Meet Emily. We worked together and used journaling as a core piece of her healing. Journaling helped Emily unravel all the ways she was stuck in life. She was depressed in a career that did not suit her strengths and gifts. She was in her mid to late 30’s when I met her. She had been unhappy many years. She through her determination found her way into happiness and to feel worthy of all good things.
Emily’s use of journaling will give you some idea how multilayered our beliefs can be.
For most of us, there is a lot to unpack, and we have to do it layer by layer.
Emily grew up in a family who belittled her creativity. They insisted that she stop doodling and wasting time. They thwarted her interest in studying the Arts and declared that they would pay her tuition only if she studied for a real career. So she became an accountant.
Let’s examine what had to be addressed in order for Emily to heal.
At first, Emily would journal about her earliest memories when her creativity was stifled, frowned upon and dismissed in her family. Creativity was at the very essence of her core.
On the surface, there seemed to be one major issue. As she journaled, she realized that the sting of that devaluation echoed in many areas of her life. Believing that her “doodling” was wrong, she did it on the sly, then felt bad for sneaking.
Different than other family members, she was ridiculed. Feeling shame about being different, she whittled herself into an acceptable version to do the family bidding and became an accountant. As she continued journaling, more hidden and faulty beliefs about herself were revealed.
Having low self-esteem, she felt unworthy of having dreams of her own. She didn’t believe that she had value to contribute. The pattern of submissiveness contributed to a low-grade depression that followed her into adult years.
Emily came to know the unseen power of her early beliefs and how they were holding her captive. She made friends with the little girl hiding and sad within and started honoring her hidden creative gifts.
She reclaimed her courage and strength to separate truth from fiction. (Notice I said ‘reclaim’ as we all have it in the beginning.) She found her ways back to her little girl essence and through journaling, she forgave herself for neglecting her needs. You see, after she was grown, she too betrayed her essence. Devaluing and ignoring her creative pull, she asked her inner self and got permission to once again openly claim her creative spirit and thus more of her Feminine Power. (excerpt from my FREE Webinar: 7 Ways that Women Lose their Feminine Power and How to Reclaim what was Lost)
There is more to Emily’s story; however, I just wanted you to have a peek at the power of journaling to unravel and bring to the surface what is hidden which is absolutely necessary for healing.
We have no idea of the depth of a person’s story from a superficial glance. Emily’s story and her pain may not be anything like your story. My intention in sharing her story is to give some idea of how important it is to turn over and to really look under the rocks.
One hurtful thing in a little girl’s life is never just one thing. There is no telling how others’ dismissive actions depletes confidence, thus stealing Feminine Power. Suppressed pain works negatively in the caverns of our unconscious until we find it, heal it and release the energy connected to the memory.
As you write your story, accept what you find with compassion and without judgement. Accepting doesn’t mean we like it but it is a starting point, a foundation to build on going forward.
Journaling allows you to truly know your inner self, layer by layer, bringing the possibility of not just change but Transformation.
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