This year is coming to a close and I thought it would be great to take a look back at 2021. This was definitely an interesting year for me, as I feel like I am finally becoming more grounded in who I am as a woman and coming into terms with what I exactly want out of life. I guess you can say it was a year of self-reflection. I truly believe that you are your best self when you work on your mental and so I focused on that a lot this year. I am not going to say that I am exactly where I need to be as of yet, but I am getting there.
A STRONG MENTAL LEADS TO AN EVEN STRONGER BEING
I made mental health a HUGE priority this year because I could see that it was starting to affect many areas of my life. It was even affecting my creativity and making me lose inspiration and focus. The things that I usually loved didn’t seem to keep my interest anymore and it was causing me to be confused about my life and my wants and needs. It was causing me to neglect myself. I was always tired and my anxiety was through the roof. I knew I needed to change and I couldn’t do it alone, so I decided that I would start therapy. My therapist helped me realize that the reason I was feeling like this was because I hadn’t fully addressed my childhood trauma. I had pushed it down for years and years and it was slowly starting to seep back into my life. I learned that my feelings are valid and that crying doesn’t make me weird or make me weak. I also learned that it was important to take time out of my day to be with myself and to learn about me and, most importantly, to set boundaries. When it comes to mental health, we should all learn to be selfish because if we are not okay, we will not be okay for the world. We won’t be able to help and inspire others.
RESTING IN MY FEMININE AND NOT IN MY MASCULINE
I was raised by a single mother, so I had to grow up pretty fast in my life. I had to get things done and learn to do things for myself. I realized that I would sit more in my masculine energy and not in my feminine energy because that is not something I ever got to do growing up. I learned that being feminine meaning being vulnerable and letting things happen in my life is not a bad thing. Not everything needs to be controlled. This was a very challenging thing for me to learn and I still struggle with it, especially because of my anxiety. I am learning day by day to also enjoy the fruits of my labor. I wear what truly make me feel beautiful and express myself more and more through my own style and creative work. Resting in my feminine has helped me to love myself even more and to be unapologetically me with everything I do.
STAYING IN A PLACE OF GRATITUDE
I am so thankful for my health and that I am even able to write this post. I am especially thankful for my creativity because this cute little space of the internet would not exist without it. Being grateful has helped me have less sad days and more happy days. Just taking a moment everyday to look around and realize all that I have and how amazing my life is has changed my perspective on things.
MEDITATION CHANGES LIVES
I LOVE meditation. It’s so fun to sit in silence or to visualize achieving your goals. It’s like this natural high that I can’t get enough of. Every time I meditate, I have an amazing day and things don’t bother me as much. It has helped me to feel and be a lot more peaceful in my life. I am not so reactive these days. It’s definitely not something I noticed right away, but overtime I start to see and feel the benefits and it has improved my quality of life, so much.
SAYING NO WITHOUT AN EXPLANATION
Saying no is okay and it is your God given right. You don’t always have to be a “yes” girl or boy. This one was hard for me because I would always feel like I was missing out on something or that my friends wouldn’t want to be my friends if I told them no. I genuinely don’t care about that anymore. I do only what feels good to me and that includes the activities I choose to utilize my time doing. If I don’t feel like going out, then I won’t. If I don’t feel like something will be good for me career-wise, then I don’t do it. I say no and am learning that I don’t need to give an explanation for my no. I am a grown-ass adult and how I decide to move in my life doesn’t need an explanation.
What is something you learned this year?
About The Author
Saying no is such an important lesson I learned too this year.
It is so important to be able to say no. Thank you for reading.
I love the part about saying no without an explanation. This is something that I am working towards. I often find myself explaining my nos. I need to stop doing that.
Yes, for so long I did the same thing. Always feeling bad for saying no and trying to explain myself every time, but I realized I don’t have to do that. Thanks for your comment.