@therealkimsmith

An experiment in truth telling

"If you want freedom, practice discipline" Anne Lamott

The Golden Ticket

The Last Drunk

The day started unlike any other of the past decade. I was sober, well rested, cradled by 3000 count sheets at the L’Auberge Del Mar. The white down and my daughter’s body created a warm, fluffy nest of hope and gratitude. Thirteen days earlier I had attended an AA meeting in Phoenix. I sat in a grey plastic folding chair with a cup of bad coffee. I listened. I judged. After the meeting a stranger approached me. “You belong here. Do 90 in 90. Get a sponsor. Work the steps.”

The Last Drunk

Everyday Magic

The world can be a heavy dark place. Every day we turn on the news to hear stories of inequality, sexual assault, political clusterfuckedness, global warming, threats of war, shootings, you name it. It’s all out. THere’s no hiding anymore. Our skeletons are being laundered and it’s the fucking spin cycle. Add Scorpio season (10/23-11/21) and you’ve got a recipe for everything you have ever wanted to ignore right in your face. I’m feeling it. The dense, shadowed energy of the

Everyday Magic

In Between

Some people get energy from being around people, getting all social up in their lives. I am not one of those people. I need downtime. I need to be alone to regroup and recoup my energy. As a mom and writer a lot of my energy is directed at what I give to others. I’ll never grow tired of hearing “I love you mama." Or having a stranger tell me that something I wrote has helped them. But today nothing sounds better than spending the day alone, in my room, with the blinds closed.

In Between

Confessions of a Drunk Yogi: Part 1: Cancer

I started practicing yoga at a small, one room studio in Johnson City, New York in 2002. I was charmed by the word yoga, it contained mystery and magic and unanswered questions that beckoned my attention. I was back living with my mom undergoing treatment for Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, “The most curable kind of cancer” they said. “This will be easy” they said. They were full of shit. The cancer and chemotherapy reducing my once young and abled body to a still young but definitely no

Confessions of a Drunk Yogi: Part 1: Cancer

Humility has Many Faces/ AKA How I Crashed and Burned Teaching Emotional Intelligence to Kindergartn

Humility has many faces. Sometimes, it’s an epic addiction hellbent on destroying every part of your existence. Other times, it's a roomful of five-year-olds high on Red Bull on Kindergarten Career Day. “You should have been a kindergarten teacher, Kim,” my husband said one night after I told him how much fun I had volunteering in our daughter’s classroom. “You missed your calling.” He’s right. I love those little fuckers. They are my people. Curious, excited about life, mess

Humility has Many Faces/ AKA How I Crashed and Burned Teaching Emotional Intelligence to Kindergartn

Me too, Her too, You too, Us too

Well, there was a lot of alcohol involved. Words my sister, then steeped in her own wounds said to me when I told her I was raped at 24 by a guy I was dating. I wasn’t the victim of a violent crime in a dark alleyway. I’m what you might call “one of the lucky ones.” And yes. A lot of alcohol was involved. We were out getting drunk on Mill Ave. in Tempe AZ. The last thing I remember is saying “I need to go home and go to bed now.” I did not say, “Take me home and have sex with

Me too, Her too, You too, Us too

Just Fucking Do It

Hey Human, You think I’d be getting tired of having this conversation with you. Being You would be a lot easier if you chose to believe me the first time, all those years ago, all those lives ago, when we first had this conversation. And I’ll admit, the conversation is becoming redundant, and I am tired. But it’s not bad. Nothing is really. Do you remember when your children were tiny? They couldn’t do anything for themselves. They relied on you for everything. You were fucki

Just Fucking Do It

Women, Dragons & Small Talk

I’m not really what you would call a “people person.” Most days I prefer books, baths, and solitude to the company of humans. One on one I thrive. I hold my own in small groups. I can command a crowd as the speaker. But the dynamics of the large group is something that I usually try to avoid. I get along easier with members of the opposite sex. In my herstory different girls with different faces have played different villains, evil stepsisters, and wicked witches. All with th

Women, Dragons & Small Talk

Uprooted

I recently had my wisdom teeth removed. During my drinking days I had no time or concern for dentists or physicians. I only saw the eye doctor because driving a motor vehicle blind is frowned upon and losing a digit while cutting the carrots for dinner would be a huge bummer. I got sober and my teeth just started aching. I oil pulled, water picked and clove oiled my way through the days until the pain became unbearable. It’s entirely possible and probable that the pain was al

Uprooted

Addiction, the Easy Solution

Now before you get your panties in a bunch and start the tirade about how addiction is not easy, first let me say, I know. Addiction is painful. Addiction is cruel. Addiction is demoralizing and sinister. I get it. Let me explain. For me addiction is a disease of the mind, of imbalanced coping skills, and irrational thinking. To read more about this please click here. A few nights ago insanity won. I had a total mental health relapse. I was overcome with a sadness that is bla

Addiction, the Easy Solution

Anxiety, Depression & the Nervous System

Yoga lead me to sobriety, Sobriety lead me to a desire for understanding, expansion and the capacity to share what I know. The lineage of yoga that I study focuses on energy. Everything is energy. “Yoga at it’s best is a practice of energy management.” Mary Bruce There is a whole science of the subtle body (energy, the breath, chakras, koshas, how to work with what you have, and increase your storehouse.) I am only saying this because the way our energy moves or does not mov

Anxiety, Depression & the Nervous System

Everything Is Sacred and Ordinary

“Everything is sacred and ordinary” Abraham Vergese Cutting for the Stone My life has changed incredibly in the past two years. I want to share my experience so that it can benefit others. At the same time I am conflicted with honoring the sacred parts of my journey and story that are a part of the reconstruction of my heart, mind, body, and soul. I struggle with the concepts of oversharing and over-exposure and wanting to write about everything I feel. Then putting that into

Everything Is Sacred and Ordinary

Resources/therealkimsmith

Alcoholics Anonymous NAMI: National Alliance on Mental Illness | NAMI: The National … Suicide Hotlines - Suicide.org! Warmlines Narcotics Anonymous Veterans Crisis Line | Suicide Prevention Hotline, Chat & Text Crisis Response Network National Hotlines and Helpful Links Abuse Survivor, Trauma Survivor, Crisis Hotlines | The Wounded … Arizona Suicide Hotlines - Suicide.org! CoDA.org: Home Welcome to Al-Anon Family Groups SAMSHA (Subtance Abuse and Mental Health Administration

Resources/therealkimsmith

Yoga for Anxiety at Moksha Yoga Phoenix

This class is an introduction on how to use your yoga practice wisely to facilitate mental and emotional balance both on and off the mat. Each class will offer specific energetically sequenced asana, pranayama, and meditation practices, as well as tools for self-care and self-inquiry to promote grounding and support from the inside out. Session 1: The Energetics of Anxiety This class will dive into the understanding of anxiety from an Ayurvedic perspective and provide tools

Yoga for Anxiety at Moksha Yoga Phoenix

Why Yoga for Anxiety? Why Now?

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I am always interested in feedback and questions. Please feel free to contact me to connect.

I am available for one to one yoga/meditation/energy management sessions by appointment.

xx-k

480-200-0331

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