Brain Health Weekend Insight 17 Isn’t it amazing how something that hasn’t even happened yet can already make you smile? Maybe it is someone you are going to see. Somewhere you are going. A meal you have planned. Time with your family. Or simply a little time you have set aside for yourself. It hasn’t happened yet. But you think about it and smile. “I’m looking forward to that.” There is something about having something good ahead of us that can change how today feels. Last w

Have you ever noticed how quickly your thinking can run ahead when you do not know what comes next? One question leads to another. A possibility starts feeling like a probability. And before you know it, you are trying to work out tomorrow with information you only have today. I know that feeling. And last week, as I found myself navigating some uncertainty of my own, it reminded me of something for which I am deeply grateful. Today, I’m grateful that I know God, and not just

Brain Health Weekend Insight 16 Have you reached the weekend carrying something you genuinely intended to do but never found the time or space to begin? This week, we explored the journey from pausing to following through. Before you proceed, pause. Before you say yes, choose. After you say yes, give that commitment somewhere to live. Then give it proof that you have begun. Because a commitment becomes real when it moves from something you intend to do to something you have s

Have you ever said yes and then wondered where it would fit? Into your schedule that is... You meant it when you said yes. Perhaps it was a new responsibility, a promise to someone you care about or an opportunity you did not want to miss. And if you are like me, saying yes may reflect how you see yourself and who you believe yourself to be. The dependable one. The person who helps. The one who can be counted on. The one who can be relied upon. The person who finds a way, eve

There is something powerful about a pause. Not because everything suddenly becomes clear. Not because the demands disappear. And certainly not because life waits patiently while we work everything out. The power of the pause is that, for a moment, it gives us something we often do not realise we have lost. Choice! Last weekend, I shared The Power to Pause! The reminder was simple: pausing is not necessarily a sign that we have stopped progressing. Sometimes, giving ourselves

Sunday mornings can carry an interesting tension! Part of us is still in the weekend. Another part may already be thinking about tomorrow...Monday. What needs doing. Who needs a response. What we did not finish last week. What is waiting for us in this new week ahead. Before all of that gathers momentum, perhaps there is something your brain needs first: A pause. Not to avoid what is coming. But to prepare yourself for it. Before the Week Begins We often associate being

We are often taught to recognise progress by what can be seen. The task completed. The goal reached. The result achieved. The announcement made. But some of the most meaningful progress happens before there is anything visible to show for it. It happens when you remain committed after the initial excitement has faded. When you resist a distraction that would normally pull you away. When you honour a boundary, return to something difficult or make the same intentional choice a

Have you ever noticed how quickly your attention is claimed by things you never intended to give it to? How about: An unexpected email. A notification. Someone else’s urgency. A conversation that lingers in your mind long after it has ended. Without realising it, we can spend our day reacting instead of choosing! Yet one of the greatest gifts we have is the ability to decide where we place our attention. Not everything deserves it. Not every interruption deserves a respon

What if the rest of this year wasn’t shaped by doing more… …but by choosing better? Imagine how different your life could feel if you stopped measuring your days by how busy they were and started measuring them by how intentionally you lived them. What if success wasn’t about fitting more into your calendar… What if it was about making more room for what truly matters? As we begin this new month, I don’t want to encourage you to chase more. I want to encourage you to choose d

I Choose to Create the Supporting Conditions “This isn’t about trying harder. It’s about being kinder to your brain.” There was a time when every forgotten appointment, missed detail, or moment of mental fog left me asking the same question: “What’s wrong with me?” "Why me?" Maybe you’ve asked yourself something similar. Perhaps you’ve forgotten something important, started something you never finished, walked into a room and forgotten why, or ended another day wondering why

There are seasons in life when smiling feels easy. And there are seasons when it doesn’t. If I’m honest, life isn’t perfect for me right now. There are uncertainties. There are prayers I’m still waiting to see answered. There are days when the future feels heavy and the questions seem louder than the answers. Yet… I choose to smile anyway. Not because I ignore reality. Not because everything has fallen into place. But because I’ve realised something that has quietly changed h

Can I ask you a question? Where has your attention been today? Not your time... Your attention? Have you ever stopped to think about why we say “pay attention”? Not give attention. Not have attention. Pay attention. We use the language of payment because, whether we realise it or not, our attention has value. Every moment you spend paying attention to one thing means you’re unable to pay attention to something else. Your attention is one of the most valuable investments you m

Have you ever looked back and realised that nothing around you had changed… but something in you had? Most of us spend our lives waiting for something to change. A new opportunity. A different diagnosis. A repaired relationship. A financial breakthrough. A clearer answer. We tell ourselves, “When that changes, everything will be different.” Sometimes it is. But often, life changes in a quieter way. Not because our circumstances suddenly improve. But because, somewhere along t

Have you ever reached the end of the day and wondered if you’re making any progress at all? You’ve been trying. Showing up. Making decisions. Doing your best to keep everything together. Yet it can still feel as though you’re standing still. If you’ve ever felt that way, you’re not alone. Sometimes the strongest part of us is being built long before we realise or recognise it. It’s easy to believe that strength belongs to people who never struggle. The people who seem confide

Have you ever reached the end of the day and wondered where your attention went? You started with good intentions. But somewhere between the emails… The notifications… The meetings… The conversations… And everything else demanding your attention… You found yourself reacting rather than choosing. If that sounds familiar… You’re not alone. It certainly was for me, After my brain aneurysm, one of the biggest challenges I faced wasn’t a lack of motivation. It was attention. I kne

Sometimes the most extraordinary things are the ones we do every day without ever thinking about or even noticing! For Example, have you yawned today? It’s probably not something you’ve ever thought to be grateful for. To be honest most of us don’t. We simply yawn… …and carry on. It’s one of those everyday moments that feels so ordinary and we barely even notice it when it happens. Yet the more I’ve reflected on gratitude, the more I’ve realised something. The things we overl

Sometimes the greatest act of courage isn’t avoiding the fall… it’s choosing to rise again. If you’ve ever been knocked down by life, you’ll know something. Getting back up isn’t always dramatic. Sometimes it’s almost invisible. It’s choosing to get out of bed when your heart feels heavy. It’s making one phone call you’ve been avoiding. It’s trying again after disappointment. It’s taking one small step when you wish you could take ten. Today, I found myself reflecting on some

A new month can sometimes arrive with pressure. Particularly as we approach the latter months of the year! Pressure to have a perfect plan. Pressure to suddenly become more disciplined. Pressure to do more, prove more, achieve more, and somehow become a completely different version of yourself overnight. Pressure to finish or to have nearly finished a commitment that has been made! But maybe July does not need to begin with pressure. Maybe July can begin with connection. Con

There are some weeks we begin with energy. And there are other weeks we begin with honesty. What do I mean?... Honesty that says: I am trying. I am tired. I am still believing. I am still showing up. I am still taking the next step, even when giving up appears easier. That is why today’s gratitude statement means so much to me: I am grateful for God’s grace because it gives me the strength to take the next step when giving up feels easier. This is not just a nice sentence. Fo

Some days, gratitude comes easily. You wake up feeling hopeful. Something goes well in the day. Someone says something kind. You can see the good around you without having to search too hard for it. But other days? Gratitude can feel harder to reach. Not because there is nothing good left. But because disappointment, pressure, pain, uncertainty, or simply the noise of everyday life can make it difficult to see what is still there. I know that feeling. There have been days whe