If this statement pisses you off, I get it. It would’ve pissed me off too not that long ago. I hated blind optimism and platitudes about how all the shit I went through “made me a stronger person”.

I’m not trying to minimize your trauma or spiritually bypass the fact that there is a lot of screwed-up stuff constantly going on in this world. Trust me, I’m no Pollyanna, though my current outlook on life is considerably more positive than it’s ever been. All I’m asking is that you entertain the possibility that maybe every experience has a purpose, and that you are actually right where you’re supposed to be.

I wish that nothing bad had ever happened to me, or anyone else for that matter, but we all know that’s not the reality of life. All we can do is take what we were given, absorb the lessons that live in every experience, and move forward with hope for the future. What if you could be okay with that?

I find comfort in the fact that this is a fairly universal human experience. Some people get a worse deal than others, but for the most part, everyone goes through pain, hardship, grief, loss, mistreatment … all the things. So how do we reach a point of internal acceptance where we can find value in all our experiences, instead of judging some as better than others? What if we recognize that all of it affects us in some way or another, and it simply is what it is? Sometimes the gift is in developing the strength to find our way back to ourselves, though that can feel unfair. If we hadn’t been through all the chaos, we wouldn’t be who we are.

If you haven’t learned to like who you are, then this all feels hopeless and absurd. I was in that deep dark zone of self-loathing and frustration too. I understand that these words mean nothing when you’re there, but I also know that if you have the courage to look inward and meet yourself in the places the light does not currently enter, you can change the way you feel. In time. With compassion, patience, and understanding for your struggles along your own journey.

What if you could adjust your perspective, however impossible it may currently seem, and fall in love with yourself and the unique story you carry inside you?

You can make your narrative something you embrace rather than something you run from. You are worthy of every ounce of love that you can give yourself. Trust that the universe has your back if you surrender to the truth of your specific journey and what it’s asking of you. Accepting yourself is the first step in breaking through.

Sending you love and compassion. You got this.