When you’re feeling out of your soul zone and something crap is happening…accept that it’s happening. I know. Believe me, I know. This may sound super flaky and totally impossible. And yet…this counsel is at the heart of most Eastern mysticism.

Don’t deny what’s occurring. The power to change what’s happening comes from accepting it first. You can rant if you need to. This blows. I can’t believe this is happening again. Fuckity fuck fuck. I’m in pain. I’m humiliated. Discouraged. This hurts.

“Being” with the pain is the opposite of ignoring it when something bothers you. It means that instead of changing the subject, or eating a whole bag of chips, or justifying someone’s bad behaviour (including your own) — or glossing over your pain with fake gratitude — you take a minute (or a morning, or a solo weekend) to feel into how much it really sucks. This isn’t wallowing. This is curiosity, compassion and respect. (Wallowing is when you add drama to it, and stretch it out so you don’t have to get over it. Sometimes, wallowing is just what you need to do — but healthy wallowing needs to be practiced sparingly.)

So…there you are and you’re being with the pain, and you’re respecting yourself. And then, because you’re the Creator of (Most of) Your Reality, you get to switch gears. Just up-shift one gear and say this to yourself: “I’m really looking forward to feeling . . .”  A very simple, creative act.  You just signaled to your psyche that you want something different and you believe in it’s inevitability.

I’m really looking forward to feeling…

better, calmer, sexier, clearer, complete, healed, positive, enthusiastic, loving, back on top, centered, lighter…

and I know it’s possible…inevitable, in fact.

We can’t instantly LEAP from pain to happiness. We can get from pain to happiness really quickly, but there are steps, a healing sequence.

Respect yourself by looking at your pain.

Feel what it feels like.

Look forward to change.

And the healing has begun.