Meet Amal, founder of the Blooming brand!

Amal, it's impossible not to love her from the first exchange: in addition to being ravishing and sunny, she exudes an uncommon energy and authenticity...

Through the testimony of Amal, 44 years old, founder of the holistic site BLOOMINGYOU, it is the story of our life questions that comes to light... and what a joy to have Amal and her experience to enlighten us, in every sense of the word!

1/ At what point did you tell yourself that you had to “change your life”?

In fact, it wasn't radical, it was a very gradual process, it takes time to face your suffering and gain clarity. In my case it was a painful process, with the mourning of my mother who passed away at 60 years old following a long illness, just before her retirement, without even having really had time to enjoy her grandchildren who were then very young (2 and a half years and 8 months).
I realize that this is a fairly common occurrence, but my entire life plan collapsed. My mother had never drunk or smoked, had always eaten a very balanced diet, fresh produce from the garden, had always worked hard, telling herself that she would "enjoy her retirement"... She lived in a very sacrificial way, in fact, a classic of the paths of immigrants who "build for the future."
I thought that death and mourning were not meant for me at that time, I took the situation head on, with the means at hand, in "autopilot" mode at the beginning.
I was angry, I felt a deep injustice, and above all, it was my life plan that was collapsing... No, really, there was no point in "ticking all the boxes of the social contract" and waiting for retirement to enjoy life...

2/ How did you react at the time?

In this respect, it's a truly personal journey. We often have too much of a tendency to crucify failure and doubt and to believe that we can always rely on others. I believe that when there is a lot of suffering, a personal shock, a breaking point, everyone digests the shock in their own way, and it's better to prioritize self-compassion. When Mom left, it was a mixture of suffering and deliverance, and I first had an immense need for lightness. I had the feeling of having always lived in a cocoon, with a very loving childhood, very rich on an emotional level, and my world of beliefs was collapsing, I was in the midst of a loss of meaning, in the midst of a dissonance of values... I no longer knew what to promise my children, what life plan to offer them? I even had trouble looking them straight in the eye and I needed to distance myself a little... I accept it and I recognize it, I was very much in flight and avoidance at that time, and this phase of questioning is a real challenge for the couple and family life. However, I do not have an ounce of regret, I now assume 200% my weaknesses and my vulnerabilities, we must accept our humanity in its imperfection if we wish to evolve. It was not a failure for me, but rather a necessary phase.

3/ How did you manage to turn the negative into a positive?

Reality always catches up with you: your reality as a mother, as a wife, but also your body which sends you very clear signals!
At that time I had a deep pain in my stomach which led me to go to the hospital urgently, helped by a friend who called for help (I was crawling on the floor) and there, the doctors' verdict came in: there was absolutely NOTHING.
And then I told myself that if stress could cause such pain, there were really mechanisms at work that I needed to understand. I didn't know how to "name" what I was feeling, I found it indecent to complain when I had a great job, a loving husband, great children and I didn't allow myself to talk about my suffering. So I turned to literature, to explore existential questions about the meaning of life, to broaden my horizons... (I was educated in faith, but in an enlightened faith and I have always somewhat rejected religious dogmatism)
I needed to feel humanity laid bare, the thread that connects us, the meaning of life... I didn't even know what question to ask in fact, I needed to nourish my questions. I read the book "On peut se dire au revoir plusieurs fois" by David Servan-Schreiber, and it was overwhelmingly human for me, I felt like I was seeing my mother again. Reading was a real path to myself. This empathy, this feeling of community of emotions so strong, is something that I have only felt at rare moments of pain in my life, but it was of a rare intensity: a glance crossed during the funeral with a friend who had also just lost his mother, a look in the hospital elevator with a son who had come to take care of his dying father...
And there, we are in the truth, the heart laid bare, the absence of judgment, and I believe that this is what has partly reconciled me with my life project: let's stop being in judgment and appearances which kill the relationship with others and with oneself, let's stop the "social over-adaptation" and learn to be more in the
“good manners”!
And I had the answers to my questions, for me, for my children who ask me about death:
"The point is not to be immortal, it's not a big deal to die one day, it's even inevitable, the important thing is to LIVE your life to the fullest!" In a society that relies heavily on fears, it is truly our responsibility as parents to encourage children to dare, to be curious, to dare to become what they want to be, even if it takes small steps, and if the path is strewn with failures... it is the path to learning and freedom.

With the launch of BLOOMINGYOU, I really had a strong desire to share, to jump in at the deep end to share a new perspective on the world that I find essential today. Freeing oneself from codes, listening to one's inner voice, resisting pitfalls and detractors (often loved ones who worry about us, about our situation...)
To get better, I also did a lot of cleaning around me and learned to distance myself from personalities that I considered a little "toxic" for me.
You have to know how to do it, and I was merciless!

4/ And in terms of lifestyle, do you have any particular advice?

Yes, I'm 44 now and I feel the difference from when I was 20!
I recover more slowly, when I deviate too much, I feel it quickly, in short, mental hygiene is impossible without good physical hygiene, in short, "A healthy body in a healthy mind". The important thing is above all to do yourself good, by learning to respect your body, to "maintain the machine that carries us" quite simply.
Eating well, being a good person, in my opinion, means first of all prioritizing quality over quantity, not drinking too much alcohol, exercising regularly, making exceptions and then making up for it... Once again, accepting our imperfections, but doing it "consciously". Cooking fresh, as close as possible to the product, knowing how to listen to our food cravings (if sometimes we feel we need a steak, then we have to go for it!)
I have also read and learned a lot about curative nutrition (especially avoiding milk and white sugar), and I take food supplements, avoiding taking them continuously, but I feel a real benefit on my cycles, especially when I take Omega 3 dosed in DHA for example. I also take spirulina, selenium, zinc, but the key to health remains a good lifestyle and first of all understanding and respecting your body, knowing how it works and your own biological clock (we are not all equal when it comes to sleep, vitality, etc.).
And sport is the backbone of my healthy lifestyle: I do 4 hours of running and 3 hours of swimming per week. And mind you, today, I love it, but you have to push yourself a bit at the beginning before you really enjoy the sensations! But it's worth persevering: today, I feel better than I did 10 years ago!

5/ Your 3 tips for finishing?

It's a wonderful opportunity to grow older, to enter into the subtleties of life, we are sharper, we waste less time, we get to the essentials!
So let us dare to live, let us take our risks, let us not take ourselves too seriously and let us realize that our life path belongs only to ourselves.

1. Use your fears, your anger : question them, examine them, dissect them.

2. Dare! Accept yourself, take responsibility : life is too short for regrets!

3. Stay constantly curious : when you feel “suffocated,” it’s a sign that you need to broaden your horizons (and this can be done through travel, an activity, reading, etc.)

Afterwards, everyone does what they can!

Thanks to Amal Dadolle,
founder of the holistic magazine “Blooming You ”

1. Use your fears, your anger, question them, interrogate them
2. Dare! (Accept yourself/take responsibility/life is too short to regret)
3. Be curious: when you are suffocated, you need to open up to new horizons.