Letting Go Of The Past! – Positive Reflection Of The Week

Why & How You Should Let Go Of The Past! – An Article by Shahwana

“Happiness is nothing more than good health and a bad memory.” – Albert Schweitzer

The past is the past. By thinking about your mistakes, people who hurt you, situations where you got cheated and undesirable moments of your life, nothing will change! By thinking over and over about negative people and happenings, you attract even more of the same kind.

“If you do not forgive, you will continue to think about the offender and the unpleasant event. By Forgiving and Blessing, you stop wallowing in mud, and you achieve Inner Peace and Freedom.” – Master Choa Kok Sui

Create A Positive Mantra To Counter The Painful Thoughts

How you talk to yourself can either move you forward or keep you stuck. Often, having a mantra that you tell yourself in times of emotional pain can help you reframe your thoughts.

For example, says clinical psychologist Carla Manly, PhD, instead of getting stuck in, “I can’t believe this happened to me!” try a positive mantra such as, “I am fortunate to be able to find a new path in life — one that is good for me.”

Create Physical Distance

It’s not uncommon to hear someone say that you should distance yourself from the person or situation that is causing you to be upset.

According to clinical psychologist Ramani Durvasula, PhD, that’s not such a bad idea. “Creating physical or psychological distance between ourselves and the person or situation can help with letting go for the simple reason that we are not having to think about it, process it, or being reminded of it as much,” she explains.

Do Your Own Work

Focusing on yourself is important. You have to make the choice to address the hurt that you’ve experienced. When you think about a person who caused you pain, bring yourself back to the present. Then, focus on something that you’re grateful for.

Practice Mindfulness

The more we can bring our focus to the present moment, says Lisa Olivera, a licensed marriage and family therapist, the less impact our past or future has on us.

“When we start practising being present, our hurts have less control over us, and we have more freedom to choose how we want to respond to our lives,” she adds.

Be Gentle With Yourself

If your first response to not being able to let go of a painful situation is to criticize yourself, it’s time to show yourself some kindness and compassion.

Olivera says this looks like treating ourselves like we would treat a friend, offering ourselves self-compassion, and avoiding comparisons between our journey and those of others.

“Hurt is inevitable, and we may not be able to avoid pain; however, we can choose to treat ourselves kindly and lovingly when it comes,” Olivera explains.

Allow The Negative Emotions To Flow

If your fear of feeling negative emotions is causing you to avoid them, don’t worry, you’re not alone. In fact, Durvasula says that many times, people are afraid of feelings such as grief, anger, disappointment, or sadness.

Rather than feeling them, people just try to shut them out, which can disrupt the process of letting go. “These negative emotions are like rip tides,” explains Durvasula. “Let them flow out of you… It may require mental health intervention, but fighting them can leave you stuck,” she adds.

The key is to let go and release the negative experiences of the past from your system & move on!…We all have had headaches, frustrations and people who have been pain in the neck. They all have helped us grow and learn many lessons.

Now, by holding on to the anger and sadness, we only withhold ourselves from being happy and positive again. So one of the ways towards having a happier life is to let go of the past! Do not get stuck. Forgive, forget and continue living.

Write a letter, stating all your problems, worries and unhappiness. Address the letter to people who have hurt you in the past. Release your anger and resentment in the letter. Write also about the incidents in the past that are still bothering you. Describe your feelings, your fears and dissatisfactions with all the details and emotions.

When you finished the letter, tear it down and burn it. This will help you externalize your negative emotions and disintegrate them by burning them together with the letter.

Repeat this for several days until the negative feelings are completely out of your system.

“The first recipe for happiness is: avoid too lengthy meditation on the past.”- Andre Maurois

Extracts from: Pranaworld.net & www.healthline.com

Shahwana Khanam – Pranic Healer