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- So many people out there are stuck in the past for a lot of meaningful reasons. Some may have had great experiences in the past that simply don’t live up to what’s happening in the present. Others experienced pain and trauma in the past that has essentially frozen their personal development in that time and blocked them from moving forward.
thevessel.io › unmistakable-signs-youre-stuck-in-the-past-and-how-to-move-forward7 unmistakable signs you're stuck in the past and how to move ...
In this post, we shall discuss how to recognize the signs you are stuck in the past, why it happens, and how to let go of the past to live in the present. Jump to a section: Signs you are stuck in the past; Reasons why you are stuck in the past; How to let go of the past and move on; 10 Signs You Are Stuck in The Past
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- Stop trying to be the hero of your story. We've all been hurt. It's sad and embarrassing — no-one wants to look weak. That's why we construct our idealized version of the past.
- Don't let others define who you are. Blaming others when things go wrong makes us lose control. We are letting them define the terms of how we live. You can't control what other people do, but you can control how you react.
- Learn to forgive yourself. When something goes wrong, we tend to blame ourselves, too. We have a hard time accepting that we make mistakes and let our perfectionist mindset take over.
- Don't let your problems define you. When we get so stuck in a problem, it becomes hard to separate the event from who we are. According to Eckhart Tolle, we also create and maintain problems because they give us a sense of identity.
- Your emotions are flashbacks. Unless you are going through a traumatic event in your current life, your emotional state is likely a flashback. Traumatic emotions don’t need dramatic triggers to come to the surface.
- You unconsciously believe you need to repeat the past to resolve it. I am not suggesting you are walking through life with a conscious desire to repeat the past.
- You think that numb is better than feeling. If you experienced trauma in childhood, the emotions would have overwhelmed you. As a young child, you could not have resolved that trauma and expressed those emotions as you needed.
- You are distracted by perfectionism and the need for approval. When your inner world is tumultuous, you may have moved your focus to the external world.
If you’re stuck in the past, you’re very likely to be unsatisfied with the present and your situation in it. So you walk around with a big, dark cloud hanging over your head all the time. But you also don’t make changes. You complain about your job but don’t look for a new one.
- Be intentional. As you realize you're stuck in the past, you may have a realization that something needs to change in order for you to move forward. Personal growth and progress always starts with an intention—a wanting and a willingness to do something differently in order to get a different result.
- Take the time to process your thoughts and emotions. Understand that healing is not linear, and letting go takes time. After all, we can't change the past, and we may never be the same—but that doesn't mean we have to stay stuck.
- Work with an affirmation or mantra. Affirmations and mantras can be a powerful tool to help "rewire" negative thought loops, priming the brain to look for and believe in what it is you're telling yourself, which is why Richmond recommends them for letting go of the past.
- Cultivate mindfulness. We may not even realize we're stuck in the past if we aren't consciously aware of the thoughts that run amok in our minds. As such, Spinelli says, mindfulness is an important practice for letting go of the past.
Apr 6, 2020 · Feeling unable to let go of the past can lead to clinical depression, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), or even suicide. Pain has a way of making us feel stuck.
May 10, 2020 · Being stuck in the past is one of the most common issues I address in my therapy office. While some people have PTSD that makes it hard to move forward, others are simply stuck in rumination...
