We recently connected with Shawn Postma and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Shawn , appreciate you sitting with us today to share your wisdom with our readers. So, let’s start with resilience – where do you get your resilience from?
Growing up my mother primarily raised me as a single parent. She became a registered nurse who often had to work night shifts to make ends meet. In an attempt to give me the best, we also moved around quite frequently. By the time I was in high school, for example, I had lived in over 20+ homes (including four different states) and many different schools. Not only did I have very little growing up, but I also had to learn to adapt to new circumstances, people, and cultures fairly quickly. So I think a combination of all of these things helped me become resilient when I was younger. However, as I got older, I found that resiliency came down to how well I tended to my inner world, i.e. reaching out to friends for support, taking time to rest, creating healthy boundaries, feeling my feelings, etc.
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
As a Naturopathic Physician, I help people recover from various chronic complex illnesses, such as Lyme disease, mold toxicity, digestive issues, hormonal imbalances, and much more. I get people better by taking the time to listen to their story and treating the underlying cause of illness. I believe that it is important to provide an individualized approach to wellness and long-term solutions, instead of quick “bandaids” that often mask the problem. By the time patients come to see me, they often have already exhausted their options in conventional medicine and have seen a plethora of providers. I love what I do because I see people get better, even if they have struggled with their health for decades.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
At the age of 25, my mother passed away unexpectedly. While this was truly a devastating time, it was also a catalyst for my personal healing and growth. In hindsight, some of the qualities or skills I learned that were most impactful in my journey, included:
1) Learning to listen to my body and spirit, instead of the things I thought I should be doing.
2) Learning how to really grieve and feel my emotions. I was always taught to be “strong,” which did a huge disservice to my mental health. Stuffing my feelings led to messiness in other areas of my life, especially my own happiness.
3) Connecting with a community where I felt safe and asking for support when needed. Being a loan wolf wasn’t sustainable (or fun).
For those who are early on in their journey, I would say…keep searching, be curious, and learn impeccable self-love.
Alright so to wrap up, who deserves credit for helping you overcome challenges or build some of the essential skills you’ve needed?
My dear friend and mentor, Char Sundust, has been instrumental in helping me in my journey towards healing and wholeness. While she has taught me many things, she has given me the space to be myself (the good, bad, and ugly), as well as tools for self-empowerment.
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