What Really Matters
How I Healed My Strained Relationship with My Addict Mother
“We come to love not by finding a perfect person, but by learning to see an imperfect person perfectly.” ~Sam Keen
Like so many of us, my relationship with my mother throughout my life is best described as complicated.
We’ve had our fair share of turbulent times in our journey, and her alcoholism and drug abuse while I was growing up fueled great dysfunction on every level: literal physical fighting when I was a teenager (yep, Jerry Springer-style), seemingly continual acts of rebellion, a total lack of understanding, deep mistrust, unwillingness (or likely even an inability at the time) to …
Why True Happiness Is Not Just About Reaching Your Goals
“Success isn’t about how your life looks to others. It’s about how it feels to you.” ~Michelle Obama
Do you have goals? Why do you have these goals? What will change if you accomplish them?
Will you be happy?
Think about this for a second: You’ve already achieved goals that you said would make you happy.
Pause.
Think about that again.
You’ve already achieved goals that you said would make you happy.
Well, that’s a humbling reality check, isn’t it? So why aren’t you experiencing everlasting happiness and satisfaction?
No matter the goal’s size, the reward level, or the …
How I Found My “Why” in Life After Struggling for Years
“Your purpose in life is to find your purpose and give your whole heart and soul to it.” ~Gautama Buddha
Each time I start a new course, training, or venture, the teacher or leader asks me “why?” “Why are you here?” “Why are you taking this course?” “What’s your ‘why’?” “What’s your purpose?”
And I’m never prepared.
You’d think by now, after all the years of working on myself and studying, I would have an answer on the tip of my tongue.
Yet, I find “why” to be a difficult question to answer.
I have wondered, “Do I really not …
Feeling Pressured to Follow the Crowd and Become Someone You’re Not?
In a world that pressures us to conform and toe the line, it can be hard to live a fulfilling, authentic life.
We can easily spend years trying to be someone or something we’re not—checking off all the right boxes, meeting everyone’s expectations—all in a bid to gain approval from society, our peers, our parents, and even ourselves.
But this comes at a steep cost to our well-being. Not only do we lose ourselves and slowly disconnect from everything that brings us joy and meaning, but we can also end up hating ourselves for struggling to measure up… when ironically, …
When It’s Time to Let People Go: How I’ve Lightened My Emotional Load
“Love yourself enough to let go of the people, thoughts, and habits that are weighing you down.” ~Karen Salmansohn
More than a year ago I started unpacking and cleaning out my ‘backpack’ of life in a different way.
I have always tried to remain friends with exes, and even though we didn’t necessarily socialize together, there was still the odd keeping in touch, helping them with a favor, or “Happy Birthday” text.
While most of them are generally nice people, the truth is that if I never dated them, I probably wouldn’t be friends with them now. We’re just on …
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