Category: Soul Notes

BOOK, Soul Notes, Write Pray Recover

Creating Wealth:Soul Notes – Love, Wendy

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There was a time in my life when I could buy anything I wanted, travel anywhere I desired, and surround myself with all the outer symbols of success. By every worldly measure, I was wealthy. Yet inside, I was spiritually bankrupt, physically depleted, and emotionally exhausted. My soul was starving for something that money could never buy…love, peace, and genuine connection.

The more I tried to fill the emptiness with things, the emptier I became.

I learned that material wealth without inner wellness is poverty of the spirit.

Today, and for the past 13 years, I define wealth as balance, harmony, and nourishment. Wealth is waking up with purpose. It’s the freedom to rest when I’m tired, to love without fear, and to speak truth from my heart.It’s laughter with family, a gentle sunrise, and faith that sustains me through pain.

True wealth is not what I own…it’s who I’ve become through the healing.
True wealth isn’t found in possessions, but in presence, meaning and love and experiencing joy even during life’s challenges.

If you have your health, you are wealthy.

If you have loving family and friends, you are wealthy.

If you have a job or career that you love and where you can earn a living, you are wealthy.

If you allow yourself to love, and if you are loved, you are wealthy.

If you have a spiritual practice that nourishes and supports you, you are wealthy.

Wealth should never be measured in dollars and cents, or in “stuff.”

Wealth is the daily nourishment that feeds us body, mind and spirit.

Love and blessings,

Wendy

BOOK, Soul Notes, Write Pray Recover

Is Love Real?-Soul Notes: Love, Wendy

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My friend asked me if I thought love is real after he ended a relationship with the “love of his life.” And, I have been single for many years after two unsuccessful long term marriages, and one long term “committed” (on my side) relationship…

My answer? “Yes. Love is real—but it’s not static.”

It evolves, changes form, and sometimes ends. Romantic love can fade, but that doesn’t erase its truth when it was present. And love in its broader sense (friendship, family, soul connections, divine love) is enduring. Many couples do grow together through midlife and beyond, but it requires honesty, intentional effort, shared growth, and in my humble opinion, a spiritual life that encompasses a belief in a source that loves, guides, and protects, and one that two people can honor together with a similar mindset, morals, and values. It is a spiritual space of love, safety, kindness, as well as freedom and individuality to think, speak and honor.

I’ll leave you with this…when someone leaves a long-term relationship for someone new, it doesn’t mean the love they shared was false. In my opinion and experience, It means they stopped choosing it, nurturing it, or aligning with it.

Love is “non linear” where we are living and experiencing love in all its forms…ups and downs…ins and outs…back and forth…acknowledging that it can be a rich and valuable experience even with its non-linear nature.

We choose to continue to breathe life into love, or we choose to let it die.

Most importantly, when we love ourselves first and practice self care before all else, we are in a position to thrive in love with another along the long and sometimes winding road.

Love,

Wendy

Soul Notes

Friendship Set on Fire:Soul Notes – Love, Wendy

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Celebrating 7 years of a soulmate friendship across the pond…

one that continues to grow deeper, where I am reminded each day to “awaken with love in my heart.”

It is a “friendship set on fire” and dances to the music of the soul.

Seven years of knowing, laughing, meaningful conversations, love, loss and feeling this unique bond.

Truly grateful for this remarkable man who understands connection, consistency, and commitment…a friendship and bond that lights the heart.

David…”I’ll remember…” ❤️

Love,

Wendy

Soul Notes, Write Pray Recover

Awakened by Love – Love, Wendy

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When the world feels so broken and unkind, it is easy to feel disheartened…

and then…

you wake up to the words…”I wanted you to awaken with love in your heart ❤️.”

And I am reminded that there are still some with a loving heart and spirit willing to share love in our often inflamed world…

And I count as a blessing this man’s loving friendship.

Love,

Wendy

BOOK, Soul Notes, Write Pray Recover

This Too Shall Pass:Soul Notes – Love, Wendy

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Today, I remind myself that it’s okay to cry when the pain overwhelms me…It’s okay to grieve the body I wish I had right now…and I will again.

But it’s also important to honor the fierce woman who has carried myself through Lupus, spinal trauma, and loss…including 13 years of sustained, successful and healthy addiction recovery through holistic practices with a strong mindset of “I can do this,” and still show up every day with love, service, and hope.

That isn’t weakness. That is courage.

I acknowledge the setback without letting it define me, and it roots me firmly in the truth of my ongoing recovery, and the life I choose.

I honor the tears, the grief, and the physical pain without diminishing my resilience or accomplishments. 

And so today…I rest and nourish my body as it reminds me that this is just a temporary setback where I simply overextended myself yesterday out of eagerness and love of my work.

“This too shall pass.”

Reflection: “How can I honor both my eagerness to engage with life and the wisdom of my body’s limits, so that my courage and resilience continue to grow without unnecessary suffering?”

Mantra: I embrace and surrender to what my body needs to thrive.

Love and blessings,

Wendy

BOOK, Soul Notes, Write Pray Recover

Where Love Takes Root:Soul Notes – Love, Wendy

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The deepest, darkest and most vulnerable piece is what you offer…and where you begin. The right person will hold that piece close to their heart…every piece that is you.

It is a sacred exchange of trust…when you open the deepest, most fragile part of yourself, it becomes the seed of genuine connection…

And love takes root.

Love and blessings,

Wendy

BOOK, Harmonious Health 4 Life, Soul Notes, Write Pray Recover

Living with Lupus And Thriving in Recovery – Love, Wendy

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Living with lupus requires a great deal of determination and patience and willingness to listen to what your body needs and what it’s asking for…especially when you are an otherwise active person and your body just…S-T-O-P-S…

And if that isn’t enough to embrace…when you are living in recovery from prescription drug addiction, as I am, it is even more of a mindful experience where I must choose only what will promote my wellness, as I do not accept any prescriptions that contain codeine and the like as that was my addiction…

So in the past 13 years of my “Wellness In Recovery…” I have learned many alternative solutions to soothe chronic pain and anxiety which I choose every time…and I am open to an integrative approach, as I write about in my book, Write Pray Recover:A Journey To Wellness Through Spiritual Solutions and Self Care.

For me, as I continue to heal from a serious Lupus flare, I am choosing non-narcotic prescription meds that my rheumatologist has prescribed including steroids, in conjunction with my holistic practices such as gentle stretching, yoga poses, gentle walking, and of late, learning a little bit about Qi-Gong. One of my mantra’s is “Mindset over Movement…Movement over Medication.”

In addition, I do a significant amount of breath work to literally breathe in, or lean into the pain rather than tense up my joints and muscles where my body is able to relax as I use my mantra, “With each breath and step I take, I am healing.”

Organic foods, hydration, meditation/prayer, and surrounding myself with loved ones are just as important in promoting my own wellness.

My ongoing recovery from addiction and my desire for thriving in wellness is my most important intention and purpose. It is the foundation of my life.

Lupus is so unpredictable and this flare was triggered by a disc herniation and nerve impingement. Lupus invaded all of my joints and muscles, and halted any movement of my body…and in the moment that I realized that I could no longer move freely…I surrendered. (Read Chapter 13-“Surrender:The Peace of Knowing”) in my book.

I am moving slowly these days with purpose. Lupus is slowly subsiding…I am regaining my strength…And through the stiffness and heaviness, I choose to move. I am able to move. I set an intention to move and to be cognizant of how much my body is able to sustain…and then I rest accordingly.

I use deliberate breath work, and I listen and feel what my body has the ability to do each day…and sometimes it changes throughout the day…and I honor whatever that looks like.

For someone else, the right balance of care may look different, and I encourage you to find what resonates with you under the “umbrella” of healing, and implement it into your daily practices.

My wellness is my most important tool…through self care of healthy practices and a mindset of “With each breath and step I take, I am healing.”

From my book, Chapter 4:Self Care…“Think of it as you would your bank account. You must continue to replenish your bank account as your bills come in each month, otherwise your account becomes depleted, or even bankrupt. You must think of your wellness account in the same way! We have so many demands on our time and energy each day. If we do not replenish our wellness account, and we continue to “give out” our energy to all of the demands, we will go into debt, energetically, and become physically, mentally and spiritually bankrupt.”

“We must make the time for ourselves, through healthy practices, to experience wellness.” Wellness is ALWAYS a choice. My choice is to always live each day through healthy practices that support my health and wellness goals year round so that my body remembers exactly how to heal when I experience a flare. The brain remembers the rhythm of resilience, and it signals the body to return to balance, peace, and healing.

“Self care is the actions that we take to achieve wellness, and wellness is where we stand in our power!”

“With each breath and step I take, I am healing.”

Love and blessings,

Wendy

Author Bio

Wendy Blanchard, M.S., INHC is an author, speaker, and Integrative Nutrition Health Coach specializing in holistic wellness and recovery. She is the author of Write Pray Recover: A Journey To Wellness Through Spiritual Solutions and Self Care and is currently writing her second book, Soul Notes. Wendy is passionate about guiding others to sustainable wellness through spiritual solutions, self-care, and integrative practices.