What have your Tipping Points been?

Instigator for positive change

_{(N.B. please bear in mind that I started writing this before bumbling, boring Boris put us back in lockdown in the UK. No offence is intended with this post)}

The other day I went for a dog walk out the back gate in sunny Sussex, something some of you who were following my ‘morning rambles’ at the beginning of lockdown No1 will know it well, and two incidents acted in combination as a pivotal TIPPING POINT for positive change for me. Initially, seeing the pheasant beaters in the field at the back of our garden scaring the birds for the shooters to hit out of the sky pulled on my heart strings. Pointless ‘trophy’ hunting has never struck any chord with me. Then a new neighbour who is into the ‘working against nature’ method of farming had been round with his machine and destroyed a beautiful hedged wild meadow field, all for progress. I came back from a 30 minute walk so sad and upset at to how humans can go around destroying nature in various forms. The thought ‘what can just little old me’ swimming round my head (and admittedly a few tears rolling down my cheeks).

After an hour or so of soul searching, anger, frustration an old idea popped into my head (the TIPPING POINT) there WAS something positive I could take from this. It might not stop the pheasant shoot (well actually Lockdown No2 has done that) or stop our neighbour from destroying wildflower meadows and beautiful hedgerows BUT I could learn, study, increase my knowledge of how to work WITH nature & the land. A few years ago I’d explored doing a permaculture course but it didn’t work out for various reasons. This time I found a way to enroll on one. It starts in 2 weeks & I can’t wait to see where this positive journey takes me.

Pondering this tipping point turning into positive change I reflected back on previous tipping points in my life. They were not me hitting rock bottom, but times when my threshold for how things were was breached and I needed to take charge. For example, not wanting to live with digestive issues any longer so asking for help from a nutritional therapist to get well again. This, as some of you know, helped me heal quite quickly AND started my journey to being a qualified nutritional therapist. Another pivotal point was when I knew I had to over come my fear of swimming in the ocean after an incident when I was doing my open water diving qualification left me terrified of being in the ocean despite loving the sea and all it contains, so I forced myself to over come this fear by booking on a 3 month diving expedition on a desert island in Malaysia! Luckily, I over came my phobia, learnt so much about ocean life and met my future husband.

Have you had these tipping points? What kind of experiences have strongly encouraged (a nice way of saying forced) you to make positive changes/steps? They don’t need to be massive or health related but I’d love to know what kind of things have encouraged you to make positive changes.

This latest change in how we are living in the UK could be a tipping point for many. Maybe it will encourage us to take the opportunity to create positive change which often doesn’t have to cost anything. We all have choices in life, which path to tread. Whatever journey you are on please remember that sometimes when you reach the tipping point it can take a while to find the positive change it is trying to show you, it may feel like you have hit rock bottom and if that is the case please do reach out to loved ones. Don’t struggle in silence.

Be gentle with yourself, the positive WILL come x