“Not until we are lost do we begin to understand ourselves.” ~ Henry David Thoreau
Throughout our lives we are rediscovering ourselves. Each season of life and each year brings challenges and opportunities that can lead you closer to your true self or further from your true self.
When we are closer, we feel aligned, peaceful, and free to follow our hearts. We make decisions with confidence; we reflect and learn from the challenges, and we feel joyful and blessed to experience life.
When we are farther from ourselves, we feel pain, confusion and suffer. We avoid pain and try to earn love in all the wrong places. We beat ourselves up and judge others to protect the fear we feel deep down. We try to control situations that are not in our control and we dread the quiet of the present moment.
I believe we need to forget in order to remember and that change is inevitable. There is a necessary contrast between being unhappy and disconnected and feeling good about life. If there was no contrast there would be no growth and no empathy.
In sessions with my one on one clients, many find that simple questions about themselves are difficult to answer. They feel unsure of themselves. They are unsure about what they want to do, what hobbies they like, what choices to make. One reason for this is that we’ve been conditioned from a young age to do what we should, and to follow other people’s lead instead of our own.
After years of doing this, we may feel that we are starting from scratch in discovering ourselves and if this is where you are at, trust me when I say this is the perfect place and the perfect time to fall in love. It is time to explore what lights you up and what dims that light, what makes you feel alive and what drains you?
Getting to know yourself will open your heart and heal your wounds. It is the foundation of my work with coaching and mentoring clients and changed the course of my life. Join me this fall as I expand my practice to include more clients!
Knowing yourself means that you acknowledge your own needs and give yourself compassion. It means that you say no when you mean no and yes when you mean yes. It means guilt, “shoulds” and shame no longer run your life. You free yourself from the burdens of the world when you KNOW yourself.
When you know yourself, you fall in love with yourself. You listen, nurture and nourish yourself and that amount of deep love can only come from you. And if I can do it, so can you.
