You have to love yourself first, they say. Have you ever been asked if you love yourself? Since the beginning of my healing journey over a decade ago, I have interacted with more than ten counselors, therapists, and coaches. Every single one has asked me if I love myself. Or, they have explained to me that I have to love myself first. You have to love yourself first This could just be my trauma speaking,…
Definition of authentic (Taken from Merriam-Webster) 1 a: worthy of acceptance or belief as conforming to or based on fact paints an authentic picture of our society b: conforming to an original so as to reproduce essential features an authentic reproduction of a colonial farmhouse c: made or done the same way as an original authentic Mexican fare 2: not false or imitation: REAL, ACTUALan authentic cockney accent 3: true to one’s own personality, spirit, or character is sincere and authentic with no pretensions 4 aof a church mode : ranging upward from the keynote— compare PLAGAL sense 1 b…
I’m struggling a bit at the beginning of the Are vs. Should Problem I have been discussing in Episodes 51-53. So far, I have introduced the problem; that we all struggle with the person that we ARE and the person we think we SHOULD BE. I have described the first step toward a solution in taking a Personal Inventory. Next, I tried to begin the process of examining the personal inventory by separating items as…
I hope you are enjoying this interview series as much as I am. Dana reached out to me because talking about curiosity sounded interesting to her. And she has some new and interesting points to make about the importance of curiosity in our lives. It’s so much fun to listen to other peoples thoughts about how being curious is important to them. We are all unique, and even a simple topic like curiosity can be…
One of our basic human needs is to feel safe. I realized recently that I created my own safety as a kid in response to bullying. My thirteen-year-old self built a protective cocoon my bedroom filled with all the things I loved and valued. Maybe all teenagers do this, but looking back at those years I realized how necessary it was. Here’s this kid who’s feeling alone and isolated because he’s being bullied and doesn’t…
And a little bit about the meaning of life . . . . Many of us could use a little more self esteem. Yet we continually look for esteem outside ourselves in the external environment. For me, it was attention from the opposite sex. Or getting hired by a good employer. Or publishing a paper. These things are well and good, but they are also fleeting. It’s like your mom telling you your handsome. Or…