Why We Moved Home from Costa Rica
Saying Goodbye to Costa Rica
My last blog post “My Year of Massive Transformation” told the story of how our family left it all and moved to Costa Rica. A personal dream come true for my family and me. We had 3 years of total paradise, that taught me more than I have ever known possible about myself. 3 years of adventure, decompression, immersion in nature and just a lot of fun!
It has been over a year since we have been back in San Diego, and I am finally ready to tell the story of our transition away from living in the jungle.
We are now back in San Diego and recreating what our new lives look like. I am forever grateful for the experience of living in a different country with a completely different culture. A culture that taught us patience, respect for the land, animals, and jungle, how to let go of the things that don’t matter, and how to just plain let go!
When we arrived to Costa Rica I was burnt out to the max! It took my nervous system a year to decompress and I could feel the shift. I could breathe again! I learned to relax, to let go of worry and fear, and to be present in each moment. I learned this by watching how others did it with such ease. Especially the locals who knew no different, as well as the expats who had lived there the longest. The longer you live in the jungle the more relaxed and connected you naturally become. It is amazing to witness and mostly, experience.
So, Then Why Did We Leave Costa Rica?
Our kids have very severe asthma. When we moved there in March of 2020 we were ecstatic that “The Costa Rica Blue Zone” had healed our kiddos. However, we realized in year 3 that this was not the case. Rather, it was because we were around fewer people for the first 2 years because of the world’s collective pause. As soon as we enrolled them back in school, the symptoms became worse. Costa Rica has great healthcare, however, with pediatrics and further pulmonology, we were limited unless we wanted to be in the big and busy central city of San Jose. The whole point of living in Costa Rica was to live at the beach.
After hundreds of visits to the local clinic, mudslides that took out the road to get us to the hospital, and a lot of tears, we chose to move back to the States to get the kiddos the treatment they desperately needed.
This was one of the hardest decisions I have ever made. We had created a dream life and community that was so solid and special. I am still grieving the life we created and trying to bring the “pura vida” lifestyle into all of my choices today.
Back to the States:
The first 3 months of living back in the States were incredibly overwhelming. Adjusting to the loud noises, busy traffic, and even busier people, consumerism overload, and too much more. It was a tough transition, and that is an understatement. I could feel my nervous system creeping back into its old, unhealthy ways. This scared me. My regulated nervous system is very important to me and keeping regulated is my biggest priority. I finally know what it feels like, and I never want that to be compromised again. Having the opportunity to heal and decompress, to come back to center in the jungle of Costa Rica was my most important value and I felt that slipping away.
I knew what I needed to do. I jumped right back into my daily meditation practice and learned how to navigate amidst the chaos. I created a practice of physically checking in with myself and my body to make sure that I was not clenching my jaw, that my shoulders were not up to my neck, or any parts of my body were tense and rigid, and that my breath was slow and even. I committed to checking in with myself and how it felt in my body before making decisions. I let my intuition, which I had worked so diligently to enhance and connect with, guide me. I committed to taking care of my basic needs by eating in sync with what my body needs, getting enough sleep, and recognizing self-sabotaging behaviors when things got tricky. These empowered choices allowed me to learn how to Trust Myself so that I could feel confident taking one aligned step after the next, to carefully guide me back to a world that scared the crap out of me.
There was a lot of alone time.
Even more tears.
Massive Discomfort!
And finally, I was able to recalibrate to a new world with ease.
I took the lessons that I learned in Costa Rica and assimilated them into my current situation.
Lessons I Learned in Costa Rica:
Nature Heals! I had no idea how much I needed nature in my life. Every day you are surrounded by the jungle; buzzing bugs, chirping froggies, Scarlett McCaw’s landing in the trees next to me, monkeys swinging and sloths hiding. It was daily entertainment and life-changing medicine. A true support to my nervous system regulation was sitting and watching nature all around me.
Stuff does not matter! There is no stuff to buy in Costa Rica! There is no Amazon, target, or place to go shopping. This was so therapeutic for me! I realized how addicted I was to spending money to fill a void deep in my being. I became VERY uncomfortable as I quickly realized that this crutch of buying things I never needed would no longer be a part of my story. I learned how to become a minimalist by watching those around me make do with what they had.
Community! People come together in Costa Rica. Moving in March of 2020 was the most inspiring act of kindness I had ever witnessed. Everyone helped each other, nobody overreacted and life continued.
People come together in Costa Rica. In my experience, most of the families that have moved to Costa Rica do not have support from their extended families, so a community connection happens very fast, and it is very strong. I met some of the most special and present families. We depended on each other for help with watching kids, driving each other places when our cars broke down (and took weeks to fix), and sharing the internet when the power went out. A genuine reciprocity of friendship I had never experienced before.
Resiliency! Living in Costa Rica is NOT all butterflies and epic waves. It is HARD! I was literally in the middle of a remote jungle, with no paved roads and the power would go out, sometimes daily. You could lose water for up to 5 days, the roads shut down, and the mudslides would take out the highways!
With all of that said, it was worth every ache and pain of inconvenience and discomfort! It taught me to become resilient and patient. It reminded me how dependent I was on instant gratification and rewired my “need it now” reactive behavior and turned it into “just go with the flow”. I can now laugh at things that once used to turn me red.
A Common Value is Staying Present! I moved to Costa Rica for a simple way of living. I found a way to earn an income through my own business and now wish to enjoy life. Going to the beach was a daily, sometimes twice daily activity. I spent less money and learned to live with less. Less is more in Costa Rica.
There is Always a Silver Lining:
I realize now, after a year of grieving so much change, how important it was for our family to learn how to live differently as it changed our value systems and rewired our conditioning and programming to a more positive flow that we can adapt into our daily lives. Living in Costa Rica was a true gift.
We moved to Costa Rica to create a different style of living. A simple life with less noise, people, and stress. A life immersed in nature, community energy, and that all happened at a much slower pace. “Tranquilo” Moving to Costa Rica was the best decision I have ever made, and moving away from Costa Rica was one of the hardest things I have ever had to do.
The silver lining was the saying, “Wherever you go, there you are” which is so true. Moving to Costa Rica was a bit of “escapism” I am very aware of that but it was worth every single second as the lessons absorbed transformed me completely. What I know now is that moving back to the States allowed me to heal in an even deeper way. Some very unresolved parts of my life needed attention. It was the time for me to do the “real work” and I immersed myself in a healing journey like never before.
After a year of grieving, lots of tears, and a massive commitment to learning how to navigate the process of healing through living amidst the chaos, I feel much more connected to living aligned with my authentic self. The most important lesson that I have learned this year is to listen to the profound messages for me to grow my yoga biz and to be of service. Something I have been ignoring for years as I focused on feeling like I have to “heal” myself first before I can help others on their journey. I realized, we are all never fully healed and the time is NOW!
So, I am here, standing in vulnerability, standing in my truth, standing in alignment, ready to put myself out there!
I have been brewing some incredible offerings and can’t wait to share them with you. In a nutshell, below is how I want to show up for you in our shared journey to healing and becoming the best versions of ourselves.
Here’s what’s happening:
- Temecula Women’s Retreat! March 8th-10th. Bringing Women Together to Connect. Melt away and give yourself the time you deserve! Meditation, Slow Yoga, Nature Hikes, and connection!!!
- Private Restorative/Yin Yoga Sessions– Private Yoga Classes in my private yoga studio in San Diego or via Zoom
- Private Meditation Sessions–Private Meditation Classes where I teach you how to create a daily meditation practice that you crave rather than dread
- Sister Circles–Bringing women together in ceremony to share, connect, and create powerful intentions
- Virtual Connection Series– Virtual 4-week courses coming in January 2024 on how to Trust Yourself to Love Yourself
