Breaking Free From Emotional Baggage

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So, you may have noticed that the last time I blogged was …uh…Mother’s Day…
I have thought of my readers and my blog every single day since then. I struggled with the fact that I deserted you for a whole season. But I’ve come to trust that this break was so very necessary for myself, my family, natnanton.com and the cosmos.

I feel like the progress made in these few months that have passed is what I’ve been gearing up for in the last three decades.
I’ve been busy doing some major demolition work; I finally tackled the gigantor brick wall build-up of unresolved emotions.

I had two major breakthroughs that enabled me to:
1) Move past childhood sexual trauma, and;
2) Move towards a new phase in my relationship with my husband…a divorce.

I just felt your heart sink.

Well, let me raise up your sweet heart and assure you that the worst is over.  And while I can’t see into the future, it’s irrelevant really. Because presently, life is rocking. And, here’s the thing, this moment is always perfect. But, you know, if you’re still stuck in 1990 when $#!* hit the fan, you might not notice how this moment presents everything you need to experience joy.

Both breakthroughs have been life-altering. I plan on sharing more on those two topics with you soon, via my blog and most likely a book or two. For now, I just wanted to explain that this process required an all-in effort, which is why, by default, the blog took a backseat.

But I’m ba-ack! And I’ve got a whole lot to say about kicking life’s ass, riding the waves, and showing those little ones what it means to make the most of your time here.

Since most of us have emotional baggage, I’m gonna kick things off by sharing what I learned in this retreat. If there are parts of your life that you don’t discuss, that you’re emotionally numb to, or that get you negatively charged up, I’ll lend you my sledgehammer. If you don’t deal with this ish, it will follow you to the grave.

How To Get Rid Of Emotional Baggage

1) Sit with your emotions: Feel the ugly feelings. Don’t resist it. Don’t feed it with thought. Just feel it. Let tears flow. Locate where the emotions reside in your body. Take your breath there. Do this often. And right after the emotional release, write your heart out.

2) Keep a journal: Everyday, for the past few months, I tracked my moods, cravings, sensations in body, monthly cycle, along with any out-of-the ordinary events. It only takes a few minutes a day to become in-tune with your body. With this data, you can understand how your body responds to the story of your life. This knowledge comes in handy for anyone who values wellness. Vital information.

3) Be diligent on the self-care routines: you have to be especially on-point with self-care in times like these. Healthy diet, rest, exercise meditation, water, nature. Be military about it. Your heart is going to be fragile and beg you for some extra TLC. 

4) Visualize a baggage-free life: this can be so powerful. The key is to not hold back during this exercise. Visualize the most improbable life of absurd awesomeness, because in truth, you can have all that. And make sure you write it all down.

5) Don’t do it alone:  lean on family, friends, and therapists for support. While the majority of this process is inner work, you’re not meant to get through such a monumental task entirely on your own.

6) Turn on your filters: no negative friends, no negative news, no negative movies. You get the point. You’re going to be extra sensitive while doing this work. You can’t afford negative influences right now.

7) Trust the process: it can be grueling. It can take a few hours, days, weeks, or months. It can bring you to an all-time low. Just surrender and accept.

8) Close that chapter: closure is so important. It’s the whole point of all this. Once your work is done, hold a closure ceremony to honor the journey and the lessons learned. What does a closure ceremony look like? It’s completely up to you. Perhaps a bonfire or sunset yoga on the beach. Design a ceremony that speaks to you.

9) Celebrate the flow: when you’ve made a breakthrough, the magic unfolds. Suddenly, things line up. Miracles are everywhere. Synchronicity popping up out the ying yang. Life is serendipitous. And none of this is by accident. Realize that this is actually how life is meant to be experienced.

10) Make new friends: at the end of this process, don’t expect to be the same person. People will notice the changes. It will probably make them uncomfortable; simply because humans resist change. So your current friends, as happy as they may be for you, out of fear of losing your friendship, will likely try to bring you back to that familiar place where the baggage once lived. Of course, there are exceptions to this. Don’t go and ditch your entire posse. Either way, make new friends. It’s easier being the new you with those who meet you that way in the first place.

And those are my take-aways from this epic retreat, release, and re-birth.

Eeee! It feels good to blog again!

Have you dealt with your baggage? What helped you break free? Share your tips in the comments below.

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