Leslie Lovlin - Inner Sage Ayurveda

08/16/2025

I had no idea when I chose Ayurveda and Addiction as my dissertation topic in December of last year just how deeply personal this journey would become.

What began as a structured academic exploration quickly evolved into something sacred—a process of healing, remembering, and becoming.

Just days before our son, Braiden, passed, I had interviewed some people with a story much like ours. Those conversations, and everything I have studied since, cracked me open in a way I never expected.

This dissertation, still in progress, has walked beside me in grief. It has carried me through some of the darkest moments of my life and held up a mirror to the very heart of my purpose.

As I move through the final weekend of my Ayurveda Doctor program, I am holding both sorrow and deep gratitude. Ayurveda has always been my calling, but this experience deepened it beyond anything I could have imagined.

This work—exploring addiction through the Ayurvedic lens—has become more than a dissertation. It has become a bridge between personal loss and collective healing.

It now weaves into my lifelong path of learning and teaching Ayurveda. I understand more clearly than ever that my role is to support those who are suffering—to shine light on addiction not as a moral failure, but as a soul calling for compassion, support, and deep nourishment.

To my Ayurvedic teachers, mentors, and the lineage of wisdom that has held me throughout this process—thank you.

To my family and friends—thank you for standing beside me with unwavering love, encouragement, patience, and grace. Your presence has carried me through.

And to Braiden—thank you for guiding me from beyond. I can hear your voice so clearly:
“Mom, you can’t quit now. I want to see your certificate of completion.”
This is for you. This is because of you. And this is just the beginning.

This journey has also become part of Saging Gracefully—the deeper medicine of aging with wisdom, purpose, and soul. It is the reminder that every experience, even the most painful, is a part of our becoming.

That healing doesn’t just change us—it shapes the way we show up for others. And in that way, Braiden’s light will continue to shine through every life this work

🙏🕊️💛

08/15/2025

I’m not here to bypass pain.
I’m not here to dress it up or hide it behind pretty words.

Yesterday our family chose to be with Braiden to the very last moments until they closed that Iron door. I chose to turn on the burner and said to him “You Rise like you’ve never done before. In all your glory. Your work has just begun son”

Some may call me intense—yes, I am.

I speak the truth of life in its rawness, because that’s where healing begins.

Some say, “Give yourself time.”
Time for what?
Some say, “When you’re ready.”
Ready for what?
Truth and reality never go away.

Some days, it’s a lot for me too.
Other days, I wear it well.
But every day, I am equipped for this.

Some don’t know how to understand my boldness about the truth of sadness, fear, aloneness that lead to addiction.
Some say I’m in denial, that the crash will come.

The truth?

If you are the parent of a child you love deeply, the crash has been happening for years.
It’s not a single breaking point—it’s a thousand small heartbreaks, lived in slow motion.
The crash is watching your child’s light that was once so bright, dim. The crash is waiting for that knock on your door you dread.
The crash is praying for a different ending while bracing for the one you fear.

I don’t listen to the low vibration of rumours or the whispers of those who watch from a distance.
It’s easy to judge from the safety of the sidelines.
It’s harder to step in, to hold the trembling hands, to sit with the mess of it all.

There was a time the village healed the wounded and the sick.
When the suffering were not shunned, but sheltered.
When a child in pain was everyone’s child.
When elders gathered in circles to pray, to feed, to tend—not to gossip.
When we knew that one life saved was a victory for us all.

Somewhere along the way, we lost that.
We replaced the circle with isolation.
We replaced compassion with shame.
We replaced the village with silence.
I want to remember what it feels like when community stands as one.

And I will keep speaking—boldly, fiercely—until we build that village again.

I didn’t come here to sit in the silent shame of this multifaceted disease.
I came here to meet it head-on, to experience it, and to transform my own pain into purpose.

I know my voice isn’t for everyone.
It’s not meant to be.
Because truth rarely is.

Pick a side

08/13/2025

Some people break. Others rise. Here’s the difference.

I’ve always been curious by how two people can stand in a similar storm, rain drenching their skin, wind bending them low… and yet, one rises while the other stays down, unable to move.

What separates them?

It’s not luck.
It’s not an easier past.
And it’s certainly not lighter pain—often, it’s heavier.

The difference is something far quieter. Something you can’t see, but you can feel. A decision so small it could be missed, yet powerful enough to alter a life.

It’s the choice to live, not just be here.
To keep reaching for life, even when it feels impossibly far away.

I’ve met people who’ve lost everything—family, health, security—and still, they wake each day with an open heart. They don’t deny the pain; they carry it. AND they also refuse to let it be the only thing they carry. They use it. They turn their wounds into wisdom, their scars into service, creating purpose not just for themselves, but for others walking their own storms.

Others become trapped in the story of what happened to them. The replay runs endlessly, and before long, it becomes the only thing they see.

The difference? Those who rise don’t do it because they feel like it. They do it because they’ve learned that even in the darkest night, you can still take one small step toward the light.

I’m not here to judge either path—I’ve walked both. But I know this: life will hand you a thousand perfectly valid reasons to stop. Every day, you have to decide whether you’ll take them.

And maybe that’s the real miracle. Not that the storm ends, but that—somewhere deep inside—you still choose to rise.

Leslie ❤️

08/08/2025

https://youtu.be/Qop5XLgwkNc?si=dqO_kdiHvnVJopPq

I promise you!
No matter what all the gossipers say, I will turn our pain into our purpose.
You will never be forgotten 💔

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08/01/2025

Happy Long Weekend

Take what you need this weekend.

Put down the shield. Loosen the grip. Let yourself exhale.

To Those Who Feel A Drain Of Energy.

This weekend—
Put down the shield.
Loosen the grip.
Let your shoulders drop.

You’ve carried the weight of others' needs, timelines, and expectations.
You’ve been holding it together—beautifully, quietly, constantly.
But not every moment needs your armor.

We’ve arrived at the halfway point of summer.
August 1st long weekend is calling us to pause.
To savor.
To soften.

This weekend, choose your medicine.

Maybe it’s space.
Maybe it’s laughter around a fire.
Maybe it’s bare feet in the grass, or saying no without guilt.
Maybe it’s a long bath with silence, or a loud kitchen full of family.

Whatever it is—make sure it nourishes you.

Not the role you play.
Not the mask you wear.
But the woman underneath it all.

This is your reminder: Rest is not indulgent. It’s intelligent. Joy is not frivolous. It’s medicine.

Sage your energy.
Choose with care.
Let this weekend be your return to center.

innersage.ca

07/31/2025

When Working Hard Becomes a Disguise

We’ve been told that working hard is noble.
That being busy means we’re valuable.
That exhaustion is a sign of strength.
Many times we don’t recognize this is happening until…well, here we are.

Truth...

Sometimes working hard isn’t about passion or purpose.
Sometimes it’s an unconscious cover-up for feeling not enough.

The belief that if I just do more, give more, be more—
maybe then I’ll be worthy of rest, of love, of ease.

In Ayurveda, this is how Ama (toxicity) builds in the heart.
Unfelt emotions. Unspoken needs. Unlived truth.
The more we push, the more we disconnect from our center—our Agni (inner fire) dims, and Ojas (Joy) depletes.

You are not your output.
You are not your to-do list.
You are not more valuable because you’re running on empty.

Saging gracefully means unlearning the belief that worth is earned through depletion.
It means honoring the space between.

Each of us has our own spectrum of what depletion looks like.

Can you recognize your limit before you hit empty or your body chooses for you?

www.innersage.ca

07/30/2025

Saging Gracefully: The 4 Aims of Life in Ayurveda

At this stage of life, many of us pause and ask:
What truly matters now? What used take up the most space somehow takes the back seat.

Ayurveda offers us a timeless answer—the 4 Purusharthas, or sacred aims of life:

Dharma – Living in alignment with your truth and soul’s purpose

Artha – Creating stability, safety, and ethical prosperity

K**a – Experiencing joy, love, beauty, and sensory delight

Moksha – Letting go, finding peace, and coming home to yourSelf

These aren’t separate checkboxes. They’re threads in a well-woven life.

When you live your purpose , you attract the right kind of Stability—resources that truly support you.

When your needs are met, pleasure becomes a celebration, not a distraction.

And as you soften into who you are, Freedom becomes less about escape, and more about coming fully into presence.

Saging gracefully means knowing what to carry, what to release, and how to live fully in the now—rooted in wisdom, pleasure, purpose, and peace.

Ask yourself gently today:

What season of life am I in—and what is it asking of me?

You don’t need to get it perfect.
You just need to come home to what’s true—again and again.

www.innersage.ca

07/29/2025

Brutal Honesty as Healing

Clarity is medicine.
And clarity only comes when you’re brutally honest with yourself.

No more pretending you’re fine. No more distracting yourself with busyness. No more saying “I’ll deal with it later.”

How Undigested Truth Becomes Ama (Toxicity)

In Ayurveda, Ama is the sticky residue of what wasn’t fully digested—physically, mentally, emotionally, or spiritually.
It gums up the channels. It clogs the flow of our life force. It creates fog in the mind and fatigue in the body.

Undigested truths create ama when:

We swallow our feelings instead of speaking or feeling them.
We carry emotional weight we were never meant to carry alone.
We betray our own needs to keep the peace
We suppress our voice, creativity, desires, or truth.

It takes over your identity.

You might not even realize it's happening, but over time, it shows up as:

Sluggish digestion
Depression, apathy, or brain fog
Chronic inflammation
Skin issues, weight gain, or fatigue
Autoimmune conditions
Restlessness, anxiety, or insomnia

Ama is the build-up of what you couldn’t process, and undigested truths are one of the deepest root causes—especially for women who’ve spent decades putting others first.

Be honest:

What have you been tolerating for too long?
Where have you betrayed your own needs?
Which truths are you afraid to look at?

Ayurveda reminds us—undigested truths become Ama that clouds your body and mind. Facing the truth is how you rekindle your Agni, the fire of discernment.

The medicine isn’t always sweet. But it’s always freeing.

www.innersage.ca

07/28/2025

Your life is your medicine.

And—if it’s your medicine, it can also be your poison.

Even the most beautiful things—pleasure, purpose, relationships—can harm when taken in the wrong dose, at the wrong time, or from the wrong place.

Ayurveda teaches:

When your Agni (inner fire) is strong, you digest life well.
When you ignore your truth, Ama (toxic residue) builds.
When you align with yourself, Ojas (vitality) flourishes.

Important questions to get honest and ask yourself

~What is medicine for me right now?
~What have I been calling “medicine” that has actually become poison?
~This week, let’s choose our medicine with clarity.

www.innersage.ca

07/27/2025

Once upon a time…

Sundays were for rest, play, family gatherings.
Shops were closed.
The world slowed.
We trusted we had enough without instant access to everything.

I am choosing to bring that rhythm back into my life.

www.innersage.ca

07/25/2025

The Invisible Woman - I see you

Somewhere along the journey, many women begin to feel… unseen…unheard

Maybe it starts with the children growing and no longer needing you in the same way.
Maybe it’s at work, where younger faces are celebrated while your wisdom quietly holds the foundation.
Maybe it’s in a culture obsessed with youth, where lines of experience are erased instead of honored.

And slowly, you begin to feel like you’ve slipped into the background.

But here’s the truth—you are not invisible.

Your beauty has simply changed form. It now lives in your steadiness, your knowing eyes, your laugh that has depth because it’s been through storms.

Ayurveda calls this the Vata season of life—a time when wisdom, creativity, and spiritual connection deepen.

You are not fading. You are softening into the truest version of yourself.

This is what it means to Sage Gracefully—to reclaim your own gaze, to see your worth beyond the roles you’ve played, to tend to your body, mind, and spirit with the same love you’ve given others.

You are not invisible. You are infinite.

When was the last time you truly saw yourself—not your to-do list, not your reflection in the mirror, but the essence of who you are now?

www.innersage.ca

07/24/2025

Happy New Moon in Leo

Your life is like a bow and arrow.

For years, you’ve been pulling the string—aiming at everything and everyone. Family, work, responsibilities, expectations… and often never stopping to ask if the target was even yours to aim for.

But here’s the truth many women discover at 50+:

When you hold the bow too tight for too long, your arms shake. Your focus blurs. And the arrow loses its strength before it’s even released.

And sometimes? You feel too weak to even pull the bow back.

That’s when burnout shows up. When your body whispers for rest, but you keep pushing. When your mind is foggy. When your spirit feels far away.

Ayurveda reminds you this isn’t failure—it’s a signal. A sign to pause. To clear the heaviness (Ama), rekindle your inner fire (Agni), and rebuild the quiet strength (Ojas) that steadies your bow again.

This season of life isn’t about shooting more arrows. It’s about choosing the ones that truly matter.
It’s about aiming with clarity… and releasing with grace, not strain.

Where are you holding too tight right now?

www.innersage.ca