A dear friend of mine once summed up a million thoughts I had about being a woman, wife and mom…and we were talking about bras!

She said, “For years I’ve shopped at Wal-Mart for my bras. At checkout, I’d throw the huge bag of dog food on the belt and slap a bra off the rack on top of it–until one day I took the time to have a clothing professional fit me properly. I was wearing bras that were two sizes too small! No wonder the bras I wore were so uncomfortable. They didn’t fit!”

Her word picture is my life.

Fill in bra with so many aspects of who I am and how I think about myself and it’s cause for a serious pause.

Drug store make-up, less-than exciting clothes, home hair dye, and naked nails reveal two things about me: I know what needs some attention on my body, but I don’t think I’m worth enough to really try to change it.

The nails? Well, that’s just personal preference. I wash my hands way too much throughout the day and simply can’t stand the feeling of nail polish.

I’ve always thought of my body as a tool for my mind. Each day I wake up and my brain tells my body what to do, whether it feels like it or not.

I’ve pushed my body through illnesses, surgeries and hardships, silencing anything it was trying to tell me. Over the years this lifestyle landed me with mono, anxiety attacks, heart palpitations, the nervous habit of chewing my cheeks, and perpetual physical exhaustion, just to name a few.

This life led me to feeling like I didn’t fit into my own skin, so to speak, much like my friend who didn’t fit into her bras.

Neither of us knew there could be a better way until that way intersected our lives.

Why have I chosen to be a Rodan + Fields consultant? Tomboy, generic shopper, bottom-of-the-totem-pole person that I am?

Because one change can lead to many.

A precious friend of mine often posts on Facebook about her own health journey to lose weight, “It’s about small changes. What will be yours today?”

I did not realize how I treated my body had become so routinely neglectful, and that routine thinking led to a downward spiral of how I felt physically, my perspective, my confidence, etc. It is all connected–mind, body and soul.

The day that changed how I thought about how I treat my body was when the dermatologist called and told me the biopsy came back as squamous skin carcinoma–skin cancer.

This biopsy wasn’t my first rodeo. I’ve had several early-stage or suspicious spots removed, including basal cell carcinoma, but I couldn’t outrun this one. My heart sank.

All those years of skipping sunscreen for more time for playing, working and resting under the Florida sun caught up to me. That phone call was like my body telling my mind to sit down and listen, for once.

Especially because my father and grandfather had skin cancer.

I did, but I didn’t know what else to do except to always wear sunscreen. As for all of those decades of sunburns? I thought all I could do was prevent more damage and accept the damage that had been done (and cover it with make-up).

When small children point to my arms and ask what’s all over them (a.k.a. sun damage), I am embarrassed. I hate having my photo taken without at least some bronzer on to help blend the dark spots on my face.

I scan through photos of me and hit delete twenty times for every one I may reluctantly keep, despite the requests of my family to stop deleting. I don’t like the message this sends my teenage daughter at all because guess who now deletes her own photos?

Rodan + Fields is a cheerleader for life as much as, if not more than, for skin. The opportunity to work with this company is coincidental timing as so many changes are happening our family right now.

So I stand at the mirror and look at myself and think, “I don’t want more change. I need normal. Predictable. Stable.” I look at the R+F products and exhale a heavy sigh and think,”Does this have to change now, too? I kind of like my old stuff. Can I handle adding being a consultant to my plate right now?”

But, as much as I like the ease of the same-old products I used, and the same-old routine I had using them, they also produced the same-old results.

Another way to acclimate to change is to roll with it. Thinking, “Well, why not! Everything else is changing so why not this, too! What’s one more thing?” This actually lifts my spirit because in a season of new, it’s one less thing I’m trying to hang onto from the old.

Both of my friends have seen big results with their small changes from losing a ton of weight to finding a healthier, more comfortable way to live her 24/7. They are such an encouragement and inspiration to take care of our bodies! I am curious as to what can result from a small change such as changing my skincare and sharing it with others who are interested.

Rodan + Fields is more about the journey than a sale, as well as all of the ways a life can be lived resulting from healthier skin and a happier person stepping out to realize goals and dreams by sharing these opportunities with others.

I am the LAST person on the planet to sell something. It’s just not my passion. But, teaming together to begin a journey that can lead to self-discovery, healthier skin, enlarging community, and doing good for others with its success, now that gets me excited!

So I am going to give it a go.

Am I nervous? Yes. Open-minded? Yes. Ready for a change in what I call my “giraffe spots?” Yes! Ready to help my husband, who has faithfully provided for our family for 25 years, realize his God-given passions through new opportunities by me sharing the financial load? Absolutely yes!

If you’re ready for a change in your skincare, are curious about the financial opportunities with Rodan + Fields, or just want check out the products, please visit my website here. Thanks! 🙂