Can you love your neighbor as yourself, if you don't first love yourself? We are all generally taught basic self-care as children (i.e. brush your teeth, wash your hands/face, keep a clean environment etc.) but we are also taught that loving yourself too much can be a slippery slope to conceit or becoming self-absorbed. In reality, without that self-love you don't realize the greatness that truly exists within you. Your light needs to shine in this world in order to make people and things grow that you have no idea exist, let alone the impact that you have in their achieving their own purpose. The title "Thank God I Didn't Kill Myself" speaks to the literal ending of my life or the ending of my light. When faced with the trauma of the death of my sons, I was two different people due to the knowledge and experience I possessed. When my first son died, I was not aware of real self-care. I had no knowledge, or in my mind permission, to implement boundaries or self-care healing practices for myself. When my son Jay died, the blow was no softer than the first but the person I was, was different. You see, years prior, I suffered a traumatic brain injury in a car accident which caused me to have to learn to speak again. While learning to speak again, I began immersing myself in learning self-care and mental health healing methods. So, while I still got knocked all the way down, somehow, I responded differently to my second sons' death. This time around, I did everything I could to protect myself and put into practice all the self-care practices that resonated with my spirit. From prayer and meditation to laughter and exercise. In this book I will share with you a bit of my story, some of what I learned about self-care and hopefully help you identify what self-care looks like for you. I cannot honestly say I loved myself before I was forty. Not just in words but in practice. So, I ask again, how can you love your neighbor as yourself, if you do not really love yourself?
