Make Room for Growth: Giving Yourself Permission to Change
In our quest for steady energy, we often focus on what we need to add—more vegetables, more movement, more sleep. But before we can add new habits, we have to address a vital, often overlooked step: Making room for growth.
Growth isn’t just about new routines; it’s about giving yourself explicit permission to let go of the old ones. It’s about acknowledging that the lifestyle that got you to where you are today may not be the one that carries you to where you want to go.
The "Invisible" Permission Slips
Most of us are carrying around invisible "rules" about how we should live. We tell ourselves:
"I have to stay up late to finish my work, or I’m not being productive."
"I have to push through an intense workout even when I'm exhausted, or it doesn't count."
"I shouldn't spend money or time on my own recovery when my family needs me."
These rules create a ceiling on our health. To break through, we have to give ourselves a "permission slip" to do things differently.
Permission to Prioritize Your Biology
Giving yourself permission to grow means shifting your perspective on what "success" looks like. It sounds like this:
Permission to Rest: Acknowledging that rest isn’t a reward for finishing your work; it’s the fuel that makes the work possible.
Permission to Say No: Realizing that saying no to a late-night event or an extra commitment is actually saying "yes" to your energy and your long-term health.
Permission to Be a Beginner: Allowing yourself to start small—like a five-minute walk in nature—instead of feeling like you have to master a 60-minute gym routine immediately.
Permission to Listen to Your Body: Trusting your body’s signals over a generic "health hack" you read online.
Clearing the Soil for a New Lifestyle
In Functional Medicine, we look at the body like an ecosystem. If you want to grow something new, you have to clear the weeds and prepare the soil. This mental "clearing" is what allows your new habits to actually take root.
When you give yourself permission to change, the "friction" of new habits disappears. You aren't "forcing" yourself to eat better or sleep more; you are creating a lifestyle that finally reflects your true values. You are making room for the version of yourself that wakes up refreshed and ready to engage with the world.
A Collaborative Path Forward
As a coach, my role is to help you identify these "invisible rules" and help you rewrite them. Using Motivational Interviewing, we explore what is holding you back and co-create the permissions you need to thrive.
We don't just change your schedule; we change the way you view your relationship with your own health.
Your Turn: The Permission Slip Exercise
What is one "rule" you’ve been following that is keeping you exhausted?
Today, give yourself permission to let it go.
