Episode 5 - Unapologetically Embracing Discomfort with Cristina Ramirez
By Jessica Garrison
After learning she wrote a book entitled Empowered by Discomfort, we knew we had to have this next guest on the podcast. Cristina Ramirez has an incredible life journey, from Wall Street to Silicon Valley to being a published writer. Her wisdom and authenticity make this an episode you really don’t want to miss.
For Cristina, if she didn’t do any form of self-care, her body would force her to do it. She allowed herself to continue hitting that point where she was forced, rather than taking care of herself regularly. And that wasn’t the life she wanted to live. To be able to keep up with her kids, she knew she needed to get in better shape, which is a huge part of her journey. She began running as a form of self-care, which killed two birds with one stone. She even ran a 5K, which she was incredibly proud of herself for doing. After she accomplished this feat, she thought, what else can I do? In turn, this became a fitness journey for her as well as a creative journey. On her runs, she is able to have time with her own thoughts and allow her creative mind to thrive.
Through this journey to self-care, Cristina has come to realize just how much physical and emotional health coincide. She says it’s important to sustain confidence and to care about yourself enough to do the work because you are deserving of that kindness. However, the ways you accomplish this may not be the same—some days need different actions. For example, there are days when she needs to run to decompress. Other times, she may use a different method to perform self-care to take care of her physical and emotional health. It’s all about finding a balance that works for you on that given day, and we can see the benefits of it through Cristina’s journey.
Like most of our guests, Cristina described herself as a people pleaser. She was raised to always put others ahead of herself, or else she’d be seen as selfish. She credits her husband for helping her learn to set healthy boundaries because he gave her the space to have what she wanted. Sadly, Cristina’s husband passed away, and it was a devastating time in her life. He had shown her a wonderful new way of life, and she knew she couldn’t go back to her old ways. She says to give permission to yourself so you don’t take it out on those you love the most. Don’t beat yourself up over mistakes and setbacks; just continue to move forward.
By living unapologetically herself, Cristina gives those around her permission to do the same. She said that once you have a taste of how freeing and empowering it is to live life unapologetically, you’ll never want to go back. But living unapologetically didn’t always come easily to Cristina, as it doesn’t for most. She was born in Brazil to Cuban parents and attended college in Boston. Her parents didn’t have a lot of funds, so they told her they wouldn’t pay for her education to be a teacher—they wanted her to financially be successful enough to not be in their same position. Instead, she went into banking and finances, though it wasn’t her true passion.
She eventually became a preschool teacher, despite it being “the lowest of the low” on the teacher totem pole. She took the time to live her life authentically rather than wondering, “what if?” for the rest of her life. During the difficult times, Cristina reminded herself that what she was doing was a means to an end, and those stepping stones would lead her to the destination she wanted. By keeping her why and values close to her heart, she knew that whatever road she took would be done with integrity.
Even though the world makes discomfort seem so negative, Cristina has found positivity in embracing this discomfort. We all have challenges we don’t think should be there, but at the end of the day, ignoring it or wallowing in it doesn’t work. After her husband passed, Cristina needed time to process and access her truth without feeling guilty. Life gets bigger, but the grief doesn’t get smaller. She gives herself permission to continue living life happily, which is all her husband wanted to begin with.
Embracing your layers is about acceptance and understanding. Cristina describes her layers as all the different parts of her personality that exist inside her, but she gets to choose who gets the mic. Cristina gives 100% in everything she does so she can say, “I know that I did the best I can,” even if something doesn’t work out in her favor. Not everything will always come your way, but if you give it your all, at least you won’t have any regrets. It’s refreshing to hear Cristina talk about how far she has come in her journey and all the places she has yet to go. We cannot wait to continue to see her flourish.
Ways to Engage: A huge theme in this episode is embracing discomfort. We’ve had other guests speak to this matter as well. How do you feel about embracing discomfort? Does it scare you or make you nervous? Is it something you’ve never thought about before? Tell us what you think about this week’s topic in the comments below!