Emotional Pain/Trauma.
DISCLAIMER: I am not a counselor, therapist, doctor, professor, or pastor. I have no training on any of this except that of my own personal experience.
1. Emotional healing is NOT a SPRINT. It’s a process, a journey, and burning yourself out by trying to “sprint past it” is not a good plan. That feeling of getting better will very quickly turn into the agony of not having enough in the tank to get you to the finish line. Cardio is a bishhhh.
2. Don’t believe the lie of ignoring or numbing because it doesn’t go away on its own. Author/Researcher Brene Brown puts it like this: You can't choose to numb only the negative thoughts, feelings or emotions. We do not work that way. Any numbing mechanism will also cause you to experience numbness in your positive thoughts, feelings or emotions. (That...Is not a good plan)
3. Time will help heal, but time in itself doesn’t bring whole hearted healing or closure. Months can pass without feeling it in the day to day, but pain is like a seed in the desert just waiting on a drop of rain.
4. Your measure of healing will be directly related to the amount of effort you put into going back in to “clean the wound” and “own your story”. It's the difference between walking around with an infection or walking around with a scar. When you are willing to feel it, is when you can begin to heal it.
5. Emotional pain is like a dried up well. You feel empty. Void. You have nothing to give to those around you. DIG. You’ll know you’ve gone deep enough when the well has water again. (Not mud) Don’t stop just because you have something to play with. Your goal is WATER. Dare I say.. CLEAN WATER. A life giving blessing that those around you can be refreshed with again. Live to give and give something healthy.
6. Try to surround yourself with people who will help encourage you to keep going. They’re not always easy to find, but you NEED THEM. Your journey NEEDS THEM. Your chances of success NEEDS THEM. You were wired for connection. Isolation will only bring about destruction.
7. Pray. I know some people might wonder why this would be last on a list like this. And the answer is actually quite simple. As I've been working through this, I have discovered some people on similar journeys. Many of which do not believe in or no longer believe in "God". My hope for this post is only that it might help people. You know, the red blood, need air to live kinda people you see every day. Period.
So if you're reading this and don't believe in God, you no longer believe in God or maybe you just consider yourself Spiritual - Don't Worry - these are still just as relevant for you. In fact, you can even skip over number 7 if it doesn't sit right with you. Personally, I do believe in God. I believe that He has a Son whose name is Jesus. I believe that He can be quite personal with you if you happen to want to try.
I also believe that as God, He isn't losing sleep about where you are in your current journey. He knows where you are, where you've been and sees your end from where you are right now. So just work on #BecomingHealthy and enjoy the surprises that come along with it.
You just never know what might be around the next corner.
Until Next Time...
- Law