Moving forward after being lost

I’m going to be talking about some of the harder things about being human over the next two weeks, so if you’d prefer to keep things light, feel free to skip this email.

Otherwise, if you’re open to spending a couple of minutes thinking about loss, being lost and what it means to move forward, read on!

….

In the past two years, we’ve collectively experienced a lot of heavy stuff. While each of us has reacted in our own way, you’ve probably felt feelings like anxiety, frustration or despair more than you normally would.

And then, of course, you have the events of your own life and the emotions of those experiences to process, as well. Loss of a job, money, a relationship, a loved one….

 When we have a lot of big things to process, it can take up a lot of our time, energy and focus. 

The rest of our life can dim into the background while we grapple with whatever is going on.

Sometimes, those things involve a change in our life that we didn’t choose, yet we must adapt to, which then piles on another layer of intense emotions.

This can lead to an existential crisis of sorts, when you find yourself thinking things like:

• “I don’t know who I am”
• “I don’t know what I want”
• “I don’t know what to do”

While those thoughts might feel painful, the good news is that if you find yourself thinking them, it means you are already in the process of moving forward in your life.

If you connect with this in any way, I want to encourage you to not make not having answers a problem. 

It’s a natural place to be.

Nothing has gone wrong.

You’re just in the process of dealing with the hard stuff of life.

If you’re experiencing this, one of the best things you can do is to accept and support yourself exactly as you are.

 This can look like consciously turning your internal dialogue into something like this:

• “I don’t know who I am and that’s ok. (I know I’m going to figure it out)”
• “I don’t know what I want and that’s ok. (I want to figure it out)”
• “I don’t know what to do and that’s ok. (It won’t always be this way)”

 Are you starting to see the pattern? 😉

You don’t need to have the answer now. You don’t need to know where you’re going.

Just take the next step. 

That might be getting up 10 minutes earlier to practice a sun salutation.

Or calling a friend after work.

Or dancing in your living room.

Just take the next step. One that is in the name of acceptance and support…. And trust that you’ll figure it out along the way. 

You will.

…

I hope this is helpful to you. Feel free to share where you’re at in the process of moving forward by replying to this email.

Wishing you acceptance and support this week.

PS— Here’s how I’m supporting folks this month.

A free workshop on Finding Yourself After Loss. Wednesday, Feb 9 at 10am AKST, 11am PST. The call will be recorded and sent out after, so no worries if you can’t make it live. Register here.

1-1 private coaching. This is a great option when you’re ready for support to help you move forward and create a life that you love. I help you to get clear on what’s getting in the way and help you find the confidence and joy that is your natural state of being. To learn more, reply to this email with the words “coaching questions”.