Guest Blogger: Dana from The Closet Confessional

Hi everyone, Dana here! I'm the founder of the style blog, The Closet Confessional as well as the daughter of Lisa Jackson (founder of this spectacular blog). As anyone who has been following Carpe Diem Wellness knows, my mom is all about feeling good (which leads to looking good!) and following your passion.

I’ve spent the last several years doing both.

After being diagnosed with cancer, I learned to stop regularly destroying my body with crap (I say regularly because I’m not about to completely give up dark chocolate or red wine. Life’s about balance, right?) and start focusing on the things in life that bring me joy.

For me, that joy is fashion.

And seeing how I’m on a strict budget - like most people I know - I get very excited over bargain finds. Probably a little too excited. To the point where someone will compliment me on an article of clothing and my first response is not “thank you,” but “I got it for 7 dollars at fill-in-the-blank store!” But I can’t help it. I have champagne tastes on a beer budget. Or organic fruit tastes on a conventional fruit budget.

But just because I shop for affordable items, doesn't mean I'm filling my closet with cheap, mass produced clothes. The older I get, the more I realize the value in quality over quantity. This is why stores like Havana Vintage Boutique totally rock. They specialize in unique, quality items from all over the world at affordable costs. 

This dress I’m wearing here? A brand new Diane Von Furstenberg - with the tags still on - that I scored there at a fraction of the retail price.

A bargain like that? Makes me feel good and look good.

Find out more about me and The Closet Confessional on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. And thanks for letting me takeover at Carpe Diem Wellness!

Retail Therapy at Havana Vintage Boutique

I am birthday shopping for one my best friends at Havana Vintage Boutique, the local consignment shop in Great Falls. Not that I want to buy her something “cheap,” but just the opposite. It's about finding a quality item for an affordable price. Because when a girl is living on a budget - as most of us are - you've got to be a smart shopper.

And who doesn’t love a bargain? Like a brand new limited edition Coach bag that you can no longer get for a fraction of the cost. Or if I had a higher budget, a brand new Burberry bag that is to die for at $399. I don’t know what the retail is, but I am sure it’s much more than $399.

Although I am always preaching that I help people look and feel their best from the inside out - starting with of course diet, nutrition, and mind/body work - the truth of the matter is, when you look at our total well being, we have to account for our financial well being as well. And as Havana proves, looking and feeling good does not have to break the bank. It's sad but true that most ladies will spend more money putting toxic stuff on their hair than they will for their health. Because yes, we’re vain. And yes, we care how we look. So we have to look and feel of best from the inside out, but we also want to look good on the outside too.  

So, my new favorite store and one of the best kept secrets, is Havana. It will satisfy any woman's "retail therapy", as my daughter Dana likes to call it. And Dana is not only a great example of someone who is learning to look and feel good from the inside out, she is also learning to follow her passion. And her passion? Fashion!

So, if you want to learn more about both Havana and the yummy surprises that the store entails, like a brand new designer dress - with the tag on it - for about 20% of the original cost, stay tuned for my next blog post where Dana will show us her favorite find from Havana! And for anyone looking for some great deals, Havana is having a big 20-50% off sale for everything in the store on Friday and Saturday with extended hours Friday from 10am-9pm and Saturday 10-5pm. Definitely check it out!

Carpe Diem. Why? Because we only have this moment and this day to live life to the fullest.

To stay up to date with Havana's newest arrivals (especially if you don't live in the area!), follow them on Instagram and Twitter.

The Gift is Often in the Struggle

When we are struggling with symptoms of dis-ease, instead of beating ourselves over about what is wrong with us, why not ask what is right? For the body wants to naturally heal and the only way it has to communicate with us is through signs and symptoms and the more we ignore them, the louder they get.  Cancer is a symptom and the good news is self-love and self-care is key to healing.

So where’s the gift?

My daughter Dana in her video does such a beautiful job describing the gift that cancer brought her… as odd, weird, counterculture or maybe even awful as that may sound to you.

The message is strong and clear: Stop the fear, the worry, the anger and the guilt and all that no longer serves us.

And more importantly, lets stop hiding, stop trying to fit in or just be average. Because Fear of not being accepted, is a powerfully strong fear, one that I’ve recognized my entire life. I’ve tried not to outshine or overshadow people, yet sometimes I naturally do.  And sometimes we must, if we want to shine light where there is darkness and illuminate and elevate energy and the joy in our lives.  Isn’t that what we are all looking for, more joy? Who doesn’t want this?

Dana’s video allowed her natural light and beauty to shine through! Dana wants to have a voice... Halleluah!  Dana’s tumors were around her throat, thyroid and thymus and her heart and according to Louise Hay, in You Can Heal Your Life, the throat and thyroid represent the ability to speak up for self, self-expression and the need to find one’s voice. The heart center represents joy.

Spending time in Arizona with Dana was a gift. I remember looking at the colors in a magazine and learning how color has positive energy that is healing and recognized how I ignored color all my life and how my whole closet is filled with black clothes that suck energy out of you.

As Dana so beautifully articulates, it takes courage to wear bold colors, to step out of your comfort zone to do something you’ve never done before, it takes courage and self-compassion when we fall down as we learn to do new things.  And I think courage, compassion and connection are all the lessons in my cultivating joy class that I had so much fun facilitating and Dana has shown that with her permission and compassion to take care of herself, that her cancer has required her to do and the connections she formed with her Thunder Stealer Blog. Now we all need to follow and connect everyone to her new blog, that shows the courage to follow her dreams and inspire us all to do the same!  Check out her newest site, as well as all three of her videos here!

What’s your passion and what is your gift to the world?

As one of my coaches, Fabienne Frederickson says, it’s selfish to hide our gifts.  If we made a batch of brownies and didn’t share them and ate them all ourselves what would that do?  Make us fat and sick and selfish and yet it's the same thing we do when we fail to take care of ourselves or to share our whole healthy self with the world.

Let’s support one another to find our gifts and connect to the world. 

Thank you Dana, for your beautiful gifts, we need you and I love you very much.