There’s been a lot happening behind the scenes in my world over the last year.

One thing I haven’t really shared much about is the journey I’ve been on with my body.

Around April last year I started noticing my knee was sore.

Pulling, swelling, just not right.

By May I stopped doing yoga.

Then in June I went to Bali for our winter.

While I was there I was walking puppy everyday, I had planned to keep practicing yoga. I went to one or two ecstatic dances.

Then I saw an incredible osteopath.

He told me something that honestly gutted me.

Stop dancing for now.

No yoga.

No dancing.

Two of the things that bring me the most joy in my body.

So I listened.

For months I did what I always do first. I turned to everything I know about healing. Rest. Natural anti-inflammatories. Nervous system regulation. Holistic health practices. All the things I’ve spent years learning and teaching.

I spent over a decade working in personal training and wellness. My body has been used to movement for most of my life.

Netball.

Basketball.

Polo cross.

Heavy weights.

Kickboxing.

Dancing.

Years of movement, intensity, strength.

So to suddenly be in a place where I couldn’t do the things that felt like second nature was frustrating.

And I’ve been here before.

After my back surgery there was a period where I could barely move the way I was used to. That was a confronting journey. So to find myself back in another season where movement is restricted has had its own emotional layers.

There have been moments I felt gutted.

Watching other people dance.

Seeing the dances happening that I haven’t been able to go to freely.

In October I finally went for an MRI.

Torn meniscus.

Meniscus cyst.

Surgery was scheduled for December. That didn’t end up happening and I’ve been on the waiting list since.

So this year has become a different kind of journey.

Instead of staying stuck in frustration I started asking different questions.

What can I do?

How can I support my body to heal?

So I’ve been nourishing it in every way I know how.

More protein for tissue repair.

Collagen.

Bone broth.

MSM for inflammation.

And peptides as part of a six week healing protocol after doing a lot of research and speaking with people I trust who have healed similar injuries.

Movement has become simpler.

Walking the puppy.

Gentle rehab exercises.

Swimming when I can.

And today I did something that felt both humbling and empowering.

I went back to the hydrotherapy pool.

The same place I went after my back surgery.

Back to the hydrotherapy pool, the place that once felt incredibly humbling during that recovery.

I hate chlorine.

But the warm water, the buoyancy, and the ability to move my body without pressure on the joint gives me something I don’t have on land right now.

The ability to move.

The ability to strengthen.

And yes… I’m probably the youngest one in there most days.

A room full of retirees doing their exercises while I quietly join them.

There’s something strangely beautiful about that.

This year my body has asked something different from me.

Less pushing.

Less intensity.

More listening.

And if I’m honest there have been emotional layers too.

Feeling frustrated.

Feeling restricted.

Watching my body change slightly with less movement.

I’m not immune to that.

I’m a woman. A human being. A body that has lived a lot of life.

What I keep coming back to is this.

Life will always bring seasons where things shift.

Where the way we used to move through the world isn’t available to us for a while.

So the question becomes…

How do we meet that moment?

For me it has meant realigning.

Resting when I need to.

Strengthening where I can.

Getting creative with healing.

And pouring the extra quiet time into creativity, writing, reflection and the things that nourish my soul.

Right now my healing looks like small daily choices.

Supporting my body.

Working with it instead of against it.

If you’re on a healing journey, be kind, compassionate, and gentle with yourself during the process.