Time heals all wounds, right?
I was told this growing up, and for a long time I believed it. But the reality is I spent years not healing a damn thing. Hiding it away in the depths of my consciousness, drowning it in substance abuse. Emotional eating. Out of sight out of mind.
Clearly a slow learner, it took me over 20 years to realise that what we don't address is more likely to stay within our subconscious and unconscious behaviours and cause complete havoc! For me that was in the form of self worth issues, lack of confidence in my appearance or my capabilities, always comparing myself to others, never really knowing who I was or where I belonged.
I took drugs, I drank myself to oblivion, partied hard, searched for love from (way too many) others instead of from within. The whole time pretending I was fun loving and carefree. What no one else saw were the tears, spending hours in agony on the loo after taking laxatives. Diet pills. Binge eating. And hating myself.
So time doesn’t always guarantee healing but consciousness and self awareness sure as shit do. Shining light on our wounds and pains, looking deeper into those words we tell ourselves on a daily basis is where real transformation occurs. And that can happen in a day.
What stories from the past you are still holding onto? What unhealthy behaviours, attitudes, patterns or self limiting beliefs are still running the show in your life?
Read your story as if you picked up the book for the first time. Delve right in. Be completely raw, honest, and transparent with yourself and then be courageous enough to forgive yourself for it all. Letting go of those past stories is the biggest gift you can give yourself and those you love, and you don’t need more time for that, just the willingness to face it, feel it, and write a new version.