Creating a Balanced Life: A New Series on the Blog and Podcast
The last couple of years, I have been on a wellness journey. It started rather unintentionally, but it has quickly become a main focus of my research and something I am now passionate about. It all started in 2022/2023 when I was in the last year of my DMA and feeling in every way all the side effects of the stress I’d been living under. I mentioned this previously in an earlier post, but twenty-plus years of living in survival mode had caught up with me, and my body and mind simply couldn’t handle anymore.
Then, after being diagnosed with Type-2 Diabetes in the summer of ’23, my journey into overall wellness was immediately set into motion. This diagnosis changed my life in the best way. Now, almost 15 months later, I am healthier than ever, and I have also gained a deeper understanding of and appreciation for creating a truly balanced life.
Overall wellness as a musician – What does it mean – in a general sense and also in a very specific sense? What does overall wellness entail? What aspects contribute to wellness? What does this look like for me?
These are the questions I want us to consider together as we begin this series. Over the next several weeks, I will share my own thoughts and research on various aspects of wellness as well as interviews with friends and colleagues in the music world who have been on a similar journey and how their pursuit of wellness has impacted their musical lives. My goal for this series is to show that it is possible to live a balanced life while also juggling the demands of being a working musician – however that may look for you. And trust me when I saw that I am preaching to myself through this series! I tend to stay extremely busy. This is a norm for me. I kind of thrive when I am just a little overwhelmed. However, I have reached a new point professionally, and everything I am juggling honestly feels pretty overwhelming. Granted, it’s all good, and every aspect of my professional life right now is an answer to prayer. Still, it is a lot and I am often overwhelmed. So, please hear me when I say that I get it. I might not know your exact circumstances, but I do know the stress.
I want this series to encourage you to become your best self – physically, emotionally, financially, and spiritually – so that you can fully embrace all the amazing opportunities that present themselves to you. It is possible to live a balanced life! This will look different in different seasons and as unique individuals. Please remember this! Just like each of us has unique gifts and strengths that we bring into the musician world, so also each of us is very likely at a different stage of life and stage of our careers. We may have different goals depending on the season of life you are in. But wherever you are in your musical life, training, or career, it can be amazing, and you can experience the absolute fullness of your current reality.
Are you ready to begin?
