How to Feel Yourself Again After Prolonged Challenges

Our world is so very fast paced and there often isn't time to catch our breath in between the bumps on the road of life. I've often thought of our culture's way of celebrating productivity and looking upon rest as being lazy. This may be specific to Amercian culture, for there are many other countries that carve out more rest in their daily lives and even celebrate mid-day naps or prolonged vacations and long maternity/paternity leave. It even seemed as a world, we quickly got on with daily life after the pandemic without a blink or moment to honor, grieve as a collective or significantly mark the historic collective experience as a whole.

And so it is as a culture we are not taught how to dust ourselves off, stand up again after trauma, immense challenge, chronic illness, an accident or deep loss. We simply have to adjust back into a world without the necessary tools to feel ourselves again after such a liquifying metamorphosis that may have changed us immensely.

These last several years have been deeply testing for many. You could say that once 2020 rolled around, nothing has really been the same. I know for my own life, personal challenges have dissected much about all aspects of my life and awareness. So this topic is one close to my heart. However, universally, we have all moved through much since that year and yet may find we are a stranger in a strange land when it comes to re-entry. Trying to emerge back into our lives with new eyes that have been changed by hardship, loss or anything we may have moved through.

This theme doesn't just apply to these last several years, this is an improtant perspective to have at any point in life after tremendous change. And so here I want to share some perspectives with you of how you can feel yourself again after prolonged change or challange. To find your footing back into the world and emerge with greater ease, no matter what you have been through.

Who You Were Is An Old Version

The old you isnt' coming with you, You may long to feel yourself again, but it is important to embrace the fact that you have been completely altered. Maybe you've had grief, loss or illness, these experiences not only change you emotionally and mentally but biologically, you've been completely changed by them.

However, your soul always guides you through every experience you have and has chosen these experiences for you, not to punish you but to invite you to grow. Everything you've experienced has been meant for you in perfect timing.

Find Acceptance

You may still be in the throws of grief, your body may still be healing, you may not know what to do next. However, the most important piece is accepting that this occurred and accepting who you are now as a result of these changes. If shame has been arising because you don't feel quite like yourself, remind yourself that when you accept who you are now, you begin to open up the doorway to loving yourself through these shifts. When you love yourself, regardless of how you feel from these shifts, you begin to open up your heart. Your heart's energy holds an immense power to uplift and charge your entire energy field.

Cultivate practices daily of witnessing how you speak to yourself within. If you are being cruel or belitting in anyway, aim to catch yourself when this occurs. Flip the script and give yourself loving reminders of your strength, your gifts, your ability to move through what you went through.

Tend to Your Body

Your body just went through a lot. Your nervous system may be on edge, if you've experienced immense challenge for a prolonged time. The stress of this impacts your nervous system and all bodily systems.

It's time to refuel your body. Take a moment right here and listen to what your body is telling you. Are you tired? Achy? Feeling less than your radiant self? This is a sign to begin to give your body time to refresh.

Here are several recommendations to turn to:

You may need more rest, going to bed early or sleeping in if possible. More downtime, less socializing, until your body feels more rested.

Lessen your stimulation. If your life is busy, carve out pockets of this for yourself. Less screen time. Meditation practice. Yoga Nidra. Listening to soft healing music. Sound Healing. Spending time in nature, are all ways to calm the stimulation.

What are you consuming?

Are you giving your body healthy fruits and vegatables, enough protein? Is your diet full of processed foods, sugar, too much caffeine or alcohol? These all have impacts on your body's wellbeing, your mood and mind.

What Lights You Up?

Sometimes when we are just trying to survive challneges, we can forget to turn to things we love to do.

When we feel deflated, this can be a sure sign that your spirit isn't feeling that spark and your light has dimmed in your heart space. Tend to your body's needs first and then you'll feel more revived to practice things that bring you joy. Creativity, joy for your senses, play, fun, hobbies, listening to music you love, anything that will spark your inner child again.

Have Patience With Yourself

You don't have to look, be or act a certain way as you re-enter the world after immense hardship. be kind to yourself, have grace. Remember that people won't know or understand the magnitude of what you just went through. It is not up to you to explain yourself to them but to be patient with how you maneuver in the world. You know what you went throug

h and the thing you can control is how you react and share yourself again in the world.

Give Yourself Time

Even as you emerge again, it is important to seek the support that you need to do so.

You may feel called to therapy to share more about hidden emotions or sturggles. Maybe you feel called to healing modalities, massage, acupunture or energy healing. If you feel called, you can seek the support of friends or family.

There is no right or wrong way to merge back into the path ahead after such a profound change.

But know that the lessons you just moved through via the catalyst of immense challenge, have shaped you.

You have a newly found wisdom that you can use to cultivate in time, gifts, awareness or tools to understand that have revealed tehmselves to you through these experiences. Nothing happens without reason and there is power in seeking the lessons in between the hardships, there you will find your fuel for the road ahead.