thecreativeverse creativity is our human superpower.
Welcome to my Substack Notes — a collection of near daily shorter insights on topics that I’m interested in or inspired to reflect on deeper!
Recent life events brought me back to something I’ve come to realize: sometimes our wounds can only be ours to carry. But not forever.
It became apparent to me a long time ago, as I began an extremely challenging season of life, that I would need to carry the burden of my experience alone for a time. That I would need to hold the weight myself as I processed it and worked toward healing. Not because I wasn’t supported by my loved ones, but because not every wound I carried in that role needed to become theirs as well.
By that time, I had already grown deeply familiar with loss, supporting those in my role through unimaginable harm and trauma.
Rather than carry that forward, I unconsciously created a kind of space of emotional containment to process it.
And while this created periods of distance with my loved ones, today I can return to that time with gratitude.
My loved ones offered me the space I needed and stood by me while I worked through those years. And in return, I did the work within that space to release the burdens that weighed me down.
Today, as I (like many out there) prepare for a new chapter and release my old role, I find a new kind of steadiness — one that comes not from distance or containment, but from having passed through it all. And a new kind of wholeness — knowing these burdens are behind me, and that whatever comes next, I don’t have to carry it alone.
And I am grateful. 🤍
– Carmen Iglesias
Not Alone
Sharing Burdens
I’m reminded this week, once again, of how fragile life really is.
Over the years, I’ve been given many reminders of this when people I once knew closely, and people I loved deeply, are with us for a season and then are gone.
As devastating as that reality is, it continues to be one of my most powerful reminders to truly live. Not to retreat from life, but to lean into it. To experience it in all its variations, shades, and seasons. To become aware of the lessons and blessings found in each moment and in every person who crosses our path — whether they are with us for a season or for a lifetime.
So many of us become burdened by our wounds, our responsibilities, or consumed by what is happening “out there,” or with others, that we stop being open and present to the life happening now and within ourselves. And in doing so, we miss the gifts that life is always offering us: beauty, love, creativity, growth, wonder and so much more.
But how do we become open to this when our wounds so often ask us to close again?
We anchor into ourselves. We slow down. We become present. We open our hearts to life in all its infinite variations — as it unfolds.
We choose life anyway.
For those who left us too soon, for those still with us and for ourselves.
We live. ❤
– Carmen Iglesias
Loss
Embracing Life After Loss
I’ve been reflecting on this for a while now. Many of us including myself, are often taught that our value and worth is defined by the external world, when I’ve found it’s really the opposite.
The true essence of our value doesn’t reside out there or with others, or even because of what we do. It resides within us. In who we are. That can never be taken from us, that’s something we already own.
If we relied on the external world or others to be the sole source of our value, we would always be operating on shaky ground. Susceptible to trauma when the external world or people we love are no longer in relationship to us. Because people change and grow, circumstances change, status changes. The external world and others are always changing, but what never changes, is your core self. The essence of who you are.
So rather than focus solely outward for your definitions of value, what’s important is to practice understanding that we belong to ourselves first. And the deeper we understand this, the better. Our value and worth is defined by us, it comes from us first. From the inside out.
This is definitely something I had to learn the hard way from years of defining my value singularly from my work, my external effort, and others rather than myself.
It’s the lesson that took me the longest to learn, and it’s what the Building Unshakeable Self Worth series is built around.
So if this resonates, feel free to join me there. 🤍
https://thecrv.com/podcast-episode-0-building-unshakeable-self-worth-the-foundation/
– Carmen Iglesias
Unshakeable Self Worth & Value
Depth Matters Podcast
Rainbows
Grounding, Centering & a lil Magic
Breath is one of life’s simplest necessities, profoundly essential and grounding. We rely on it every moment, but often take it for granted.
What’s profound is that the breath is also one of the most powerful tools for returning to yourself — especially during times of challenge, uncertainty, or overwhelm.
One practice that carried me through some of my most difficult seasons is Deep Ocean Breathing, also known as Ujjayi Pranayama or Ocean Breath.
True to its name, this technique mimics the calm, rolling sound of ocean waves, extending the breath inside and calming the nervous system, reducing stress, and creating a sense of steadiness from within.
So the next time you’re feeling overwhelmed, overworked, unsure of what you’re doing, give this a try.
When you learn to own your breath, you reclaim your center. And from that place, you give yourself the opportunity to stay steady and find your way through anything.
Especially for those who depend on your love and care, and just as importantly, for you, this is a tool to remind you to pause and breathe — you’re doing the best you can. And you’ve got this. 🤍💗
– Carmen Iglesias
The Breath
Grounding & Centering
I don’t think we give ourselves enough credit for learning to appreciate the poetry, richness, and gift of life.
We’re often taught to experience life at warp speed, moving constantly from one thing to the next, from one milestone to the next, from one dream to the next. As if life is simply a checklist to mark off.
Yet we’re rarely taught the beauty of resting in-between. Of finding meaning in the spaces between moments. Of going beneath the surface to recognize the gifts, lessons, beauty, and poetry available to us at all times.
Sometimes we arrive at this understanding through loss, trauma, or life’s challenging major transitions. For those who come to it this way, it often takes seasons to rebuild and heal, learning how to feel safe in life again. Other times it comes more quietly, through reflection or simply paying closer attention as life unfolds. However it arrives, by whatever path, that recognition itself is a gift.
So the next time you feel the wondrous beauty of an early morning sunrise, the calming lull of waves meeting the shore, the tiny hands that grip yours with complete trust, the quiet satisfaction of meeting another day, the profound love and support of those you trust, or the celebration of new life — whatever moments stir your heart, remember: this is life — a life with depth.
Life is just as dazzling in glitter and glamour as it is in the sacred ordinary. Everything has its season, and whether life accelerates or slows, the beauty and poetry remain. Learning to recognize this is one of the greatest gifts we can receive.
To life. 🤍💗
– Carmen Iglesias
Finding Meaning
Embracing a Life of Depth
I catch myself sometimes lamenting the good ol’ days as we all do. Lamenting the version I was when I was younger. The physical fearlessness, the greater confidence, the sharpness, the quickness, the accomplishments, the forward presence and energy ready to take on the world. And I miss her. I think that’s normal.
But then I look at these bright, mischievous eyes of mine and see so much more than my younger version could ever imagine me capable of. Every victory, every loss, every sacrifice, every lesson experienced, every piece of wisdom earned, every love given, every scar still healing carries a gift and a story within it and I can’t help but be…
Moved …
The version I am now is exactly who I’ve always wanted to be.
And my younger self would be so proud of her. 💗
– Carmen Iglesias
Exactly As I Am
Embracing Your Journey
If you’re someone who gives generously and loves deeply, a gentle reminder:
You’re the one who brings things to life through your light. You’re the one who infuses others with sunshine and transforms others through your love.
Protect that gift. It’s an exquisite one.
That means boundaries. Not walls — boundaries. Knowing where you end and others begin. And knowing who can receive what you offer in a healthy, reciprocal way that works for all.
I’ve witnessed and held the hand of the most exquisite ones, taken for granted, hurt, misunderstood. Not because they were too much, but because the people around them or with them, didn’t have the capacity in their awareness or wounding, to receive what they were offering at the depth offered.
So this is your reminder: as you heal and grow, you will come to know clearly and become more discerning, about who is truly ready to receive what you carry.
And you will find the ones who will protect your gift the way you have always protected theirs.
What you offer is a blessing.
Make sure to shine that light onto yourself first, so you can grow into everything you’re meant to be. And then share it with the right ones, those you’re called to.
Here’s to you/us. 🤍
– Carmen Iglesias
The Gift
Embracing Depth