What If You Put It Down?

In my last post, I talked about EFT and the importance of acknowledging what we feel rather than rushing to push difficult emotions away. But once we become willing to notice what we're carrying, another question naturally follows: What if you put it down?

My Full-Circle Moment

One of the things I love about this part of my journey is that my NLP training didn't introduce me to something completely foreign. It connected dots.

I was introduced to EFT almost two decades ago. I've used it personally. I've shared it with others. And now I've added additional NLP tools and techniques to the way I understand our thoughts, emotions, beliefs, behaviors, and experiences.

It felt like one of those full-circle moments where you suddenly realize that something you learned years ago was preparing you for something you couldn't yet see. I've experienced several of those moments in my life. Leaving education was one of them. Becoming a coach was another.

And now I find myself bringing together decades of experience as an educator, my own personal growth, my coaching experience, and these new NLP skills in a way that feels incredibly aligned.

Sometimes our lives don't make sense while we're living them. We see the connections later.

What Are You Still Carrying?

So let's bring this back to you. Is there something from your past that still takes up emotional space in your present?

Maybe it's a relationship. Maybe it's a career. Maybe it's a decision you regret. Maybe it's something someone said about you. Maybe it's something you said about yourself. Maybe it's an experience you keep replaying. Maybe you have told yourself that you've “moved on,” but something about it still feels unresolved.

Take a moment and ask yourself:

What emotion comes up when I think about this?

Where do I feel that emotion in my body?

What am I telling myself about what happened?

What am I still holding onto?

What would I like to feel instead?

And perhaps the most important question:

What would it feel like to put some of this down?

You don't have to force yourself to release anything before you're ready. You don't have to pretend something didn't happen. You don't have to minimize what you experienced.

Sometimes releasing isn't about saying, “It didn't matter.” Sometimes it's saying: “It mattered. It happened. And I don't want to carry it in the same way anymore.”

You Get to Decide What Comes With You

One of the most empowering things I've learned is that moving forward doesn't mean taking everything from the past with us. We get to choose.

We can keep the wisdom. We can keep the growth. We can keep the memories. We can keep the parts of ourselves that became stronger, wiser, more compassionate, and more resilient.

And we can begin to release some of the anger, fear, guilt, hurt, and stories that no longer serve us. That's not forgetting. That's not denying. That's not pretending. It's making room. And sometimes making room is exactly what we need before we can step into what's next.

A Reflection for You

What are you carrying right now that feels heavy?

If you could set down just one piece of it, what would it be?

What would you want to feel instead?

What might become possible in your life if you weren't spending so much energy carrying the past?

You don't have to answer all of those questions today.

Just start with one.

What am I ready to stop carrying?

If you're navigating a transition and realize that something from your past is making it difficult to move forward, you don't have to figure it all out by yourself.

Coaching can provide a space to slow down, get curious, explore the beliefs and emotions underneath what you're experiencing, and begin creating a different way forward.

If you're ready to explore what your next chapter could look like, I would love to talk with you.