*This entry is a part of a continuous series, reading the previous entries will help you follow without missing a beat*

I apologize for this late blog entry today but I am climbing this mountain!!!!!!!

Every mountain in your life is not meant to be moved. Believe it or not, some mountains are placed smack dab in the middle of your life to slow you down. Some are there to protect you. While others are placed on your path to cause you to face your fears.

Most of us think we must move the mountains that appear in our lives but some of those mountains are meant to be climbed because with each step, our fears fall away and by the time we reach the top…we have the experience of the valley, the accomplishment of conquering the mountain and the amazing, clarifying beauty from the top.

Mountain climbing is usually a social activity where several climbers come together and trust one another with their lives as they help each other up the difficult mountains. This is also a meditative experience because you must be very present in the moment to be safe and successful. If climbing the mountains in your life does not bring clarity, I don’t know what will.

My most recent mountain came in the form of my health. I began having chest pains about two weeks ago which felt more like a heaviness in my chest. It was initially accompanied by a cough. Upon going to the emergency room, I was told it was the Sarcoidosis flaring and acute bronchitis. I was sent home with cough syrup, steroids, pain meds and antibiotics only to end up in a different ER a week later with the same heaviness in my chest but this time with a pain shooting down my neck and left arm with dizziness and nausea. My Blood Pressure was 231/104 and the ER doctor asked the nurse to take it again (nothing changed) and she set out to have EKG’s, chest x-rays, etc…done.

I drove to the hospital myself which stems from some childhood illnesses where I felt I was burdening my mom whenever I was sick so I would try to deal with my symptoms as much as I could without bothering anyone. What can I say, some things are harder to break than others. If you remember in my earlier blogs, I spoke about the time in Juicy Spirit when I found the root to the illnesses that I face as an adult had everything to do with the fear that I felt as a child. I feared getting sick, I despised it and yet, I was manifesting that which I feared. Today, it was a culmination of life’s circumstances and how I was responding to them that brought this mountain in the middle of my path. I had to now let my family and friends know what was going on because if I am to climb this mountain once and for all…I will need each of them to climb it with me to hold me up, encourage me and guess what? I, in turn get to do the same for them as they face their own fears on this mountain. Our friends and family are priceless blessings and Lord knows I am thankful for mine!

Facing your fears can be an intense psychological experience that can lead you to greater things in life. Once you are successful at beating your fears, you become less scared of other things in the world. After spending about 9 hours in the hospital they released me with non-specific chest pains because the EKG was normal and although the ct scan did show a new nodule on my right lung, I was being referred back to my primary care for follow-up. Needless to say I was frustrated because I was leaving the hospital feeling the same as I came in with the only exception being my blood pressure was lowered. The “Little Girl Lost” was fearful of the nodule on the right lung because it was reminiscent of the lung cancer that we had beat 9 years prior.

Whew, talk about emotions going all over the place. I cannot explain the feeling of knowing something is wrong in your body but the doctor cannot find it. I have been meditating, praying and using crystals to soothe my Spirit and speak to The “Little Girl Lost” because we need to keep calm and remain peaceful as my body catches up to my mind. My primary care doctor decided to redo the EKG after listening to my breathing and found Pericarditis which is inflammation around the heart. Now, we are properly treating it and moving forward. A few weeks prior to all of this during a Reiki session, I saw that my heart chakra was out of balance and began then taking the steps to balance it however, some things have to take their course. Once we get the heart back on track, my doctor will begin the testing on my lung to rule out malignancy. Physically, I am on strict bedrest for the next couple of weeks but spiritually I am climbing this mountain with all of my friends, family and The “Little Girl Lost” fully present in the moment, looking out for one another, strengthening out muscles as we forge to the top. By climbing this mountain, it helps you see the bigger picture of life because you realize how fragile and precious life can be. Times like these put everything into perspective and nothing matters but LIVING! This is a psychological state that often occurs when severe injury or death is a possibility. Being humbled is a psychological advantage because you become a kinder, more grateful individual. This can facilitate healthier relationships, a higher life satisfaction, and the desire to accomplish further challenges that make you feel good.