Just Another Girl on a Journey
- Jenny Jackson
- Jun 17, 2024
- 4 min read
It Seems Like Everyone's on a Journey 🧭
Fitness journeys.
Healing journeys.
Self-discovery journeys.
You see the word: JOURNEY everywhere, especially on social media.
Stand-up comedian Neal Brennan (@nealbrennan on IG) jokes about journeys in his most recent stand-up comedy special on Netflix, Crazy Good. And I belly laughed because it’s so stinkin' true...Instagram is the mecca of a girl on a journey.
(I LOVE his comedy, by the way. He was the co-creator and co-writer of The Chapelle Show, and he’s not just really freaking funny, he's also incredibly insightful about mental health. He fearlessly shares his struggles, weaving them into some of the most hilarious stand-up I’ve seen in a while. If you haven’t heard of him, you're in for a treat!)
But don’t get it twisted. I’m NOT knocking “the journey.” I LOVE a good journey. I think comeback stories are some of the best stories out there. This blog is literally called The Journey of F.I.T. (finding. inner. triumph).
So many of us are on journeys:
And. 👏🏼 I'M. 👏🏼HERE. 👏🏼 FOR. 👏🏼 IT. 👏🏼
If you’re not on a journey, then where are you going?
Unfortunately, in many cases, it’s nowhere, and coming from experience I know that can be a very sad, lonely, discouraging, and frustrating place to be.
“Your health is a forever journey.” - Autumn Calabrese
No matter how badly we want it, our desired destinations in health and wellness will never be reached with a quick fix or “the easy button.”
It takes time. It takes effort.
Perseverance.
Determination.
Stamina.
It takes, well… a journey.
My favorite online fitness trainer, BODi’s Autumn Calabrese, discusses it in all of her programs, and, despite the name of her very first program (21-Day Fix), our health goals are not a quick “fix.”
"It’s a lifestyle" sounds so cliché.
In my MLM days in the online fitness space, I'd utter those words a lot...
but that doesn't make it any less true.
Whatever "success" means to you, it is achieved through a continued course of healthy, positive, and nurturing actions—all steps leading toward your destination.
Stick with me...I'm not trying to promote this program here, but I'm just thinking back to when I did “The 21 Day Fix” for the very first time eight years ago. The idea is that it takes around 21 days to instill (or break) a habit, incorporating daily fitness and clean, whole nutrition.
I remember being on a playdate with my kids (3 and 2 years old at the time) and talking to someone about it on the playground because I was obsessed with the results I was getting, and someone asked me:
”So what do you do after 21 days??”
And at the time, I was like, “...*crickets*.......IDK??”
The real answer:
1) You do it again, OR
2) You do something else, OR
3) You go back to where you were before.
There is no “fix,” only sustained action toward where you want to go OR returning to where you started.
Same thing with any journey, right?? You keep going, or you go home.
In her program and book, Heal Your Nervous System, Dr. Linnea Passaler devotes an entire chapter to the fact that quick fixes are NOT the answer. Quick fixes are a dime a dozen, and those temporary fads, more often than not, make you feel frustrated and disappointed in the end.
The 21-day fitness and the nervous system healing program are not done forever once you “complete” them. If you want to maintain what you just accomplished, YOU HAVE TO KEEP DOING THE THINGS.
It doesn’t stick permanently. It needs to be maintained.
One healthy meal does not lower the cholesterol.
One deep breath does not cultivate an entire day of calm.
One meditation or one yoga session does not perpetuate continuous inner peace. (That’s why they’re called a practice.)
Who Are You Becoming in the Process?
You’re not simply doing a meditation. You’re becoming someone who meditates as a regulation tool instead of reaching for alternative vices.
You’re not simply doing a workout. You are becoming a person who uses your body and somatic movement to manage stress and release stored emotion.
You're not just taking a walk. You are someone who can detach from electronics and utilize nature's healing power.
If you continue to do things that feel healthy, balanced, authentic, and nourishing enough, they become you. Your mind, body, spirit, and cells shine with a new vibrancy; one they will remember! And you freaking LOVE that feeling and frequency. YOU LOVE WHO YOU ARE BECOMING!
Whatever it is that you do: if it feels expansive, wholesome, and nourishing… It’s about doing them enough so that when hurdles and obstacles come (which they do), and your habits stray (which they will), or old vices sneak back in (which they may), or when the shit hits the fan, and it gets dark...
you have a trail of breadcrumbs leading you back to the light.
Fast, cheap, or easy will never be the answer, no matter how dang convenient it would be.
Continued EFFORT is.
Effort and commitment to the things that feel soothing & calming, or electric & empowering…and coming back to them again and again and again.
Over the past two years, this has become my journey. When long covid took me out, and fitness wasn’t an option, I learned alternative ways to heal, and I dove deep into a journey of nervous system regulation—discovering what that meant and what types of actions I could take to get me closer to it.
While this is a highly individual journey, specific actions, and modalities can help us enter a regulated state, get our body out of “fight-or-flight” mode, and into “rest and digest,” where we can truly embody safety and heal.
While I don't go into the hows, whys, and whats of the nervous system here, I want to share with you a FREE, simple, quick, and comprehensive list designed to help spark ideas, peak curiosity, point you in a direction, or propel you forward on whatever personal healing + wellness journey you may be on.
Click on the link to download 75 Ways to Heal Your Nervous System https://www.jennyjacksonhealing.com/75-ways-to-regulate-your-nervous-system
I’d LOVE to hear any feedback from this list. If you try something, comment below and let me know what you think!
P.S. As always, this information is not a substitute for medical advice and does not prescribe any technique as a replacement for treatment of physical or mental health problems provided by your doctor.
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