We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Carrie Levine a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Carrie , thanks so much for taking the time to share your insights and lessons with us today. We’re particularly interested in hearing about how you became such a resilient person. Where do you get your resilience from?
This is a brilliant question that I don’t have an answer for but spend quite a bit of time contemplating both personally and professionally.
My 15 year old daughter passed in a car accident in 2018 and people will often say to me when they learn of it, “I don’t know how you do it.” I often respond, “nor do I.”
I’m not entirely sure what keeps me going. In some ways, I feel it is my responsibility to live life to the max because she did and would want that for me. I also feel like I’m her boots on earth and it is my charge to have as many experiences as possible because she can’t.
As excruciating as it is, less so with the passage of time, the sun always rises. Which is to say, the earth keeps spinning and life carries on. Days pass. Seasons turn. Things are born and things die. It is the natural order of things, so why would I think I am exempt? I am not. This deep knowing carries me day to day.
Surviving her passing serves as a reference point for me. Any other adversity is peanuts compared to her passing. This provides me perspective on what really matters and what, in the scheme of a life, is insignificant. Before her passing, when I attended births, I felt like as long as the baby was okay, everything would be fine. Newborns used to be my point of reference.
I think a lot about what differentiates us? Why are some people more resilient than others? Is this a trait we can nurture in ourselves and each other? If so, how so?
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
I am a certified nurse midwife, an Institute of Functional Medicine Certified Practitioner, the founder of the Whole Woman Health Clinic, and the author of Whole Woman Health: A Guide To Creating Wellness For Any Age and Stage.
I’ve cared for women in a variety of settings for the past 24 years. Currently, I practice at a home-based clinic providing conventional gynecologic services and functional medicine. I work with women ages 13-85 addressing a variety of health issues including hormone balancing, digestive wellness, and chronic diseases of lifestyle like high blood pressure and high cholesterol. I use a variety of modalities including lifestyle modification, nutrition, supplementation, and medication.
I love working with women. It is the greatest honor to be invited onto a woman’s health care team, to listen to her talk about some of her most intimate issues, to offer guidance as she navigates her life, and to provide a container of safety in which she can explore how she wants to care for herself.
I recently published Whole Woman Health: A Guide to Creating Wellness for Any Age and Stage in an effort to increase the accessibility of functional medicine to women worldwide. As a solo practitioner practicing in rural Maine, I can reach far more people through a book than I can one woman at a time at the clinic. I want women world-wide to know it is possible to get to the root of a health issue and resolve it.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
I’m not entirely sure what this question is asking and if it relates to resilience but if it does, staying curious is a skill I feel serves me well. When I’m faced with a challenge, I’ll research, read, network, and look to learn more about what I am experiencing and ways to manage. I seek ideas and creative solutions both for inspiration and to problem solve. There’s often a work around, and when there’s not, there’s acceptance.
Perserverence is huge in terms of not giving up. Slow and steady ahead has gotten me to, through, and on the other side of a lot, whether it was a long hike to a campsite, through the acute pain of the death of my daughter, or on the other side of writing a book.
A solid lifestyle allows me nimbleness. When my sleep, nutrition, movement, and relationships are in order, the sh*t can hit the fan and I can weather a lot because I didn’t go into it with a deficit. I have wiggle room for things to go off the rails. I work hard to not exacerbate the ups and downs of life by making choices that support rest, blood sugar stability, body strength and mobility, and love.
For folks wanting to build resilience, I recommend starting small. Baby steps make for sustainable change. You may start by making a list of things of interest to you and putting it somewhere accessible (like your phone) so when you feel bored, you can use that time to learn. You could start but focusing on sleep and ensuring you go to bed and wake at the same time every day. You could start by eating more vegetables, or taking a walk around the block once a day. Small steps add up to change and a solid foundation will help weather the storms that come your way.
What do you do when you feel overwhelmed? Any advice or strategies?
First, I try to identify that is the emotion I am experiencing.
Second, I try to remind myself emotions are transient and however I feel today, I am likely to feel differently tomorrow.
Third, if I am facing a task and it seems big, I try to break it down into small steps and then identify what is the next best step, and the step, and the next.
If I’m not able to get clear on what the actual issue is, and whether it is real or perceived, I talk to a friend who I think might help me see clearly.
This strategy works for me!
Contact Info:
- Website: carrielevine.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carrielevine.cnm/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CarrieLevine.cnm
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carrie-levine-cnm/
Image Credits
2 photos of me – Jenny Mayher Logo-Soul Camp Creative
