitless?
Speaker 1 (39:05):
Absolutely so.
Um, okay, my mantra actuallybeen coming up a lot lately and
has really been keeping me incheck when I need to tap into my
inner strength is in everystruggle I find strength, and in
every setback is a newbeginning.
Speaker 2 (39:26):
I love that.
Speaker 1 (39:26):
I'm writing that down .
I feel, like the song.
I feel like the songUnstoppable by Sia really echoes
this for sure.
It always lifts my spirits andreminds me of the warrior that I
am and have been, and who I doit for, which, of course, is
myself, but also the people thatlove me and the Luthor
(39:48):
community.
Speaker 2 (39:48):
Yeah, I love that song so much.
I always play that when I needthe reminder that I'm limitless.
Speaker 1 (39:54):
So what are you?
Speaker 2 (39:54):
currently excited about and where can the
listeners find you, to connectwith you?
Um wow, I.
Speaker 1 (40:04):
There's so much to be excited about right now.
I just wrapped up our goalsetting and get some guest
expert planning for the nextyear.
There's a lot of excitingthings in the work that I have
planned for the community andfor anyone who wants to join
along on this journey, whetheryou have lupus or any other
chronic illness, or no one lovessomeone with lupus.
(40:25):
You can follow me on Instagramat my lupi life.
We definitely have been justgetting a lot of people reaching
out, which has inspired me andmy team to open our doors doors
even wider to just inviteeveryone to connect and grow
with us Any chronic illness,support systems and loved ones.
So awesome.
Speaker 2 (40:46):
Yeah, so all the lupus warriors definitely check
out Selena and all of her workand your Instagram is at my lupi
life, but do you have like awebsite or anything that they
can go to as well?
Speaker 1 (40:58):
So coming up, but you could find any links that they
that you'd like to accessthrough the link in my bio.
Okay, Awesome.
Speaker 2 (41:07):
Yeah, definitely link all things Selena for her
Instagram and the show notes foryou If you want to go ahead and
check her out.
But thank you so much, selena,for sharing your wisdom with us
today and I just really was sohappy that we got to connect, so
thank you for being here.
Speaker 1 (41:22):
Thank you so much, courtney, for having me out for
all that you do for yourcommunity.
Just you know, through sharingyour story and giving others a
platform to empower other womenalongside you, yeah thank you.
Speaker 2 (41:37):
Thank you so much for tuning in.
It means so much to me thatyou're here and that you're
taking the time to listen to thepodcast.
If you found this episode to bevaluable to you, it would mean
so much to me if you shared itwith your friends, who you think
could also really benefit fromthis message.
You can take a screenshot ofyou listening and tag me in your
Instagram stories.
I am at journey to lemurlessunderscore.
That also gives me the chanceto connect with you and say
(41:59):
thank you.
So until next week, I hope thatyou have an amazing week ahead
of you and I'll talk to you then.
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