3 BOOKS THAT HELPED MY MENTAL, PHYSICAL & SPIRITUAL HEALING JOURNEY
The Homecoming’s compassionate and empathetic approach helped me do just that— come back home to myself.
This was one of the first books I read when I began my healing journey during the summer of 2022. Through this read, I learned that disconnection from yourself can look like people-pleasing (guilty!) fear (guilty!), anxiety (guilty!), resentment (guilty!) and more (definitely guilty).
I loved this book because Dr. Thema draws from her own experiences as a Black woman navigating adversity, and blends both a psychological and spiritual (non-religious) perspective to help you heal little by little from past traumas or painful events. She touches on things like reparenting yourself, toxic workplace experiences, breakups and divorce, sexual trauma, racial oppression and a variety of other painful experiences while emphasizing the importance of community and self-care. At the end of each chapter, she includes easy and practical tools to assist your path in reconnecting with your authentic self.
The Homecoming is also a podcast and one personal revelation I had listening to it is that if you’re used to being on survival mode, hyper-independent, a loner or keeping people at a distance and you begin to find yourself craving rest, connection, companion and/or community that is actually a positive sign of healing. :)
Excerpt from the book that I enjoyed:
GENEROSITY
”When we have a stingy mentality, we are living from a place of panic, a place of “never enough”. We can shift into hoarding, clinging, and overprotection instead of actually being able to open our hands and heart and share ourselves. Instead of seeing everyone as competitors that we have to block, beat or outperform, we can share what we have [and who we are] with others.
When you begin coming home to yourself, you no longer have to frantically hold on to everything at the expense of everyone else. … You don’t have to approach each day as a battle. You can release the idea that everyone needs to figure out life on their own. To come home to yourself today, what do you need to stop clinging to, hoarding, hiding or defending? You may have been fighting for so long that you don’t even remember why you’re fighting. Consider the myths that you have believed that keep you from sharing resources, time or love.” — Page 131
Y’all, did you know that disorders like anxiety, depression and Parkison’s are all directly linked to your gut health?!
At some point last year I began struggling with constant bloating, anxiety and migraines. Of course all of that led me to google “bloating issues woman” before consulting an actual doctor. But thankfully, around that same time, an IG friend posted her new read (GUT) which led me to purchase this book… which led me to reach out to my doctor and begin my gut healing journey. Like I said, we are healing the mind, body and spirit over here.
Reading GUT helped me better understand the brain-gut connection and how an unhealthy gut can impact so much of our being from our mental health to physical ailments like headaches, joint pain and so much more. I learned that our gut is our body’s second brain along with compelling truths about the digestive process, the link between bowel-movement and your nervous system, how to know what your body is telling you or what it needs and to buy this thing for a better pooping experience.
The best part of this book is that no diet is included.
While it’s written by a medical professional, it’s super easy to understand and fun to read as it includes lots of illustrations to help you contextualize the information. I am truly fascinated by how intentional our body is and I can say that at minimum reading GUT helped change my relationship with food for the better. Best believe I am on the road to becoming a healthy-gut Mami now. Are you??
Excerpt from the book that I enjoyed:
CONSTIPATION
“Almost half of us have experienced constipation when traveling. Particularly in the first few days of a trip, it is often difficult to go properly. … When we travel, we have a lot on our mind. Did we pick up our keys and turn off the iron? We might remember to take a book to keep our brains happy but there is one thing that we always forget– the creature of habit, the gut, is also traveling with us and is suddenly torn from its familiar routine.
We drink less than normal, for fear of having to go to the toilet too often and even dehydrate. And as if that weren’t enough, we might also have to face a big fat bout of jet-lag. All of this does not go unnoticed by the nerves of the gut. They can get confused and put the brakes on until they receive a signal that everything is normal and they can start work again.” — Page 109
You can also watch the Hack Your Health documentary on Netflix which is based on the book.
One of my favorite friends gifted me A Return to Love over ten years ago but after reading the first few pages, I hated it. Quite frankly, it referenced “God” way too much for my liking during a time when I just didn't believe nor wanted anything to do with religion. The constant referencing of God made me angry, so I tossed it into my book bin and never looked at it again.
By October of last year however, prayer seemed to be the only thing to soothe the tormenting anxiety and scary intrusive thoughts I was experiencing. At the height of a mental struggle this book came to mind and thus my quest to truly understand who God really is began.
I loved this book because the author, Marianne, uses a non-religious foundation and practical approach to explain that God is Love:
“God is the love within us. Whether we “follow Him”, or think with love, is entirely up to us. When we choose to love, or to allow our minds to be one with God, then life is peaceful. When we turn away from love, the pain sets in.” — Page 18
This perspective clicked because at this point in my life I had been shifting away from the moon, the stars, the Geminis rising and mercury in reggaeton stuff I once found solace in but often left me unfulfilled. I yearned for something more meaningful, where the proof was substantial.
Reading A Return to Love gently eased me into realizing I was never truly an unbeliever of God. I realized I was just angry with Him because I couldn’t understand why, if he existed, he would allow certain events in my life to unfold and one too many negative experiences with church people in my childhood was enough for me to write Him off without truly knowing him.
A Return to Love softened my heart posture as I began to understand the questions to complex topics like faith, love, forgiveness, the Holy Spirit and what it means to surrender our ego, pride, relationships, careers, etc. In the aftermath, I can humbly say this journey set me on a path in which I allowed God's love to shine through me and that experience in turn has brought me a peace of mind and in my heart, reconciliation with my parents, has helped me heal deep childhood wounds, brought provision, healthier relationships and a better understanding of my purpose, along with many other positive shifts that I’ll continue to share throughout my blog.
So, if you’re currently in a place where you or someone you know find yourselves questioning the meaning of life, if you want to release hurt, or have been on an endless search for peace, meaning and purpose, I encourage you to pick up this book or gift it to someone who may need it (Thank you, Jenelle <3)
Excerpts from the book that I enjoyed:
ROMANTIC LOVE
“Looking for Mr. Right leads us to desperation because there is no Mr. Right. There is no Mr. Right because there is no Mr. Wrong. There is whoever is in front of us and the perfect lessons to be learned from that person.
If your heart’s desire is for an intimate partner, the Holy Spirit might send someone who isn’t the ultimate intimate partner for you, but rather something better: someone with whom you are given the opportunity to work through the places in yourself that need to be healed before you’re ready for the deepest intimacy.”— Page 125
FORGIVENESS IN RELATIONSHIPS
“Forgiveness is the key to inner peace because it is the mental technique by which our thoughts are transformed from fear to love. Our perceptions of other people often become a battleground between the ego’s desire to judge and the Holy Spirit’s desire to accept people as they are. The ego is the great-fault finder. It seeks out the faults in ourselves and others… The places in our personality where we tend to deviate from love are not our faults, but our wounds. God doesn't want to punish us but to heal us. And that is how He wishes us to view the wounds in other people.”— Page 93
Who is someone in your life who has been a subject of your fear or unforgiveness for too long?