photo credit rec’d 10/14/14 Equip Link: http://www.equip.org/articles/breaking-the-silence-chapter-summaries/
Over periods of time, many of us are quietly dealing with various situations that bother us. Days turn into weeks, weeks into months, and months into years. We become accustomed to our environment, and though we know it isn’t the norm, we make it our norm. We operate around the situation often not letting others in; for fear that we would have to face the issue. We stay away from it because we don’t want to go through it, but that is one of the most crippling things we can do to ourselves.
photo credit rec’d 10/14/14 Poly Living Link: http://polyliving.net/2013/05/polyamory-myths/
Debunking the myth
One of the biggest misconceptions in life is we are alone. Trust and believe, you are not the only person going through whatever you are being faced with, and isolating yourself is one of the worst things you can do. You don’t have to tell the whole world your business, but to keep it to yourself serve no purpose. What it does, is keep you from those that can offer a helping hand whether physically or more importantly mentally and emotionally.
It takes courage
It’s easy to say a lot of things. Whenever we aren’t sitting in the hot seat we can always tell people what to do. Whether you are expressing or listening to someone express, understand that it takes a lot to do that. The challenge in this is being open minded enough to do either without judgment.
photo credit rec’d 10/14/14 Caleb Gordon Link: http://calebgordon.com/men-living-with-courgae
You are your best self
What causes us to be quiet and not let others in? FEAR. Fear of rejection and judgment, two of the most damaging fears to hold onto. We can attribute a lot of decisions we’ve made to our inability to sense how others will perceive us, because of how we perceive ourselves! Self-esteem plays a major factor in almost everything. When you spend a lot of time with something you can focus on it more often than anyone else. And who are we with 24/7, 365? Ourselves. We can actually take molehills and make mountains out of situations that wouldn’t even register on anyone else’s radar. What are we saying? You are your best self in the here and now. If you’re striving for better, believe that you are who you are supposed to be right now!
Opening up is not painless. Retreating to your comfort zone is taking the easy way out. And as it is becoming increasingly clearer, nothing worth the time it takes is simple. Break the silence on whatever the issue. Despite how menial you think it is, it matters if you need help. Don’t suffer alone.
A very common saying is “Comparison is the thief of joy”. How true this is! What you think may be your worse attribute, may be your golden ticket. Don’t let your skewed version of yourself cause you to retreat into a place you’re not supposed to be. Don’t dull, your shine because of YOU!
Written by Joyanne Lawrence
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