Lifted, By My Girls! — The Archives — Formerly Vented Uplift

Here are a few of the lessons I've learned about fear.  Fear is easy. Fear is isolating. Fear is debilitating. Fear is destructive. Fear is learned. Fear is inevitable. Fear is normal. Fear is unifying. Fear is helpful. Fear is protective. Fear is powerful.  Fear is not forever.  We are often afraid to speak up. We're afraid to ask for help. We're afraid to sing in public. We're afraid of math. We're afraid of standing up for what's right. We are afraid of all of these things, because we've been taught to be afraid. We are afraid of someone's response. We're afraid of what people will say. We are afraid of how people will judge us. We are afraid that someone will use our weaknesses and our emotions against us. We are afraid someone will post that hideous photo of us and that someone will turn it into a meme (or is that just me?). The more that you can latch on to some perspective regarding fear, the less afraid you become. We let fear control so much...

Violent. Disruptive. Tumultuous. These are words used to describe storms. Both actual and metaphorical. When you hear the word STORM, what do you think? By definition, it ensues chaos. I bet you've never thought of JOY, though. Having the clarity of mind to choose joy during a storm brings freedom. Perhaps even purpose. Most will tell you to push through to the other side of the storm. What happens when you have to sit in it? Recently I walked out to my car to run errands. As I looked up, dark clouds were moving in. I thought to myself, oh wow, a storm is coming. I got in the car, and I saw a raindrop, and soon I was consumed. The rain poured droplets that reminded me of the size of rain in the movie "A Bug's Life." I sat in my car as it rocked and felt like it would be swept away. I watched garbage cans fall over and spill trash in the streets. The rain was heavy, and the wind was strong. There I sat in the car, watching the storm move and change the scenery. The rai...

I lost my shit today. I tried to find a way to keep it under control like I have so many times before. I kept telling myself, "Don't do it, Maureen. Just breathe. Just count to ten. Do not give him the satisfaction of knowing he has pushed your buttons one too many times." I have a TREASURE TROVE of skills to pull from for moments like this, but instead of pulling from it, I kicked it over and lost my shit. To most people, this isn't something you beat yourself up over. But even when you've put time and effort into learning how to respond to things you cannot control in a peaceful manner, in a split second, one passive-aggressive dig too many can bring all of that work crashing down. It's disappointing, and I don't want to believe one person can have that much influence on me! How could I allow myself to lose control over something said to me by a co-worker who means nothing to me? Most people know someone like him. The one with the razor-sharp tongue an...

This is what I want you to do: tell someone you love them, and dinner's at six. That's the tagline from one of my favorite memoirs on food and entertaining, Bread and Wine, by Shauna Neiquist and this, I believe, is where the good stuff is found. In 2011, I went to visit my grandma in California for the last time. Each morning I’d drive to the hospital, and then each afternoon, I’d walk back out into the parking lot—the one with the little rose garden--and all I ever wanted to do after a day spent there, with its beeping machines gray hospital beds, and smells of plastic, was to gather friends around a big table and pass heaping bowls of food. To eat and drink and laugh into the fading evening light and celebrate—well, nothing more than simply being alive. In fact, it’s the first thing I did when I got home. A call went out to friends, and just like that we were on my deck back in Colorado, filling glasses of wine and eating grilled salmon with lemons and arugula and parmesan s...

Sarah, my 18-year-old daughter, came home from work early today with a terrible stomach ache, vomiting, and severe nausea. When I found her, the poor darling was curled up in the fetal position and laying in bed. She was miserable. As a caring mom, I wanted to help her in the best way possible. Did I run for the Pepto? Did I dash for the Immodium? No, I sprinted for peppermint oil. In a case of nausea without vomiting, I would have made a cup of peppermint tea, but instead, I handed her my small bottle of peppermint essential oil with instructions to take deep inhalations. Additionally, I combined peppermint oil with a carrier oil (oil used to dilute the essential oil) and had her apply it topically on her stomach and lower GI areas. Guess What??! It worked like magic! After about 30 minutes, she was sitting up in bed, fully relieved of nausea and cramping, amazed at what the oil had done for her ailment. “Peppermint is wonderful for nausea,” says Lauren Richter, DO. Its calming and n...

Hey all! It’s Chrisie!  So this is what we are starting, doing.... We are creating content to support all of our amazing friends, entrepreneurs, authors, mompreneurs, causepreneurs, warriors and all of the amazing UPLIFTING WOMEN in our lives! You all have been so amazing coming on Vented Uplift and I wanted a source for our followers to hear more from you while supporting your products and brands.  We are looking for your knowledge! Be a guest blogger, share your journey and “lessons” and help someone who needs to hear from you.  We will add links to your site and social media so you can get interest directly to you. We will have our Vented Uplift Blog linked to our website What we are looking for: Stress Tips Breathing Tips Life Tips Mom Tips Cooking Tips Writing Tips Workout Tips Creativity Tips Aromatherapy Tips Yeah...we are looking for Tips! Interested? Hell yes! Reach out to us via DM or shoot us an email at ccanny@ventedinbrooklyn.com And...side note..I want ...