Honouring My Own Energy: The Hardest Lesson to Live Bye

Your practice isn’t going anywhere.

In the six years of running my business, I have only cancelled a handful of classes—maybe four or five in total. That’s because I am deeply committed to showing up, to creating space, to holding my community with consistency and love. Cancelling doesn’t sit well with me. It feels like letting people down. It feels like breaking my word.

But today, I did it. I cancelled my breathwork class. And you know what? It felt good.

Not because I wanted to cancel—trust me, I didn’t. But because it was the right thing to do.

A wave of sickness is going around, and many people had to cancel last minute. That left only three people booked in.

I looked at the reality: I am still feeling the effects of the retreat, my energy is lower, and breathwork requires me to hold space in a very big way. My body was whispering: Not today.

It has only been a week since I held a deeply healing plant medicine retreat—an experience where all of me, all my energy, my love, my focus, goes into holding sacred space for transformation. I give so much in those three days. Every ounce of me is poured into my clients, into their healing, into their breakthroughs. And when it ends, my energy is gone. It takes me weeks to refill my cup. That’s why, at this moment, I only offer four retreats a year—I am still learning how to work with my energy, how to balance my deep need to give and give with my own need to pause and receive.

Our beautiful alter for our reteats reminds me of love and tuning into my inner calling....

Before I even made the decision to cancel the class.

Messages started coming in. Clients telling me they were sad to miss class, but they had to honour their own bodies too. One told me her son had just come home from the hospital, and she needed to be with him. Another had caught a cold and knew she needed to rest. Someone else had to work unexpectedly. And the list went on.

Every time, I tell them the same thing:

Your practice isn’t going anywhere. Your body, your family, your wellbeing—that’s what truly matters.

And yet, here I was, struggling to tell myself the same.

I always teach the importance of listening to your body. Of honouring its needs. Of knowing when to rest so that you can show up stronger later.

But leading by example is hard. It’s one thing to tell others to listen to their bodies—it’s another to take my own medicine. Most people preach, but don’t practice.

When I chose to be a wellness coach, I made a decision:

My life would be proof, not just words. I have to live what I teach. Otherwise, what’s the point?

So I sat with the decision. I felt the resistance. And then I sent the message to my clients. I let them know that I was honouring my energy and that their class would be refunded. And you know what? They understood. Because the people who come to my classes get it. They know this work isn’t just about pushing through—it’s about deep respect for ourselves and our energy.

We live in a world that glorifies pushing through. That tells us stopping is failing. That resting is weakness. But the truth?

....You are not failing when you rest...

You are not failing when you choose to be there for your child.

You are not failing when you listen to your body and let it recharge.

You are not failing when you pause and recalibrate.

Stopping doesn’t mean quitting. Sometimes, stopping is exactly what you need in order to start again from a stronger place.

This is what I love about my community—the commitment is there. My students show up, they care deeply, and they feel sad when they have to miss a class. But they are also learning what I have learned: that honouring yourself is part of the work. That listening is part of the practice. That making space for your body, your family, your life, is yoga.

Last week was super busy—so much creative energy pouring into my new offerings, so much excitement in birthing what’s to come. And this week, I need to honour myself. I need to honour the rhythm of give and receive. I am getting better at this. At finding the small pockets to recharge, at allowing myself space to breathe, at choosing to rest before I burn out.

I love running BREATWORK classes so much! it is a true magic, healing in making ....

Tonight, I am resting. I am replenishing.

And I will see my yoga students for our 6:30pm class, where I’ll pour extra love into their savasana. Because I know that by listening to my body today, I’ll be able to show up fully tomorrow.

So here’s the lesson for all of us:

You are not failing when you rest. You are not letting people down when you choose yourself. You are leading by example. You are showing others that honouring your energy isn’t weakness—it’s wisdom.

And I will continue to live by that wisdom, even when it’s hard. Even when it means cancelling a class I didn’t want to cancel. Even when it means saying not today so that tomorrow, I can say I am here, fully.

Because this work?

..... It starts with us.