Begin Again: Healing, Resilience, and the Power of Starting Over

Healing will find us when we stay still and open our hearts to Begin Again. Photo by Dr. Kidi, St. Martin 2016

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Segment 1: Listening to the Body

Episode 1: Begin Again

Healing, Resilience, and the Power of Starting Over

I couldn’t do much, but I could breathe. So I did. One breath at a time.— Dr. Kidi

Reflection

I am glad you are here. I created this space for healing through Tinfash: What Healing Knows. Tinfash means breath in Amharic, and our breath is the foundation of our mind-body connection and our return to wholeness.

As a medical doctor, I carry the responsibility to share more than medicine. Over more than twenty years of practicing, I have been humbled again and again by the truth that healing lives within each of us, and that how we relate to our own breath, body, and story can change everything about our well-being.

I am here for you, ready to pass on the wisdom I gained from the healing space, to offer support, to name what is true, and to walk with you through the journey of living whole.

Healing begins within us, not outside of us. Our bodies work tirelessly, even in our sleep, carrying out their mission to heal. Yet, so often, we take this for granted. We ignore the body’s pleas for attention. We silence its quiet wisdom with quick fixes.

But the body remembers what the mind forgets, and healing is connecting with what it remembers.

There is nothing small about beginning.

Now is a good time to intentionally reconnect with the body’s wisdom for healing.

To begin is to say yes to life, even when the outcome is unclear.

It is a quiet act of courage, a turning inward.

It is whispering, I am here, even if you do not yet know what that means.

Healing does not ask you to get it “right.” It asks for your attention and your openness.

I remember sitting in my living room chair, leg in a cast after a severe knee injury.

I could not walk.

I could not cook.

I could not take my children to their activities.

I could not care for my patients.

Everything familiar had stopped.

But I could breathe.

So I did.

One breath at a time.

That was my beginning.

You may have started before. You may have stopped. That does not mean you failed. It means you are human. Each time you begin again, you honor the part of you that still believes in your wholeness. The part that has not given up. The part that wants to live whole.

Why Beginning Again Matters

There were many days I told myself I would start over on Monday, or after a holiday, or when the new year came. I made quiet promises that felt powerful in the moment.

After the party, I would reset.

On January 1, I would begin again.

But the party would come and go.

Another January would arrive.

And I would find myself right where I started.

Have you felt this too?

The swell of hope that makes you eat the extra piece of cake because you will stop after Monday. The weight of expectation. The quiet return to familiar patterns.

I was not lazy.

I was not lost.

I was simply waiting for a perfect moment that does not exist.

And I am not alone.

Neither are you. According to U.S. News & World Report, nearly 80 percent of New Year’s resolutions fade by February.

There is nothing wrong with beginning again. Healing is not a performance. It is a return. And you can return anytime. Not on Monday. Not when it feels easier. There are no perfect moments, perfect days, perfect moods, or perfect seasons when it will finally feel “right” to begin.

Begin right now.

Here is a story that holds a gentle reminder.

I knew a writer who carried stories she longed to share. For years, she wrote and rewrote, compiled and revised, always searching for the perfect words, the perfect mood, the perfect day, even the perfect year to finally release them.

She believed that waiting would somehow make it easier or make the writing better. But it did not. Time passed, and the stories remained on unpublished pages. Some stayed locked inside of her, growing heavier with time, pressing to be heard.

Over time, she came to understand that waiting for perfection had only kept her silent. One day, she stopped waiting. She began with the small step of writing a story for a blog, closed her eyes, and clicked “send.” It was a quiet but brave act of beginning. She wrote without fixing, without judging, without needing it to be perfect. And you, my reader, are reading the words of that writer who dared to begin again.

If you have been waiting too, maybe this is your moment to begin.

And if you have begun and stopped in the past, this is your time to begin again.

Healing happens the same way. It does not come by waiting for the right moment. Waiting holds back your becoming.

Let it be messy.

Let it be uncertain.

Start anyway.

And if you have failed in the past, begin again.

Your body’s mission is to keep you alive, well, and whole.

Start by feeding it with care.

Start by moving it with love.

Start by asking what it needs.

Start by listening to its pleas for help.

You do not need to be perfect.

You only need to start.

And start again if you fail.

Not tomorrow.

Today.

Right now.

This moment is enough.

This breath is enough.

Tinfash: Dr. Kidi's Healing Space

A space to breathe. A space to listen. A space to begin again.

Practice: Tinfash 4C Meditation to Begin Again

Journal Invitation

Write for as long or as little as you want without editing or judgment.

Do not type. Write by hand.

Start with: Today, I will begin ____ again by …

Why Write by Hand:

Writing by hand helps you slow down and listen more closely. It connects your thoughts to your body and invites honesty without the need to edit. This kind of presence supports deep healing. Your words do not need to be perfect. They only need to be yours. Let your words arrive just as they are.

Healing Words to Repeat

I begin with my breath. That is enough.

Choose a quiet moment. Sit or stand with your feet grounded. Lie down if you can't sit or stand. Take a slow breath in and a gentle breath out. Repeat the mantra softly, either out loud or in your mind. Let the words move with your breath. Say them with attention, not force. Let them settle into your body. Use the mantra as often as you need. It is not a command. It is a remembering.

Call to Action

As a doctor and a fellow human, so much of what I know about healing has come from meaningful exchanges with people like you. Our shared stories and quiet beginnings teach me again and again that there is wisdom in simply starting.

I would love to hear your thoughts about beginning again.

I am here for you.

I am also here to grow alongside you.

If you have suggestions, ideas, or requests, share them in the comments. You can also jot down your reflections and send me a screenshot.

If you feel moved, review, rate, and share this with a friend who may be ready to reconnect with their own healing.

Visit drkidi.com for more reflections from What Healing Knows.

Follow @drkidi.healing to join a community learning to return to themselves, one gentle moment at a time.

To read my short stories go to Substack @drkidi.

With that, we have begun our healing connection.

Until next time,

Embrace the journey. Keep listening. Healing knows the way.

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