Episode 30 : Part 1 - Being true to yourself and who you are

Letters to my kids: A suicide survivor's lessons and advice for life

Episode 30 : Part 1 - Being true to yourself and who you are

Music: “Just A Blip” by Andy G. Cohen From the Free Music Archive Released under a Creative Commons Attribution International License

https://thoughtcatalog.com/jamie-varon/2014/06/10-subconscious-things-you-do-when-you-arent-being-true-to-yourself/

What happens if you're not true to yourself?

- You justify your decisions Every time we have to justify a reason for not doing something, we’re most likely straying from what we truly want to be doing. If you choose not to do something and feel no need to justify yourself for making that choice, then you are staying true to your own desires. However, once you start piling up reasons as to why you are ignoring what you desire to do, then you need to stop in that moment and ask yourself, “Is this fear?” Because, fear is the never-ending source of all your reasons for not doing the thing you say you want to do.

- You get that small stirring in your gut that you ignore When you make a decision or you say something that is not true to yourself, you will get that pang in your gut. Many people can attribute this to a physical feeling of guilt. This feeling you’re receiving is a gift and, instead of ignoring it, you can acknowledge it, listen to it, and see what is the better choice for you.

"Be yourself, everyone else is taken." -Oscar Wilde

- You quickly pass off “bad” emotions Our emotions and feelings are incredible insights into our intuition. When we feel anger, it means we are ready for something to change. When we feel guilt, it means we are doing something out of alignment with who we are and what we say we want.

- You abandon yourself (and your desires) in small ways A little critical self-talk here. A mean-spirited gossip about a friend there. A judgmental reaction to someone here. These are small abandons from your true self and, while a couple don’t make a big difference, they start to add up and snowball into long gossip sessions, days of critical self-talk, a judgmental attitude towards others.

"Authenticity requires a certain measure of vulnerability, transparency, and integrity." -Janet Louise Stephenson

- You break promises to yourself (and don’t realize it) Once in a while, these are fine, but again, they add up. Each time you say you’re going to do something and then back out of it, you’re breaking these tiny promises to yourself and it doesn’t feel great to do so. It creates even more of a distance between you and your truest self.

- You attract drama into your life There is nothing redeeming about unnecessary drama. When you start attracting it into your life, you are distracting yourself from yourself. It’s a brilliant plan when you think about it: if you have drama all up in your life, you don’t have the time or energy to devote to what really matters to you.

- You give away your power to someone or something else If you are trying to stay true to yourself and it’s becoming fearful, it can be easy to start giving your power away to others. You want their validation. You want them to tell you you’re doing great. You want them to give you a path.

"The only real failure in life is not to be true to the best one knows." -Buddha

- You procrastinate Procrastination is fear in sheep’s clothing! It is fear, fear, fear and more fear. Fear at its finest! At the root of it, procrastination is avoidance. There is no possible way to be true to yourself while also avoiding yourself. These are complete opposites and cannot exist in the same space.

- You feel heavy without realizing it It’s not until a burden is lifted that we realize how heavy the burden actually was. When we keep choosing to abandon ourselves, subconsciously or otherwise, it weighs on us. However, once we choose again and stay true to ourselves, we feel the lightness that comes from that choice.

"To become authentic we require a thirst for freedom." -Don Mateo Sol