Freedom from emotional baggage

Happy Independence Day! Today, like every day, can be a new beginning where we free ourselves from the unnecessary burdens we carry around. Are you carrying extra baggage?

Old messages from the past. There can be a lot we store up from our childhoods, both good and bad. Positive messages help us a lot, but what about all those old criticisms, especially the ones that no longer apply? It can be really helpful to pay attention for the next few days to the “internal chatter” that goes on in the background for all of us. Notice what you are telling yourself, and ask yourself if it is really true. You might be surprised.

Old ways of coping that don’t work anymore. I have a saying that I use with my clients (and myself): When you grow up in a war, you learn how to survive, but when the war is over, you need different skills. If you learned to “stuff” your feelings because it wasn’t safe to feel them, that skill may be impacting you in a negative way now. If you learned that it wasn’t safe to trust anyone, you may not realize that as an adult you have more control about relationships than you did as a child. Part of assessing baggage is to take a look at what skills work for you now, and what skills don’t.

Old behavior patterns. We all have our habits, and some are good ones. Others aren’t, and if your habits are causing you trouble, you may want to start revising them. Did you learn poor nutritional habits, or that exercise was only for athletes? Did you decide as a child that reading was boring? We make lots of unconscious decisions as children growing up. Take a look at what yours are, and see if they fit the lifestyle you want to have now.

Emotional freedom feels good. Happy Independence Day!

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Tagged as: baggage, emotional freedom, Emotional health, habits