BEHIND THE BLOG (Weekly Review) week 2 / 2017 - That Crazy Little Thing Called Love | SMart Choice Lifestyle

What’s the one story we all look for? What’s that one feeling that lets us know that we belong? That we’re equally responsible for the other as they are for us? What’s that thing that has the power to lift us up whenever we may think life is now over? We sing it, feel it, suffer for it, wish for it. It feeds us, it starves us. It’s everywhere around us, inside us, between us… I’m talking about that crazy little thing called LOVE (Thank you for the title, Freddie!)

This is the second Friday that I write about what the week taught me. From this point onward, we’ll name this section BEHIND THE BLOG. Its purpose is to offer a behind-the-scenes into the motivations, life events and learnings that make the building blocks for the SMart Choice Lifestyle. It’s about life through my eyes, the author of the blog. It is shared for you, so that it may help you in any way, shape or form. So let’s see what the second week of 2017 brought.

HIGHLIGHTS

In terms of HIGHLIGHTS, I think you’ll agree with me that not all life is made out of such bright and shiny things. There may be just hidden little gems like the “HUMAN” documentary that opened my eyes (once more) about how unique we are as people on this planet and how much alike we really are. It taught me about that crazy little thing called LOVE that has the capacity of saving the world if we all work together.

Relationships and belonging are not just for the immediate family. We all feel the same, love the same, suffer the same, hate the same… The only difference is about the local contexts and conditions we’re brought up. People are influenced by the culture they are brought in, but at the same time, they are more alike than they think, and the most powerful common ground is LOVE.

I kid you not, at one point as I was watching the documentary and listening to the stories, my hand reached out wanting to comfort the ones who were crying. There’s something unbearable about looking in another human beings eyes and seeing them cry. It brings instant action, need to comfort and compassion.

“Only the LOVE OF PEOPLE can SAVE THE WORLD!”

("HUMAN")

It reaffirmed my belief that pride and Ego are the source of all the evil in this world. Without getting too philosophical or melodramatic, I really believe that being humble and giving more of ourselves than we actually receive can be the key to achieving harmony between people. Serving, helping people with whatever skills we have is amazingly rewarding and heart comforting. Both for the ones who receive it and for the ones who give it. We are all different and are made to serve a different purpose in this mechanism called LIFE. The essence of this mechanism is LOVE.

FAVOURITES

With that all being said, here are some FAVOURITES from this week. Here it goes!

1) “HUMAN” (by Yann Arthus-Bertrand) #WhatMakesUsHUMAN

2) “Al Pacino’s Top 10 Rules for Success” (by Evan Carmichael)

3) Obama’s farewell address (ABC News)

See you next week & have a wonderful weekend!
Denisa

March Favorites 2016 | Health, Lessons & Inspiration

As every month, I wrap up the one that just ended and draw the line to see what it has left me with. Let’s get into what this March had to offer.

HEALTH REVIEW

SMart Choice is a lifestyle blog. Health is an essential part of it so is usually the thing I start these articles with. Living with an unpredictable illness like multiple sclerosis leaves space for all kinds of happenings and changes.

This March was good to me. The major issue was around feeling emotionally tense and suffering consequences like muscle tension, numbness and headaches. All this lead in turn to feeling fatigued and at times mentally exhausted, as I was also brainstorming new content ideas and plans for the blog. But I went on with all that and did my thing. I strained. And so I had to suffer.

Imagine a roller coaster curve: going up, higher and higher, pausing a bit at the top and then letting go and calming the ride. This is what happened with my symptoms, as my hormones were doing their monthly fluctuation, I experienced pressure, fatigue and sensory issues.

Let me tell you what I’ve learned. There are two things that worked for me and did their job perfectly:

• Take time to relax during the day and sleep at least 8 hours per night. For a person with MS this should be like prescription medicine. Sleep has proven to be anti inflammatory, it promotes cellular repair and recharges our energy supplies (plus is sooo comfortable and cozy! :)) ).
• Exercise helps the body to be strong and well. It has anti inflammatory effects and encourages cell growth. This month I focused on my core strength, while getting the extremities (arms & legs) more flexible. I got my whole body to be balanced inside and out.

LESSONS LEARNED

The word that defines this March is “balance”: balance hormones, effort & rest, sleep & wake, exercise & sitting. All leading to a more harmonious lifestyle based on smart, healthy and creative choices that improve your mental and physical health. That help keep them in balance.

Work on having less stress in your life. You need to heal. Make space for that. I’ll say it once more, tend to the body, tend to the mind.

Focus on relationships. Go on living life as it is. Have empathy for people. Be compassionate. Simplify. Take breaks. Stand up for what you believe in. Keep moving everyday. Train for life. Have faith in yourself; believe you can do it and you will suceed. Have self-compassion. Be aware of your thoughts. What you think is what you become.

FAVORITES & INSPIRATION

As always, the list is full of motivational and creative things and people. I love learning from like-minded people who have more experience than me. This March also brought some very interesting Tweetchats: #MSworkability,  #MSminds and #ChatMS (on cognition). Read all about them here, here and here.

Marie Forleo brought encouragement and many more insights with her videos on YouTube (here). This month's biggest outtake from them, is about starting before you’re ready. We plan so much, we fear that we are not prepared well enough and so forth. But the fact is we are never 100% ready for doing anything. There will always be something that takes us off-guard and that makes us to adapt as we go along. Striving to be perfect gets you nowhere. Do an excellent job at the best of your abilities and modify as needed. Life isn’t waiting for you to be on your best day. Live now.

Amy Shmittauer (SavvySextSocial) has a penetrating and insightful YouTube channel, podcast and business, all built around social media and helping people do and be their best through digital storytelling. She also motivates and points out where one should make improvements in their online self-expression in order to succeed at business and human relationships that come from it. I've been watching Amy's channel for almost a year now, and I formed a habit of comming back for more. Take a peek at her videos and see what you can learn from them. Way helpful.

On the same topic, Gary Vaynerchuk has once again proved of real value in providing insights on how to best convey messages through social media. I resonate with his idea of storytelling natively to each platform, adapting the content so that it expresses your message in the best way possible at a given time. Go check out Gary here.

The EMSP (European Multiple Sclerosis Platform) provided ongoing motivation to continue having a voice in the multiple sclerosis community. I draw so much inspiration from people with or without MS who advocate and stand up for the wellbeing and a higher quality of life for the ones living with multiple sclerosis. Their stories are helping me raise back up when I think I can’t do it no more. If a person who went through so many things is able to stand up and go on living, I can do that too.

Shift.MS launched a new tool for managing mental health in dealing with multiple sclerosis. Thought Sort is the kind of online, interactive way to literally sort out your thoughts and see where they came from and what can be done to shift your mindset to a more positive one that suits your lifestyle. Go check it out here and while you’re at it, make sure you subscribe to the Shift.MS community. Lots of feedback, support and encouragement from the network's members.

The "Overcoming Multiple Sclerosis. An Evidence-Based Guide to Recovery” book by professor George Jelinek. I always say that education is key. Reading all you can about your disease and about ways to manage it is the best thing you can do with your spare time. Some of us have the need to be informed and some don’t. I accept that as well. So, do as you choose. Just remember this is a great resource to a better understanding of multiple sclerosis and how you can become an active part on your way to recovery. And mind you I’ve said recovery, not cure. The goal is to maintain the state you are in now for as long as possible. To improve and stabilize. To be healthy in spite of MS. Physically and mentally.

Lori Schneider made me cry with her TEDx talk about overcoming our limits and fears by having the courage to determination to become a better version of ourselves. Dare to confront our fears and we will be surprised at what we can really achieve if we put our bodies and minds up to it. 

An international speaker, author, Everest and "Seven Summits" mountaineer, advocate for those living with neurological disorders and disabilities, she is also one of this year's speakers at the EMSP 2016 Spring Conference taking place in Oslo, Norway. Find more about her here and here.

This was my month and all the things that got me a little forward than I was the one before. Little by little, we all evolve, we all change and grow. The more you resist it, the more you strain your mind and bring anxiety into your life. Straighten your back, close your eyes and breathe deeply.

I hope you enjoyed this month's favorites. Leave a comment down below and let's talk. 

Subscribe and share on social with all the people you know. To receive even more insights and exclusive content, subscribe to the weekly Newsletter (we're going LIVE this month!).

As always, transformation starts from within.

Sincerely,

Alex

Monthly Review (February 2016) - Health, Lessons, Favorites and Inspiration (and Leo DiCaprio wins an Oscar!)

Once every four years, we get an extra day to add up to our year. That is what we call a leap-year. That additional day has the purpose to keep the calendar year synchronized with the astronomical year. Funny how time got divided by humans! Does this mean we live more? Does this mean we are a day older? For me it means that I just have an extra day to review my past month and to share some learnings and inspiration with all of you.

HEALTH REVIEW

The defining word for this month was numbness. Sensory symptoms are very common in early stages of relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis (that’s a mouthful there, i know!). For the second and third week they increased, culminating with what it seemed to be a wonderful pseudoexacerbation (mouthful again! the things one has to learn in this context!).

It can get quite scary when you feel your upper left back getting numb, going down the outter left arm and ending in your 4th and 5th fingers. It’s like that feeling you get when you sleep on a side and it falls asleep. In my case, it got numb-ish when standing or sitting up. The sensation crawls on you, it gradually gets stronger, and then it tingles. Like you have small bubbles bursting under your skin.

To paint the whole picture, I have to add a blurry right eye (on and off), some nerve pain here and there, a migraine, and stinging in my left eye (on and off too). As I was feeling all this, my mind kept fighting back, my emotions were a mess, as I felt I was losing control, not being able to get a grip on my body and what it did.

And then I understood. In order to feel better and to regain control over yourself, you have to actually let it go, alow yourself to go through whatever you’re facing and then analyze and rise up with another lesson learned. It all flows. No pain is here forever. Not quite at the same intensity anyway. 

As with all things in life, you eventually get used to the situation. We are adaptable beings. We all have what it takes to survive, to accept our life, adapt and overcome any hardship. Often times, our minds are the ones standing in the way of us feeling better. People might go through amazingly hard times, but the stronger and flexible minds prevail. Always.

I tend to get scared, I tend to get irritable, angry and not so pleasant to be around when shitty things do happen. Or at least I used to. Untill the numbness episode happened last week. And through the scary thoughts, the panic I felt as my left arm side was getting numb, I crawled back up, refusing to give in to my fears and symptoms.

I got up, strethched and accepted the fact that I had a numb side. It could have been worse that that. What will I do if it does get worse if I’m failing myself now? That’s not an option. I must always rise above, breathe and be grateful for what I do have. Be calm, accept and do my best to live the life I’ve planned. If I don’t help myself, no one will be able to.

LESSONS LEARNED

Let go of details. When you can’t see the forest for the trees is time to back up and rething the whole situation you’re dealing with. There is no point feeling overwhelmed. Focus on what makes you happy and go do that. Do it with love, ease and excitement. Stick to your plans, to your choices. Live healthy and happy, doing what comes naturally to you, what makes you all fuzzy inside, strong and accomplished. The rest are details and will arrange by themselves.

Automatize your daily routines as to be able to focus on the things that really need your energy and focus, on the things that make up your healthy life (going to work, exercising, spending time with friends, reading, etc). Choose your daily battles.

In life, you get what you focus on. Have to many bad days in a row? It’s time to change something. It might be your sleep patterns, your diet, your lack of movement, you getting to upset for minor issues, anything. Moderation and balance are key to a happy and healthy life.

Aim to simplify, give more and focus on the task at hand. Multitasking is a myth. It never helped anyone having his or her head in more places at the same time. It’s exhausting!

Move, rest, eat well, find silence and love within. Pray, breathe, accept. Find refuge in what makes you feel better, cozy and rested. Train for health. Live now. Don’t delay it (life happens now, as you read this).

Loosen the grip on things. Enjoy life, worry less. Let go of ego and pride. Give more. Be humble, be helpful. Spend more time and love on your loved ones, people, places, etc. to balance the nastier sides of rollercoastering, to always have a safety net of things, people and places that help you feel good.

Sleep is medicine, take it as needed. Eat only what heals and makes you feel good and energized (not stuffed, there’s a long way ‘till the Christmas turkey and you’re not competing with it!)

FAVORITES & INSPIRATION

Pheeww! This was one full month! As always, I read a lot, wrote a lot, learned a lot and watched some very inspirational creatives do the best at their craft. It’s all about the people you surround yourself with, near or far, flesh and bone or via the internet, alive or dead.

There’s knowledge everywhere. There are always lessons to be learned and things to see. Choose what makes you better, stronger, happier. Choose the things that help you feel good, that act like a safety net, a soft mattress you can fall on when you’re not so good at times.

Going back to my “roots” so to speak, I chose to write a daily weekday blog again. To revitalize old projects (Metamorphosis), create new ones and share some works in progress. I find ease in writing and in building stories. 

I once more got inspired by Liz Gillbert. “Big Magic”, her latest non-fiction, is the manual I go back to, again and again when I need to better understand what being creative really means. And then I get back to writing. Once again, J.K. Rowling, J.R.R. Tolkien and George R.R. Martin brought to life old ideas and writing plans. I will share more as the stories unfold.

I was drawn to history and natural sceenery documentaries. To story-like places and realms that made me feel free and that provided enough mental space for the ideas to develop freely and harmoniously. “Escape to the Country”, “Saints and Sinners - Britain’s Millennium of Monasteries” and “Wild Scotland” were the type of videos that created the setting.

Maria Popova with her Brain Pickings articles and YouTube interviews and speeches, David Brooks with his take on the social animals we all are, Adriene Mishler with her Yoga Camp and Chase Jarvis with his CJraw episodes were the structure of the inspiration I had for this February.

As always, I enjoyed it to the maximum. I always like having a full schedule of things to learn and see.

Another important chapter of the month, or should I say months, were reading the Bible and helping myself to better understand its story through the animated YouTube videos of The Bible Guys. I’ve mentioned them before, in my Friday Metamorphosis episode. Check them out. If you ever wanted to read the scripture and fell of the bandwagon before finishing the Exodus from Egypt, this is the channel for you. The Bible and its learnings suddenly become more comprehensible and fun. It’s a story unlike all others. It’s the book of books and inside you’ll find love, gratitude, humbleness and choice (I got a bit to excited there. but what can I do? I really enjoy it).

One last piece of inspiration comes from the not so new videos of the European Multiple Sclerosis Platform, the series called “Under Pressure - Living With MS in Europe”. The episode that really spoke to me and that served as inspiration for a few following blog posts for the next months was the one that presented the story of Martina. 

A young girl of  26, after the diagnosis and a depressive period in her life, she is now working as part of a hotel’s staff, socializing and trying to feel normal again, in spite of her disease. Once again, there are examples that life is worth living, even if you have an incurable illness like multiple sclerosis. We are born to live (don’t listen to Lana del Rey! :)) ).

This was my month and all the things that got me a little forward than I was the one before. Little by little, we all evolve, we all change and grow. The more you resist it, the more you strain your mind and bring anxiety into your life. Straighten your back, close your eyes and breathe deeply. 

Another day has passed. What have you learned? How do you feel? Get in touch with yourself and let’s talk.

Oh, and last night (evening for USA), Leonardo DiCaprio took home an Oscar for Best Actor in “The Revenant”. Finally! :))

Yours truly,

Alexandra

Reviewing 2015 & New Plans for This Year

Last year has seen a lot of firsts, learning and self-discoveries. I also had a lot of fun, spent time with friends and family, went on vacation and basically enjoyed life as it came. But as with all things “life”, you’ll get some not so good parts also. MS symptoms got a bit more obvious, but I battled them with all that was in my power. All in all, it was a full and enjoyable year. This is going to be a long post, so grab a cup of tea, sit confortably, and let’s dig deeper to see why.

2015 had a lot of firsts and lessons learned, but definetly one of the biggest was starting MS treatment in March. I am well-known by people close to me as being deeply scared by needles and taking any kind of shots. Surprise-surprise! Copaxone, the treatment I’m on, is injectable. It’s a daily subcutaneous (under the skin) injection that burns somewhat when it gets inside the body. If someone had told me a few years back that I’m going to do that daily and not run in terror, I would have called him / her crazy! Actually, I found out that I was not afraid of the needle itself, nor it pearcing my skin, but of the reactions / emotions people around me associated with it since I was little (stick around, we’re going to talk about lots of self-discoveries, ha!). So, that was first of the… firsts.

The second most important thing started was this actual blog. SMart Choice Lifestyle was started in April 2015, as a means to inform and talk about MS-related subjects, advice and living with the condition as a young person. You can read more about that process here.

I read or listened to many insightful books / audiobooks, videos and articles. Through all this I learned a lot about myself, business and life in general. To only name a few, let’s talk about:

“Big Magic” by Elizabeth Gilbert

“Linchpin” by Seth Godin

“The Four Hour Workweek” by Tim Ferris

“Rich Dad, Poor Dad” by Robert Kiyosaki

YouTube basically replaced my TV, as I discovered some amazing channels of which I name the ones I learned the most from: 

Mimi and Alex Ikonn

Gary Vaynerchuk

Yoga with Adriene

Chase Jarvis

Tim Ferris

London Real

Since April 2015, once I’ve discovered the magnificent Adriene Mishler’s YouTube yoga channel and got absolutely hooked, I really got into yoga and meditation. Almost a year later, it has proved to be one of the best if not THE best decision and habit of 2015! It has brought so much clarity and strenght (both physically and mentally) to my life. When my body feels tight or sore from MS-related issues or just from daily work, I always turn to yoga stretches and at least 10 minutes of sitting in silence in order to clear my mind and figure out what’s going on with myself. It’s part of my everyday morning and night routines. Thank you, Adriene! You guys! Be sure to subscribe to her channel and try the #30daysofyoga (2015) and #yogacamp (2016) challenges. She's the best teacher I could ever hope for in this yoga journey! You'll see what I mean: she's funny, calm and really takes her time into getting you finding what feels good on the mat.

Going down a similar lane, I rediscovered God and His meaning to me. Got to know myself a little bit better and learned a lot. In conjunction with going deeper in  my mind and emotions, I found love and strength inside. If you ever think that you are not loved or not stong enough to do something, take a step back, analyze your fears, your thought process and see that if you got through today, you are stonger than you think and you’ll eventually find all the love that you will ever need in your own heart. Just trust and get to know yourself better. It’s so worth it!

It was a time of outlining many projects and having new wonderful ideas. A time of finding my “why”, my mission and calling. It has always been there, staring me in the eyes, but I couldn’t see it because I was distracted with what society taught me. So, I’m a writer and a visual storyteller that likes to help people see the best in themselves. The rest will unfold slowly on this blog, so make sure you subscribe to receive every new update.

I understood that all is flowing, changing, moving, and that I need to go with the flow, adapt and just be. Leave stress aside and focus on the present moment. The rest is fading. So, I had more gratefulness and midfulness than in past years and learned that dreams need action in order to come true. The “secret” is not whishfull thinking, is TAKING ACTION! Doing things.

One big lesson is that forgiveness opens the door to endless possibilities of light heartedness, love and fulfillment in one’s life. You only have to come at it with an open heart and just let go of any grudges, resentments and useless negativity that only brings you down in the end.

There are little miracles happening around us all the time, be aware of your surroundings, the people you meet and the things that you go through.

The funny fact about introspection is that it allows you to understand many of the issues, flaws, problems you’ve had through the years and the reason why they happened. So insightful! I understood that life is in fact very simple and light at its core and we are the ones who make it harder through our own daily choices and actions.

This December I turned 30! And felt like 22 *giggles inside*. Going on the shakespearian lane, what’s in a number? To be or not to be… 30!? What the heck! Let’s live it! I’m 03… oops… 30!

I really didn’t face a big drama (or any drama) when changing my decade. It only made me realise how far I’ve come and how many things I have under my belt. And yet again, how young I still am, and how well that fits with MS! The joy! But let’s not exaggerate! Be humble and grateful for the situation I’m in, because I am aware that others have it way harder than me.

I don’t want you to be offended in the very least by my words, so I must explain a bit: I have a sarcastic-ish way of facing issues in my life, so if it seems I’m just making fun of my condition it’s because I really don’t want to take it seriously. It brings me down, and it’s the last thing I want in my life, on top of the daily stresses. I find it very easy to talk MS-related stuff, make fun of it and beat it sensless with food, exercise and rest. Copaxone only does 30% of the job so I take care of the other 70%, which does not include negative emotions. Hope you’ll understand.

Speaking of lifestyle management, I also thought about what was I doing when I had my best days / results / work. Summing it all up, it was a mix of the following things:

- eating healthy, 

- exercising at least 30 minutes per day, 

- sleeping regularly and minimum 8 hours / night, 

- organising my to-do lists and work in an orderly and disciplined way, 

- focusing on doing just one thing at a time, 

- getting inspiration and achieving the right state of mind, 

- having new experiences and learning

- creating content without constraints, judgements or the others’ opinion in mind,

- working from the heart, when I was authentic and true to myself and my core beliefs.

The biggest, most impactful lesson I had last year was the day when I understood that all is flowing, that all is energy (a vibration basically) and that the most important and life-giving one is LOVE in all its shapes and sizes: kindness, gratefulness, generosity, compassion, forgiveness, etc. We are more stronger than we think. The mind is limiting our actions. Let the Ego go and look at the world through your heart. You’ll be amazed at what you’ll see.

Other highlights of 2015 were finally receiving “The Wahls Protocol” from the U.S. and a surprise red-rose from my boyfriend (May)

me dropping yet another cup that I had for ages, thanks to MS clumsiness (June) (thank you, dear!), 

the Robbie Williams concert in Bucharest’s Constitution Square (July)

the yearly trip to Sibiu and Hunedoara (August), 

the most amazing late summer light I have ever seen, at my parents’ house (August) (the picture really doesn’t do it justice!),  

best friend rebonding girls day out (September),

my boyfriend made THESE for his niece’s birthday (September),

barbecuing and photographing this little guy in the warm autumn light at my boyfriend’s house (October), 

discovering and SAVING my first entirely gray hair (I still have it!) (November),

and enter my beautiful December (might be subjective here, as I’m born close to Christmas, so… if you love it as much as I do, let me know in the comments below): early birthday resent from my boyfriend, 

my own self birthday present, 

celebrating my kindergarden birthday *whistles looking away*,

decorating the Christmas tree, 

the Christmas tree, 

waiting for Santa,

and yet another reason why I love roses

For this year, my three main goals are centered on writing, photography and yoga. These three are my main focal points, with some occasional sprinkles of travel here and there. But most of all, my biggest hope for the beginning of this year is that my next MRI doesn’t show any new lesions.

Thank you all for being here and reading this review!

Sign up to the email list, to be sure you’ll get the three main articles I publish every week, plus an occasional fourth or fifth post when I have something new to share!

Until next time, make the SMart Choices for your lifestyle.

Love,

Alexandra