For a long time I was stuck in a pattern of what was “supposed to be” rather than what will be.

I was supposed to be accomplished, happy, and basking in my success.

But something didn’t feel right.

It took me some time, but I broke the pattern of existence and aligned my energy and effort with my heart’s purpose.

But what was my heart’s purpose?

That took even more time to figure out.

I can show you how you can also go from stuck in the supposed-to-be’s, and move into alignment.

I was in my mid thirties and living what I thought was a great life.

Two amazing children, married to a successful and outstanding person and taking care of my career and health.

At age 36 I was diagnosed with stage three breast cancer.

As strange as this may sound, this was one of the best things that ever happened to me.

Life has a beautiful way of giving you opportunities to wake up.

While I was going through the process of staying alive, surgeries, chemo and radiation, my husband was deployed to Iraq.

He was gone for almost two years.

Faced with this reality a new set of skills and mindset kicked into gear.

My focus was made clear, priorities were immediately set and all the things I viewed as important were dropped from my “list”.

You may say this was the icing on the cake.

My mother always told me that everything happens for a reason.

These words were comforting, and, at the same time, left me to blindly trust.

Moms really have a way to simplify the most complex situations.

What I learned from this time in my life is the power we have when fear is not in control.

I learned to observe my thoughts and re-frame every experience and aligned every choice, action and thought toward survival.

This level of clarity had never been a part of my life.

The noisy chatter that had previously consumed my mind was blissfully silent.

There was an intuition showing me the path to take.

I knew I was going to make it through.

These events changed my life journey, started me on a path towards balance and peace.

Sounds incredible right?

I do have to confess: I was not aware of it at the time.

No miraculous epiphany occurred.

What was put in my path, was a life lesson on what could be, with the right mindset, you can positively impact your life, health and overall state of well being.

Don’t get me wrong – I received amazing care and I had phenomenal doctors. But that was only part of the equation. Believing that survival was the only option played a major role in the outcome.

I realized my personal power.

Through the continued practice of awareness, tuning into my values and gaining confidence in my choices, I am living a life fulfilled.