When It’s Too Much: Reaching for Resources in Times of Stress

When the water begins to slip through your hands—reach. Reach for meditation, therapy, community, and the healing rhythm of nature. Leadership doesn’t mean carrying it all alone—it means knowing when to ground, breathe, and receive support. 🌱

Sometimes, life feels like trying to carry a basket of water. No matter how tightly you grasp, the water keeps slipping through, drop by drop, until you’re left soaked, exhausted, and empty.

That’s how 2025 has unfolded for me.

It wasn’t just one thing—it was everything. The fires that seemed to mirror the chaos around and within. A shaky economy. Fire and the uncertain economy both hitting my delivery business hard. A renter who didn’t just damage my property, but made me question my belief in the goodness of people. I was relocating home and business, managing periphery projects, leading a mission-driven business—and still trying to show up strong.

Water wasn't just dripping out, it was pouring out. I couldn’t hold it all.

Then I realized: I wasn’t supposed to. I didn't need to.

That’s when I knew I needed help.

Not because I was weak, but because I was human.

In moments like these, we don’t need to power through. We need to plug in. We need to reach for the lifelines around us. The blessing is that there are abundant resources, and we just need to take a moment, center ourselves and act.

1. Let People Hold You

Sometimes the bravest thing we do is say, “I’m not okay.” Let people show up. Let them listen. Let their presence be a balm. Your vulnerability doesn’t make you less of a leader—it makes you a real one.

In January, I joined a mastermind consortium of female entrepreneurs. It's been healing and empowering. All I had to say is, "I need some help," and I was surrounded by successful women who knew all about moments of need.

2. Turn to the Professionals

Talk therapy. Hypnotherapy. Psychiatry. There is no shame in needing support. I’ve leaned on all of these. And yes, even pharmaceuticals when necessary. Sometimes, our nervous systems need scaffolding to come back into balance. That’s wisdom, not weakness.

I have engaged in talk therapy on and off throughout my life. It is incredibly supportive to have a professional, unbiased ear to help sort through the mess when life gets...messy. Also, learning a new adaptive technique is awesome. For example, this time, I've learned about rewriting narratives. The story that I tell myself can be retold, rewritten to reorient to a place of power and position.

3. Return to What You Know Works

The breath. The body. The five-minute pause. Greener Thumbs was born from this truth: that small, sacred rituals can bring us back to ourselves. A quiet morning. A whispered affirmation. A still moment in the swirl. These aren’t luxuries—they are anchors.

I protect this space and have needed more time here. Five minutes when things are normal to help stay centered may turn into 30 minutes to regulate in times of distress. This space has been sweet and healing.

4. One Unexpected Tool: Nature Therapy

This year, I let the earth hold me. I walked barefoot in dewy grass. I watched the sky shift through colors at dawn. I sat beneath trees and listened—not just with my ears, but with my skin, my breath, my whole being. Nature didn’t ask me to be productive. It asked me to be present. In that presence, I remembered: I am rooted. I am safe. I belong.

At Greener Thumbs, we believe in the power of five intentional minutes. We believe high-performing women—like the one reading this—deserve rest. Deserve softness. Deserve space where they can stop striving and start feeling.

We built this community for you. For the woman who is leading teams and building dreams, but still needs a place to fall softly—and be strengthened, gently.

Join us at greenerthumbs.org. Let this be your place of peace.

Because when we stay connected to our vision—and our values—we are never lost. Even in our hardest seasons, we are still growing something beautiful underneath the surface.

Breathe in. You are not alone.