Broken OPEN
There is something profoundly beautiful within us all that I refer to as the Essence of the Soul. We connect with our Soul when we can listen and respond to our intuition. We ALL have intuition, or “internal knowingness”, as I like to refer to it as. Oftentimes we are not connected to this innate wisdom because we tune it out, or are prone to intellectualizing and thus convince ourselves what feels like truth must be wrong because we have no evidence of proof… and let’s face it: society has also conditioned us to believe that we would be deemed crazy if we were to say to someone “I’m not sure about doing _________, I need to get in touch with my Soul [get quiet with myself to feel what is right] in order to make the best decision for myself” (it’s not hard to imagine some ensuing eye-rolls!).
What I have come to learn on my personal journey and in my role of therapist is that when our actions, behaviours, environments, and relationships do not align with our highest truth and the honouring of the Essence of our Soul, the universe attempts to right this misalignment with some major doozies that knock us to our core. This is a time when many people seek counselling – emotions are raw, shame is high, and purpose and meaning seem like unreachable concepts. To the sufferer of the major setback, this is a time of bleakness and unfathomable pain. It can also be a time for some of our greatest epiphanies as we are stripped to our vulnerable authenticity. Knowledge, wisdom and growth are the gifts we receive from moving through our greatest sorrows (but we must choose to move through them, rather than resist them). Just when I thought I could not endure the feeling of despair and isolation of my deepest sense of pain and loss, I saw vision and clarity. The pathway to my personal salvation seemed like one heck of a steep slope, but it was one that felt hopeful in that despite concretely knowing how I was going to achieve this vision, my soul felt awakened and fueled by it.
When one is in the throes of their personal pain story, it can seem incomprehensible to emerge from it with a deep sense of connectedness, compassion, wisdom, and love. And yet, this is what frequently (and beautifully), occurs. To quote Elizabeth Lesser, you think you are broken, but you’re really broken open.
Seeking counselling at these times can deepen this experience. Generally, one will feel more supported, but there is a deepen resonance that can also occur through transformative togetherness – a phenomena that I hold sacred.
If you are struggling with where you are at, you do not have to face it alone.
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Reference:
Lesser, E. (2005). Broken open: How difficult times can help us grow. New York, NY: Villard Books.
