"I honor my inner knowing and trust my path."

Aligning with Truth

"When inward tenderness finds that secret hurt, pain itself will crack the rock and Ah! Let the soul emerge."

-Rumi

Today I got caught up in the stories I have been telling myself. So I thought this would be the perfect subject to write about. A lot of times we get caught up in our thoughts and beliefs and we start to believe they are the truth. They are just stories the ego is telling us or even something someone from our past told us and we began to believe it was the truth. I have started writing my negative thoughts, which I like to call "stories", down. And once I start writing them down, I began to realize these thoughts are not me. I know the truth and I start writing the truth down. This also helps me to become more aware of my thoughts and I am able to correct the negative thoughts faster. I also like having fun with this exercise because some of the thoughts that pop up are just silly. I am like "hey where did you come from, that is a silly thought, I know that is not the truth." And then I have fun correcting it.

I actually grab my journal and draw a line directly down the middle. The first column I label "stories" or "negative thoughts." The second column I label "truth" or "positive thoughts." And I just go with it! It feels good! Doing this also makes you have so much more compassion for yourself. When you read what you are writing and what you are actually thinking about yourself, you just want to give yourself more love. Doing this every day is a great practice to get into. And you will actually start noticing these thoughts start to lessen. And you are able to catch them quicker and replace them with what is true.

I still struggle with my stories that I am telling myself every day. But I am catching them a lot faster. And I am having fun with it now. Sometimes I even laugh and play with it. I really enjoy coming up with beautiful things to tell myself too. It changes my mood and my day. I do this exercise without judgement. I just observe, write down the negative thoughts and then I write down the positive. I also have been playing around in the journal I write in. I have colorful pens, stickers, and washi tape that I like to use. I think this actually helps me become more motivated to do this practice more.

Examples of the stories I have been telling myself :

1. I am too much and I am a burden.

2. I can’t do this.

3. I am tired of not feeling well and not getting to do the things that I want to do. I am missing out on life.

I then replaced it with:

1. I am perfect and loved for exactly who I am.

2. I am doing this and I am proud of myself for how far I have come.

3. I am going through a massive healing transformation. This will all be worth it and I will feel better than I ever did before. I have a beautiful life and I will have many opportunities to have new experiences.

I find these affirmations helpful as well:

• I deserve to take up space.

• I have the power to create the life I deserve.

• I love and accept myself.

• All that I need is within me.

• I open myself to insights and clarity.

• I am proud of myself for getting this far.

• I am confident in who I am and my abilities.

• I embrace self compassion and self forgiveness.

Doing this practice is teaching me how to have unconditional love for myself. It also brings me into the present moment and I become aware of these thoughts and beliefs more and more each day. I am also learning how to apologize to myself. I say "I am so sorry for believing this thought. I am sorry I am so hard on you. Please forgive me. I love you."

"True healing is the willingness to treat yourself and others better than the past ever did."

-Matt Kahn