When I was in the thick of my own healing, I did not need more inspiration. I had plenty of quotes saved and verses underlined. What I did not have was a process, a set of steps I could actually walk through when my mind was loud and my chest was tight. So I built one. I called it BLOOM.
What the letters mean
B is for breathe. Before anything else, regulate the body. You cannot think clearly or pray honestly while your nervous system is sounding the alarm. A few slow breaths is not a small thing. It is the doorway to everything that follows.
L is for locate. Name what is actually happening. Not the story about it, the thing itself. Are you angry, or are you afraid? Tired, or overwhelmed? You cannot bring God something you refuse to name.
O is for offer. Hand it over in prayer. Honestly, without dressing it up. God is not waiting for the polished version. He is waiting for the true one.
O is for observe. Watch for what is yours to do and what is not. Some things are invitations to act. Others are invitations to release. Discernment lives in this step.
M is for move. Take one faithful step. Not the whole staircase. One step you can actually take today.
She is clothed with strength and dignity, and she laughs without fear of the future.Proverbs 31:25
Why it works
BLOOM works because it refuses to skip the body and it refuses to skip God. So many methods do one or the other. They either treat you like a problem to be managed or a soul with no nervous system attached. You are both. You are a whole person, and you heal as a whole person.
The next time you feel yourself spinning, do not reach for another quote. Walk the steps. Breathe, locate, offer, observe, move. It is the backbone of The Becoming Girl, and it is the thing I still come back to on my own hard days.
With you on the journey,
Autumn