For those of you who do not know me I wanted to share a bit about who I am and how Inner Light Collective came to be.
My name is Erin and I am happily married to my gorgeous husband Luke. I have 4 beautiful, intelligent, kind children and two amazing cute as a button grand children.
I live in a big little town and I am very pleased to say that i work on my business full time.
There had been a long time ( my entire life pretty much) where I had this deep feeling in my gut that there was more. That there had to be more than this sleep walking, people pleasing life I was living. It wasn't until I turned 39 that the feelings were sooo strong that I could not longer deny them. I had a bit of a melt down and the two years following was a space of really finding who I was on deeper level. Although this period was really when I was doing things that eventually made me see exactly what it was that I needed.
I read the book the Universe has your back by Gabby Bernstein (as it kept crossing my path and in the end I bought it) I realise now why that happened..
This book made me look closely at my relationship with myself, how I was showing up in the world and developed a deeper connection to spirit.
Through this time I really focused on my health, I started Meditation, and then really took action on finding what it was that I wanted for my life. I began a side hustle (my health coaching ) but felt a little like a fraud as, Yes I was getting my health back and promoting weight loss, but I wanted it to be more than what was on a physical level. I then trained in Weight Management Psychology, I created a few courses around the emotional reasons we overeat, and mindful eating. But it still felt like it was off. I felt like I had to be on... all the time.
I trained in NLP (neuro linguistics programming) and boy oh boy.... Game changer. This was mind blowing literally. I have a story about this which I will share another time, but this helped me so much with facing fears, removing blocks and limiting beliefs. It is so funny because there were sooo many things before and the other night when I was doing my Full moon Ritual I had to really think of things that I would like to release. (finally)
So this was something that I wasn't sure I would use going forward in my own coaching but I did tweak the exercises and add them to guided meditations. That is how I felt comfortable using it. NLP is about reprogramming the conscious mind. (this is also something I can go into deeper another time)
I ran some events, and also some expos which ( lots of learning and growth happened there) and then I really started to move away from my first business name Erin Sharwood Health Coach.
I felt that yes even though I had lost a lot of weight, I had issues with my body image and felt again like a fraud. I am not perfect, I put weight back on etc... (which in an actual fact was my own insecurities, because now I realise that is real life and people like real people, people who fail, people who are vunerable etc )
So from there I started doing one on one coaching did more training, EFT, Shaman, ritual and ceremony, Past life regression and did my Reiki practioner training. Which opened up so much for me and totally changed the trajectory of where I thought I was headed. Reiki felt right in every essence of my being. It felt so much deeper than any of the other modalities I had studied and to be honest feels like home to me. There have been many things that I have been surprised with along the way, during each session, that have seen me grown and open up to a deeper connection to self, energy and spirit.
I quit my teaching role at the end of 2019. I had taken time off (using my long service leave) to make my business work at the start of 2019. I spent 5 months really trying to make it work so that I did not have to go back to my teaching job.. In that time my mother had a fall and really did a number on her ankle, so I spent a lot of my time in the hospital with her.. and then when she got out she needed help getting to places so, it was divine timing that I could be there for her. Then my husband, we found out needed a triple bypass and so there was another chunk of time that was of me taking care of him, and worrying myself to death... So when my time was up I HAD TO return to my teaching position. Which was like torture for me.
I knew what I wanted and my time in that job was over. I loved my co workers and the kids but I looked at the clock all day waiting for it to be over....(I had never ever done that in that position)
So I bided my time and in the end I said to my husband (who is my biggest supporter) I can't do it. It feels like it is sucking the life from me... So I gave 6 weeks notice (longest six weeks of my life) and I went it on my own...
I have never looked back. I think that, the first attempt at doing my own business I did not show the universe that I trusted in her... I dipped my toe in so to speak and kept the security of my job there....in case....
When I finally decided that I was worth it. That I trusted enough in myself and that I knew things would work, the universe said...Ok now we are talking....
So 2020 for me was an incredible year. I had been side hustling, throwing spaghetti at the wall expecting it to stick, trying many things from MLM's to training in everything I could to find the thing... Find that thing that I knew was there but that I had to trust would come... Was it easy... F NO.. I would cry myself to sleep. I would become frustrated.. But at NO POINT did I ever want to give up.. I would just shift direction a little and then try again. I knew in my heart that I was a different person. That I wanted to help others ( I have been doing that my entire life, wanting to adopt every child that didn't have a mum. Being the person who most people would feel comfortable enough to share things with) I knew that what I felt, that feeling in my gut was real and it was just around one of the corners. So I kept seeking it...
Now I have the most incredible business where I get to share my magic. I get to be creative, I get to do my healing sessions and run retreats (hoorah we are back ) and share special healing tools with people who need it.
So it has been a journey to here and I'm sure we have many miles to go and grow... But I am excited for it...