Jodi Brichta-Coyne, Coach/Author/Speaker

There is something that happens in a women after she hits the magical number of 40. She enters a new era where her body and emotions shift and seem to go in completely different directions.  For a lot of women/moms, this uncertainty or unawareness can lead to a feeling of being overloaded and make one go insane.  After discussing this topic with numerous women, I am finding the following scenario most common today:   After a hectic start to the day, you manage to get the kids off to school and you're already exhausted.  You grab your 2nd cup of coffee and off to work you go. After a full day of work, you come home only to take the kids to their activities, make dinner, and help with homework. You then manage to grab a glass of wine to settle down or perhaps take your anti-depressant because you are so overwhelmed and have had no time to yourself to decompress.  Perhaps, you take your happy pill in the morning and make it through the day numb,emotionless and ...

During a recent conversation with a family member, I have come to realize how silly our rationalized thinking can be sometimes.  I started talking about food and choices we all make today.   Our food choices are filled with food derived from GMO's (genetically modified organisms), wheat, dairy with hormones and antibiotics and grocery stores filled with processed food that has more chemicals on the labels that I won't even attempt to pronounce.  As I asked the question "do you know what a GMO is?" the answer was "I don't care, I am still here." As I thought about this response I wondered, is it because I am younger and have this knowledge of something they don't.. was their ego challenged? -or- is it because they really do not want to know?" Is this the same for a lot of people?   My wheels were turning, and then I thought; what are the consequences of NOT knowing this information? If people knew that animals grazed on GMO crops and were get...

    Why is it that I have to constantly repeat myself day in and day out and my children still do not listen? I often wonder what it would take for that magic number to appear -- will it be the 11,357th time when it will finally CLICK and they will do as they are told. This morning as I am walking around the house, I pick up after them and my blood starts to boil and then I suddenly stopped. I looked around and instead of getting frustrated today I start to wonder. One day this will all be gone! one day I will wake up but this time I won't HAVE to get up to get them out of the house and off to school. I won't have to pick their clothes off the floor. I won't have to clean the toothpaste off of the sink. I won't have to pack their lunch or make them breakfast. Lastly, we won't be rushing to get their shoes on as we stumble out the front door and run to catch the bus.  One day they will be off to college and the house will be quiet, just me and my thoughts. ...

As I sit back and reflect over this past weeks events, an overwhelming sense of sadness comes over me. In my last post, I wrote about a terrible incident that happened between my son and my brothers dog, and how helpless I felt during the whole event.  Now, words cannot express how much my heart bleeds for each and every Newtown child (now angels above), and for the brave adults that were trying to protect them.  A day just like any other day, so it seemed, turned into a horrific and mind numbing tragedy.  "How can this happen?"everyone asks.  The sad truth is that this can happen anywhere, at any time, in any town.  No one is safe in reality, however, our own safety and certainty can be taken away at any time if we allow it.   To be honest, I was one of those parents who nervously looked at her kids as they got on the bus Monday morning. I looked as they stepped on and just wanted to pull them back and take them home, where I would know they are safe....

    This past weekend was my birthday and my husband decided to surprise me by taking me out to dinner.  He made arrangements with my mother and it was all set for Saturday eve. We had not been out together by ourselves for so long and I was really looking forward to it. On Friday, my daughter started not feeling well and it carried into Saturday.  I was debating on whether or not to postpone our dinner.  My husband convinced me she would be alright.  I asked her and she seemed fine with it.  I got dressed up and was all excited to go on date night. We drove over to my mothers house and my husband said to wait in the car and he would drop them off.  I said "no, I will come in and say hello". Upon arriving my brothers dog (Australian Shepherd) was outside the door.  We opened the door and he ran in. I asked my mother if it was OK for him to come in and she replied "yes" (my brother lives next to my mom and my nephew is there all the time w...

Someone recently asked me what I do and I paused  for a brief moment, I replied with: I inspire moms to be an imperfectly perfect role model to their children by creating harmony and calmness in their own lives.  How does one do this in this crazy, fast paced, stressful and demanding world? Let's look at this prime example:   "There are days where I am so tired, I get so overwhelmed and can't pull it all together.  I have in my head exactly what it is all supposed to look like, but I never get there.  I get stressed and start wondering if I will ever catch up, my anxiety builds and then I take my anger out on my children. I feel guilty and horrible afterwards."   I hear this kind of example a lot. We all are rushing to get somewhere and never stop to think about the moment we are in. It is in that space, [the present], where one must seek out that calmness or see it for what it is, so as not to get overwhelmed about the future. I realize this is easie...

"Pay no attention to the little man behind the curtain." wizard of Oz I recently read an article that referred to that line and it starting me thinking....Who is behind your curtain?who's in control of your time, health and life? It made me stop to reflect and think.  As a mom, with so many balls juggled everyday, most of us are too overwhelmed to see who's in control. We put on our masks and we let overbooked schedules, day-to-day activities and energy drainers dictate when and where we should be ( let alone how we should think, act and respond to life's challenges and circumstance). When is it time to just say "ENOUGH",  I am in control.     It is very much like the line from Pretty woman when she refers to her prostitution, "I Say who, I say when, I say how much!".. It makes you think we, in a (demented) sense, are doing the very same thing.  We are losing ourselves because we are letting everything and everyone dictate to us who we a...