Are you being hard on yourself?

We often have many responsibilities to attend to in our days. Loved ones that need our support, chores that need to be done, and expectations that need to be met.

Where in the list of things do you find yourself?

I mean, how are you meeting yourself and your needs in all of the things?

Our outer lives take up the vast majority of our energy and focus. And it’s “easy” to simply get swept away in all of it.

And when we do, there’s an impact we may or may not recognize.

The moment we are not taking care of ourselves, tending to our needs, there’s an underlaying ripple of resentment that starts to form.

It can be subtle. A shift in our mood, a quip back at a loved one or stranger, or a building of tension in the body.

In your mind, you may find yourself being critical, blaming others or more-so yourself for the way you’re feeling.

When we lose sight or intention towards what we need, parts of ourselves will step up in protection or criticism to try to get our needs met.

This comes with feelings like anger that your needs don’t seem to matter or doubt that they will ever be met.

You start to essentially lose trust in yourself, your relationships, or life.

Allowing that inner critic to talk down to you and being hard on yourself for this is most damaging.

It can leave you feeling hopeless, confused, and unmotivated.

I know when I get caught in this spiral of self-criticism, it takes me away from my heart, my truth, and my confidence in moving forward in my life in ways that support my growth. I get trapped in self-doubt and sometimes feel like I’ll never make my dreams come true.

Instead, I’ve learned a way out of this looping downturn.

Turning your focus toward your inner world, with compassion, curiosity, and understanding supports you in making more empowered and loving choices for yourself.

It can take some intentional practice to notice when you’re fawning over everyone else and not listening to what you actually need, but when you do, you rebuild trust in yourself and that nasty inner critic eases back or even changes it’s tune.

Learning to slow down and listen is part of the process. To meet that critic with compassion, recognizing that it’s been trying to help you meet your needs. It just goes about it in an unhealthy way.

You don’t need to be hard on yourself to make change. The path of compassionate understanding is much more empowering and long-lasting.

If you’re ready to create this type of loving relationship with yourself, so you can meet your needs, while also tending to your obligations, I’d love to support you along the way.

The more compassionate we are with ourselves, the better world we create around us.

Let’s sit down and have a chat to explore how you could be more gentle and kind with yourself, and meet more of your needs, inside and out.

Choose you, you’re worth it. 💞