It’s becoming more and more real. I’ve actually done it - I’ve dropped the ‘Natalie’ and have become Alexis Lee.

This is a long time coming… and part of me has been thinking, who do I think I am changing my name? It’s going to be so difficult for people. But also is that a reason not to do it? I don’t think so. I can literally see people rolling their eyes when I say I’ve changed my name.

Am I going to let that stop me? Absolutely not. Because change is inevitable.

This Guest Blog by Hannah Lilly looks at healing from friendship break-ups.

Hannah is a Speaker, Writer, Joy Coach & Promoter of Self-Compassion living Ireland with her husband and four children. Her writing has been published in the Huffington Post, various regional and national publications, she writes a monthly blog for well-being website ‘A Lust for Life’ and has recently started back her personal blog on her website.

She is a currently writing a book ‘How to Make Friends with Yourself – 6 Steps to Move You Out of People-Pleasing, Self-Doubt & Overwhelm & Into Excitement, Self-Compassion & Joy’.

Huge thanks to Sussex Modern for hosting and introducing us to Sussex.

If you have not yet discovered Sussex, I recommend you do! Have a read to find out the places we visited and stayed.

I am sure you have heard the saying ‘it takes a village to raise a child…’ Although this originally refers to child-rearing, it implies that community involvement is crucial for achieving a goal or task.

What it comes down to is - asking for help when we are not coping, are dealing with something, or creating something is okay - in fact, it’s essential! We are social beings yet we have become more and more disconnected from our communities. We are so wrapped up in our own lives and shit that we just get on with it. I used to think asking for help was a weakness! A sign that I could not cope!

Since embarking on this journey of self-discovery, the subject of boundaries has come up a lot! It’s all very well saying we need boundaries, but how many of us really know what it means? Or how to apply them to our lives? In this blog I am going to take a look at BOUNDARIES – explore what they are, and aren’t, why we need them and look at how to set healthy ones.

We all know the biggest, longest, ever-lasting relationship we have is with ourselves. Yet many of us neglect this, don’t value it, or simply don’t know how to do it. Most of us are not taught self-love, and we don’t know where to start… it’s so much more than taking a relaxing bath once a week or reading an affirmation

As I start to write this blog, the sun has just risen on the winter solstice, the shortest day and longest night of the year.

It got me thinking about endings… the end of the year, the end of being in your 30s or 40s, the end of a relationship or friendship.

If you really think about it, endings are just as important as beginnings and I think it’s important to mark those moments, to acknowledge and perhaps even celebrate them, and in some cases, be ok with mourning an ending.

I love clothes! Yet as I have evolved as a person, so have my values and some of the fashion industry practices just do not align with me anymore. I don’t want to buy new clothes all of the time… I just can’t. Thankfully there are lots of sustainable solutions…

Ever wondered how some people seem able to make things happen in their lives with ease? Or noticed how some people just seem to have good things happen to them?

Well, it’s no accident, or luck.

In a rather clichéd way, as I approached 40, I looked at my life and asked myself - ‘is this it?’

Dancing is life… it’s freedom… it’s a release… it’s creative, powerful, expressive, raw, emotional…

As was the experience of writing this book.

So there was only one way to celebrate its launch and that was in a dance studio.