In my last post I shared the joy I experienced during my holiday and the risks I took. These included walking over difficult terrain, letting others help me over this terrain, trusting others with my diet and using the situation to tell my story. Taking risks and facing difficulties has always been part of my emotional and psychological healing. It has been a practical way of moving forward, despite the challenges.
Emotional and psychological healing is interesting. It never ends; I have been working on my thoughts and feelings for most of my adult life. This healing has gone hand in hand with weight loss. This makes a lot of sense when you consider that my weight gain as a child occurred because of my core beliefs at that time. To maintain this weight loss, it has been necessary to let go of my old ways of thinking. Then, just when I think I am over something, another layer reveals itself, because the attitudes which led to my unhealthy relationship with myself ran deep.
That is how it works, over the years we develop ways to cope with our dysfunctional beliefs and these become layers which are resistant to change. We develop these layers because the unhealthy beliefs are painful and often shameful. We become hardened and rigid in our ways, including how we see the world around us. As we age, life loses its excitement and lustre.
The way I see it, we are the living, growing being on the inside. To be true to ourselves is an ever-changing experience. To live this fresh, inner journey, growth is a prerequisite. This type of healing never ends, if we do not want to live as we have in the past. As we travel through life, we gain new perspectives and this changes our view of the past, present and future. Reflecting with a different perspective means that old ideas no longer make sense or fit in our current life, so to move forward it is necessary to face and let go of them.
This may sound like a hard way to live, but the excitement and joy in the process far outweighs the effort. For me, it has meant profound weight loss, happiness and the ability to live in the moment. My hope is that in sharing my experiences with you, you are encouraged to be the living person within you.
In love, Jenny
