Be a Rebel - With this Ritual

What if reclaiming your joy, purpose, and mojo could start with just 2 minutes a day?

In this powerful episode of Default to Yes, nurse coach and founder of Reimagine Wellness, Juli Reynolds, shares the origin story of how one simple ritual became the key to transformation. You'll discover how reimagination rewires your brain, restores your energy, and simplifies the path toward your biggest dreams.

Juli blends science-backed tools from neuroscience and lifestyle medicine with her personal healing journey to show how reimagining your self-awareness, relationships, and identity creates real, sustainable change.

✨ Includes a simple daily ritual you can begin today.
 ✨ Want to experience what just 2 minutes can do? Click the link in the show notes.

Transcript

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Welcome to another extraordinary week where we have another opportunity to explore what it means to live with. Bold, self-leadership, resilient hope, whole person wellness. I have been reviewing, going back, taking a look back at my journey to reimagine wellness and where that started. I. And if you follow me on social media, you're seeing some of that play out. I'm starting to share that whole story because there's some things that are coming full circle and just following some prompts and some lessons learned over the past couple months of really trialing something new and, going back to the origin of Reimagine Wellness for me, and I think this is always a good practice to take a look back at how far you've come, and this is part of, if you heard last week we talked about integrating the wins, and I wanted to really just examine. Am I doing that? Am I integrating the wins to into my current self concept? And am I bringing that experience forward to be a reflection on the way I live today? And am I training my brain to cooperate with me in the way that I show up in, in the way I want to show up? And all of that was has just taken me on the journey to go all the way back to when I started Reimagine Wellness. Now the word reimagine, became personal for me during a season when nothing was working well. I was lying on caffeine. I was popping ibuprofen all day. I carried this great big bottle of ibuprofen around with me. I filled my water bottle like a water bottle this size with Diet Mountain Dew. And because I felt bad about it, I didn't want people to know how much Diet Mountain Dew I was drinking, so I put it in my water bottle. That's how ridiculous that got. I was managing tension headaches and occasional migraines recurring and really not getting any help. my job had taken a toll on me that, I guess I wasn't equipped to handle and I headed into something that based on my experience and advocating and my obligation to do the right thing, it got me into some trouble, which led to some stress that I wasn't prepared for. Yeah, I am a nurse, but I was also. I also walked straight into burnout and getting disconnected and really drifting away from what my purpose was or any sense of purpose. Now I kept doing the things and I was really enjoying mostly being a mom of two amazing boys and just figuring things out that way. I was very active in their lives and the middle school journey into high school. So I was doing all the things, baseball, mom, and loving it. So I don't wanna make it sound like my life was miserable, but I was uncomfortable. I had joint pain. I was gaining weight. I mentioned already with the headaches. So like many healing journeys. It started with a moment now. When I look back, I can see different things that happened along the way. My employer hosted a symposium that I went to and I did some learning. A colleague shared with me some essential oils at the time. I didn't take the time to study them, and I really had a mindset of, I can't afford this, or I don't have the bandwidth for this, or was a little skeptical, and so it. Wasn't instant. I didn't say yes right away, and which is why today I don't expect people to just say yes right away and change everything. I know the process that I went through and I honor that. I like to honor that with other people, to know that there's a process of which we go through to change, and we've talked about that before in the podcast, and I think in our own lives we have to honor that. And it all starts with awareness. So like many healing journeys, it really started with a moment and for me. That moment was peppermint. It wasn't a miracle, it wasn't magic. It was really that science backed simplicity of a plant compound that, not only relieved my tension headaches instantaneously, but also helped to relieve my son's digestive issues and my when really mainstream healthcare didn't have any answers. I recognized the path that he was going down. I knew that it was gonna lead to expensive tests and medications, hospitalizations and surgeries, and I could see that happening, but he hadn't gotten a diagnosis and just from being around healthcare long enough. I knew where we were going, and so I knew I needed to find answers before it got to that point. So that opened the door to something that I had never been trained to see, and that was that healing isn't always found in prescriptions or protocols. Sometimes we aren't trained in healthcare to find those answers in a way that prevents the worst case scenario. So sometimes it's when we pause and become curious and choose. To care for ourselves a little differently. that's really how Reimagined Wellness came to be. I was ready to, it wasn't just a brand, it was a mission to. Reimagine my own wellness and figure things out in a way that I had not been trained to do. Maybe that wasn't completely mainstream. Now that opened me up to a whole world that today, like it wasn't a decade ago, is kinda coming to the forefront. We hear more wellness influencers. we're seeing our politics are being influenced by the same movement and these influencers. Good or bad. I'm not really sure yet. But I, but regardless, this is where I started and it opened up that world that has now become something that is a little more culturally apparent than it was when I started. So I had really dig for experts and for the science and for evidence that would support this in a way that I could really embrace it. And then when I started experiencing the solutions, I felt morally obligated as a nurse to invite others into that whole new way of thinking about health and wholeness. And so that's what really the journey I've been on for the last couple decades in the way I've exposed myself to different trainings and the way I've shaped my nursing career. And I wanna talk a little bit because it might not look exactly the same for you. So this might be The neuroscience of reimagination. So we talk about reimagining our lives, we're talking about neuroplasticity. That's that brain's capacity to form new connections, new beliefs, new habits. And the science is really clear that your brain is always adapting. We didn't always think that. We used to think that as your brain aged, you lost capacity, but that's not. Completely true. The question is that, are you directing that adaptation? When we imagine a different outcome, a different identity, a different possibility, our brain starts to begin to fire and wire in new ways. And visualization combined with unintentional emotion, like gratitude or joy, just activates that default mode network, which plays a key role in self-reflection and personal meaning. So the more we rehearse a new belief, I am calm, I am capable, I am worthy. The more our brain begins to make that belief, our new normal. So to reimagine isn't passive, it's a neuro rehearsal for transformation. I mentioned before that it was one simple habit that changed everything, and I think if you look back over your own experience, you'll see that a lot of times it is just one little shift. Just set the dominoes in motion. You might wonder what. Was that turning point for me? It wasn't a course and it was, I didn't quit my job. It wasn't really even a big event. It was just that I started creating this 10 minute daily habit that really honored my whole self and I called it my reimagined ritual, and I still call it that sometimes. Sometimes I just call it the morning ritual, just. To be simple. But I combined breath work, a drop of essential oil, an affirmation, and a quiet moment of intention. Now, I've done this for years and it wasn't until really recently I started to put it into words and I started to put it on paper and I started to share it with others to see if it would also have the same impact. And I'm happy to say after many beta clients or the Guinea pigs as they called themselves or I called them, we have I've established some of those rituals, and I'm seeing them really make a difference in other people's lives as well. sometimes I call it the yes ritual. So it was the first place that I practiced choosing me. And slowly that moment turned into momentum and my body started healing. My mindset shifted. I started noticing I could stop my emotions. I could reframe the stories that I was telling myself and my energy started to return and reimagining. N not only who I was as a nurse, but as A woman with wisdom and creativity, and a calling that went beyond the walls of the hospital. so I'm gonna ask you to consider where you're living on autopilot, where you're defaulting to No, or defaulting to stress to. Maybe later, or this is just the way things are. What are those things that you're just holding onto? And what if you could reimagine your self-awareness, seeing yourself not only through those old stories, but through the lens of growth. Maybe it's your relationships. what if they weren't about fixing or pleasing, but connecting with honesty and grace. maybe it's your purpose and your, or your passion, not as tasks to perform, but gifts to live out. Maybe it's to reimagine your joy as your default setting and not that distant reward, that thing that you'll get when everything else begins to align. So I'm gonna suggest that you can do this with your own ritual, and that's really the beauty of this, is that you are capable of creating your own ritual, one that works for you. It might not look the same as mine, probably won't, that's where I struggle with sometimes being able to teach this effectively because people who are burned out or bored or feeling stuck see this as one more thing to do. And I was there. So I know how that feels to, to hear someone's suggestion or hear someone say, I'm on the other side of this and tell you what they've done, and then you all you think is, yeah, that's just what I need one more thing to do, one more thing to work on. I'm good. I'm gonna suggest that you take this and you get curious and make it your own. Do it in a way that fits for you. So the simple ritual to practice is really just the power of reimagination. And you can start today. You can start this morning. You can start tomorrow morning. Okay, so first of all, if you have essential oils, you can supercharge this practice with aromas. You can do this with coffee or any other aroma as well. But for those of you who have essential oils, I'm gonna suggest that you choose an oil like peppermint for clarity, or bergamo for joy. Rosemary for mental awareness. Frankincense for groundedness lavender, for a calm, any of those aromas. Choose your favorite and just inhale slowly and let that scent signal safety and presence and take you on the journey that you want to be on. Now, if you don't have essential oils, that's fine. You can just simply anchor into your breath. Take some really deep breaths in and out. Count to four. Hold count of four. Breathe out to the count of four and hold to the count of four. That's a technique. Count four. Four breathing, or box breathing. You could do that. Do that 3, 4, 5 times, and then you could just anchor into your breath. Just focus in on the power of your breath and then. Affirm and align. So first you're gonna anchor, then you're gonna affirm and align. So speak aloud the truth that you want to believe. So today I reimagine what is possible for me, or I am becoming who I am meant to be. Whatever that statement is. There is not no wrong, no right or wrong statement. It just needs to be true and it needs to be take you forward in the direction that you wanna go. And again, breathe and visualize. You might wanna close your eyes and practice that four, four breathing. and picture yourself embodied and vibrant and aligned. What does it feel like to be your ideal self? What does it feel like to feel free and be on that path? What does it feel like to have that vision? Imprint your nervous system and then asking a power question, what does my extraordinary self choose today? How will I show up in the way I really want to? And let that answer shape your first next step of the day. again, Anchor yourself. Affirm and aligned. Breathe and visualize and ask support power question. Now, my morning ritual also involves some just sitting quietly. And sometimes that is the most powerful moments is just to sit quietly and try to manage my not get sidetracked and which is all okay and normal. And you're gonna do that too, but just to sit in silence and get good at that. and then moving. And nourishing. So my morning routine and my reimagined morning ritual now has evolved to being a fuel yourselves. Focus your mind and anchor your habits, and then go all the way through this anchoring, affirming, and aligning. Breathe and visualize, and then ask that power question. I always end with that power question, and I don't try to answer it. what does my extraordinary self choose today? I choose to be present, and I choose to move forward in the direction of my dreams. I choose to connect with those around me to show up in love and light. Whatever that is. And sometimes it's different. It's not the same every day. Sometimes it's the same for a really long time and then it changes. Sometimes it's based on a prayer, so whatever that looks like, leave it open-ended and just move into your day from there. That's how to reimagine. And reimagination isn't just for dreamers, it's for doers. It's not magical. It's just. For us who can embrace the art, and science of healthcare, and. Those who haven't forgotten that they're allowed to dream too. So here's what I know. I know that you are allowed to begin again. I know that you're allowed to reimagine. I know that You're allowed to evolve, and you're allowed to reimagine what wellness, work, motherhood, ministry, and midlife looks like for you. So that's what default to Yes, is really about, is saying yes to you in whatever context that means for you today or this week, this month, however that is. Maybe you're in a time of hardship and you're trying, you're struggling. You could still do this ritual in a way that helps you through it To help, you move that heavy weight around and knowing that it's not your fault, Burnout is not your fault. our culture creates this wheel that we run on, and sometimes it creates a narrative that we buy into without even recognizing it. So make this ritual your rebellion. if you are resonating with this, and this is somewhere where you're stuck and you'd like some more guidance schedule a chat with me. I'd love to talk to you. There's no pressure. There's nothing to buy. We'll get on the phone for 20 minutes and see if we can't create a simple strategy to just get you pointed in the right direction, get you some clarity get you unstuck and moving freely in the direction of your dreams. And if you don't have time for that, then Get on the list and I will send every episode of the podcast to you plus some bonus resources and we'll, and we can connect that way. Alright, Be a rebel. So let your ritual become your rebellion. Let your breath become that anchor, that power, that blueprint for propelling you forward. And let your vision become the fuel for yourselves, the focus for your mind, and the anchor for your habits, as you get up every day and default to yes, your extraordinary self.