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Feelings of emptiness

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  • #181127
    natalia
    Participant

    i’m writing this post because i’m seeking some genuine advice or guidance or just anything. i have a lot of internal emotional struggles and have for as long as i can remember. a lot of it i attribute to the chaotic and dysfunctional/abusive upbringing i had with both parents, i have 6 siblings and we all are pretty close and have similar emotional problems that we try to help each other with, we’re all trying to find our way and to choose better for ourselves than our parents did in the emotional and spiritual realm. but i guess for me the big thing is feeling like i’m not real and that i don’t know who i am/i’m not connected with myself which is a really scary feeling at times. i’m 22 and i have no idea where i’m going with my life, and i have this deep deep tiredness, i feel so old inside and the thought of a life ahead of me is something i kind of avoid, and thus, i’m not really working towards anything. when i was younger i was such a passionate kid, i loved writing and was really good at it. i loved music and was really good at it. i wanted to grow up to be a psychologist and help people heal. but as i’ve gotten older i just feel so far from myself and everything i’ve ever loved. i want to write but when i go to it’s just the same repetitive things over and over, like i’m a broken record or something, and i want to play music but i feel no urge to, it’s like no matter what i do things just feel off and not quite right all the time. about a month and a half ago i started meditating every day and have been consistent with it, and i have to say it made a big difference but i feel i’m regressing again or something? along with that i have no close relationships whatsoever, i recognize within myself a huge fear of emotional intimacy, i think there are a lot of very complex emotional dynamics present. every day i work actively to overcome this because despite the chronic emptiness and fear and just feeling lost, i’m not giving up and i want better for myself, so lately i do make efforts to reach out to others in my environment, to be present with fear that comes up and to question it. life feels so.. hard in general and i’m so confused. in searching for answers before i have believed at certain points that i possibly had borderline personality disorder or something, but even if i did i dont know how that label would help me at all. it is after all just a label and it’s the actual emotional experience that needs to be addressed. but anyway i guess i am just seeking some sort of guidance

    thank you for any responses, lots of love to you all

    #181233
    Anonymous
    Guest

    Dear natalia:

    I would like to read and answer your thread when I am back to the computer in about 16 hours or so. I hope other members will read and kindly reply before then.

    anita

    #181249
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    Dear Natalie first off let me say I could be your grandfather and still suffer from depression when I was young kid and a teenager as well as into my 20’s I would act out, but I was severely depressed although I did not know it, as amatter of fact I just looked at my history and where I’ve been, and I can remember my first act of acting out, I believe it set the tone for my life..I started playing guitar when I was 17 to cover up my insecurity, I was relentlesly teased as a child even from my own family, and told I was too sensitive by my guidance counseler and could get hurt someday..Well DUH No crap what a total idiot he was, anyway I went on the road with a band and loved every minute even though I was married at the time, but I guess my wife loved me so much she put up with my shenanigans, if she hadn’t I would be dead by now. well time went on and I met another lady who would tear me down and rip me apart and I almost got a divorce to be with her, why I will never know..O yes I do know, she reminded me of my mother. I would be dead by now if I had gone with her..anyway I quit the music business  and got a job as a courier and opened my own business and had 4 guys who I paid well and one of them even used the money he made with me to put his daughter through college.. I had a father in law  who constantly blamed everybody for not being him and every time I talk or think about it I get a sick feeling in my heart and stomach. you said this  “every day i work actively to overcome this because despite the chronic emptiness and fear and just feeling lost, i’m not giving up and i want better for myself, so lately i do make efforts to reach out to others in my environment, to be present with fear that comes up and to question it” I know what you are going through and since you are so young you will overcome this I still continue to try every day and Like I said I am much older.. whatever it takes I want you to get better, Medication, talking, seeing a therapist all these things are nothing to be ashamed of, and as I write this to you I feel much better. I wish you love and the best as well. The sad thing is everything you do is your choice, you cannot blame other people as I did for years for my misery  that will set you on the wrong path as it did me  your young and smart so get the help you need because everything you wrote I have been through. and be brutally honest with your therapist although that may take some time  My last therapist just died,  I miss him and I loved him dearly so find one you like and can talk too.                  Joe

    #181273
    Emma
    Participant

    Hi Natalia,

    This is my first time here and actually, this was the first post I read. I felt compelled to reply to you. I understand you fully and as somebody who has also experienced a trauma, I want to assure you that what you are experiencing right now, will come to be seen as essential for your spiritual growth and you will come to feel gratitude for the unique lessons your life and upbringing have given you.

    The very fact that you have such awareness and inner resource to recognise your emotional trauma for what it is, and are taking steps to heal yourself, is testament to the progress that you have made and will continue to make on your healing journey.

    Emotions can be terrifying and their reach unlimited in how destructive they can be; but this is only because they are not understood.  Emotion is the most powerful resource we have in re-connecting with our spiritual selves.  I want to tell you that it is 100% possible to transmute any negative emotion into unconditional love. This isn’t by bypassing, this is by experiencing and allowing it to be, so that it can be processed.

    The focus is not on me, so I won’t tell you my story. But I want to summarise a few points:

    My trauma was such that I was suicidal for over a decade, experiencing chronic anxiety, intrusive thoughts, panic attacks. The lot. I went to the depths and back.

    The conversations I would hold with myself, went a little bit like:

    I am weak

    I am ugly

    Nobody loves me

    I want to die

    Now, in complete contrast, after learning how to harness emotion and changing the way I treated myself, in terms of being kind, compassionate and forgiving towards myself, the conversations now go like this:

    I am strength

    I am beauty

    I am grace

    I am love

    I AM my heart…

    I won’t lie, it was a long journey, but it all begins with understanding the relationship we have with ourselves and the language we use with ourselves.  Our thoughts create our reality by way of altering our perception and consequently our interaction with the world and ourselves. By shifting the focus of thoughts in our minds, we can re-calibrate how we respond to our emotions.

    Here are some places to start:

    Start with observing your thoughts and how you speak to yourself. Are you being kind, or cruel to yourself? If you say “I regret doing that, I’m a fool”, instead say “I did the very best that I was capable of, at the time”.  Instead of, “Why am I so unhappy?”, try “I am healing”.

    Realise that emotions can trigger a cycle of thoughts, that continually engage further emotion.  This can keep you locked in a despondency. When you experience the emotion, disengage from your thoughts (or if you are unable to do so just yet, try simply observing without interacting with them) and allow yourself to experience the emotion in your body.  In the way we that we experience laughter or joy, those emotions flow through us so easily, because we enjoy the experience. On the other hand, fear, jealousy, anger, sadness, are all emotions we may not want to experience therefore we repress them. Emotion is energy and our energy bodies can accumulate emotions that haven’t been given the chance to be released. What we resist, persists. Intend to experience your emotions and release them.  Intend to surrender into the love in your heart.

    Practice stopping your thoughts daily, hourly, or every minute of the day.  A simple technique, is to focus your hearing 100% outside of your body and try to listen to that which you cannot hear.  This has a magical effect of stopping your internal dialogue.

    Practice feeling your heartCentre your bodily awareness on your heart, while maintaining silence in your mind.  Cultivate the physical feeling of your heart where-ever you are.

    Forgiveness. I cannot emphasise enough, how important this is energetically.  In interactions with others and emotionally charged events, there is an exchange of energy.  When we hold onto a situation because we have been unable to let go of it, due to sadness or fear or injustice, we hold onto the energy of that situation and equally, keep our energy held in person who affected us.     By forgiving (not condoning) we release what we have held onto, and call our power back to us.  This will also help you in establishing your energetic boundaries.

    The most important thing right now, is learning how to truly love yourself, being compassionate and kind. The things above have helped me considerably and I hope they help you too.

    Now, in response to what you said about having no close relationships – I too went through this and it is extremely challenging however throughout the years you will make connections with special people who are on the same path as you. They are rare. When you find them, cherish them. But for now, don’t judge yourself on the basis of not having close relationships. It will happen in time.

    I would also recommend trying to find a healer who specialises in Soul Healing.  If you are in London, I can recommend somebody who changed my life and was instrumental on my journey into my awakening in my heart.

    Emma

     

    P.S. Read The Whisperings of The Dragon by Lujan Matus

    #181321
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    That was Beautifull Emma

     

    #181327
    Anonymous
    Guest

    Dear natalia:

    I think that the loss of passion in your life, the passion to write, to create music, to help people heal when you grow up, is because you “do not have close relationships whatsoever”.

    We are social animals, social beings. We thrive when connecting with others. When you were a child you reached out to connect with others, through writing, music and you wanted to heal others. Your family environment of chaos, dysfunction and abuse took emptied you from your passion to connect, eventually (it takes time to do so). And so, you find yourself empty.

    The answer is to connect, only have to be selective, so you don’t connect to abusive, aggressive people, like those you grew up with. Connecting has to be slow and gradual so you have time to learn who is the person you are connecting with and is the relationship healthy, a Win-Win.

    I think your passion will return when you successfully connect.

    anita

    #182541
    natalia
    Participant

    emma thank you so much for taking the time to reply and to share your own experience <3 your words have made me feel comforted and i appreciate the advice

    #182543
    natalia
    Participant

    anita, thank you also for taking the time to reply. i agree that connecting is really important and i’ve isolated myself so much in the past few years of my life. when it comes to connecting with others i do at times but i have these really intense feelings that i don’t always understand and feel unstable, i haven’t ever experienced a long-lasting fulfilling friendship or relationship due to my own internal struggles and part of me feels like i’ll never have that, like i’ll never overcome this emotionally instability and intensity but i’m just taking it day by day right now and making baby steps to build those types of relationships i hope to have one day. thank you again for reply and hope you have a happy holiday season <3

    #182549
    Anonymous
    Guest

    Dear natalia:

    You are welcome and thank you for your good wishes.

    “making bay steps to build those types of relationships” is the way to go, baby steps.

    You wrote: “I have these really intense feelings that I don’t always understand”- it is through communicating your feelings with an understanding, empathetic other person (may take a psychotherapist) that you develop an understanding of your feelings. With understanding, clarity, your feelings will be less and less overwhelming.

    You wrote that you feel like you “will never overcome this emotional instability and intensity”- the instability will be gone, the distressing intensity will weaken and weaken as you understand your feelings, how they came about, the message behind them.

    anita

     

    #186033
    misterman
    Participant

    Hi, the feelings of emptiness you speak of. Can be a terrifying thing, as this means that everything that you know love and have committed to….Isn’t real. Your ego doesn’t want this, the part of yourself who has made up the story of Natalie who identifies with her experiences as a genuine part of who she is.  This person does not want to let go because you don’t know what’s on the other side, you avoid it all costs. Doing anything to get away from yourself and how you feel.

    Pursue this emptiness, you will find yourself. I’ll try and explain this the best i can.

    Imagine each and every moment you have live so far, from moment to moment. Each moment has a perspective, and understanding, a knowing, a reaction. We are only allowed to pick one perspective, one understanding, one emotional response (which can by more than one emotion at a time). Now there are an INFINITE amount of interpretations each moment could possibly have. You are the collection of each moment and that interpretation of each moment gives you the identity you have now that you are clinging onto. Myself included.

    Emptiness is existence, all you are is pure awareness, we are like sponges and mirrors. We soak it all up and then project/reflect our understanding back onto the world.

    However that understanding is limited to ONE perspective per moment. There are many perspectives.

    Clinging onto this idea of yourself, a self that doesn’t really exist. It is made up. Just another story, like the one i am typing right now. It can be a very frightening thing but with enough understanding or framework it can be the most liberating experience you ever have. Because you will realise that all the positions you took on everything is completely arbitrary and you could have just as easily taken another position. Ultimately any interpretation from this place of “nothingness” is a lie.

    This is our condition. There’s so much more this cascades onto but if this resonated with you. People like so call it an ego death and i hope you find what you’re looking for. Enquiring into the nature of reality and how our awareness interacts and integrates with external world would be a good place to start.

    Perhaps you haven’t heard of Leo from actualised.org. You can find him on youtube. He has in depth video’s about all this stuff. I am new to this forum and perhaps everyone knows him from here. If so great, if not then it definitely wouldn’t hurt to look him up. He is an incredible teacher. I am honestly in awe of how much he understands and knows and how accessible he makes all this information.

     

    • This reply was modified 6 years, 3 months ago by misterman.
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