Hi David,

Man, I know exactly how you feel. I used to be so wrapped up in my own head, it was so hard to feel comfortable doing anything. The interesting thing was that I frequently put myself in uncomfortable situations and thought that would help. It does help but after while, I still felt like I wasn’t good enough, a failure, and it was always going to be this way. Even when I succeeded! I still felt miserable on the inside.

Let me share something with you. It’s not about you. It is but it isn’t. Let me tell you what I mean. The more you actually convince yourself that the outside world is against you, the more you actually believe it to be real. The truth is that you’ve had the power all along. Nobody else can take that power from you. We cover ourselves in so many layers that can no longer see and experience that power.

One step I suggest you take right now is to practice gratitude. Your entire post basically lays what isn’t working for you and what you don’t have. Try writing 10 things today that you do have. I’ll bet you have more in your life than you even realize right now. It’s hard to appreciate things when we feel this way. I get it. But just try it. Write it out.

Be well,
Shawn