Lessons from the Dark Swamp.

Last week my blog was a series of “What if(s)…”  Afterward, a few readers asked me to discuss the specific “if(s)”, of which I’m happy to do so.

The “if” I’m starting with is,

“What if you embraced the awareness, that on the other side of the Dark Swamp, is something more beautiful than your current mind can even come close to imagining?”

So, the Dark Swamp (heavy…dark music just started).

Personally, I’ve spent some incredibly painful time in the swamp. My guess is that you have too. Sometimes the air in the swamp is so thick that you can’t see anything in front of you. Mostly in those moments, it feels like the pain will never end. Things will never be clear again.

Dark Swamps are about survival…about getting through another minute…another day…to have faith that it will eventually be okay, and a light will appear at some point.

You might be currently in a swampland — Addicted and trying to not pick up a drink or a drug to escape — Heartbroken and trying not to contact the person who used to be your everything — Feeling so much loss and trying to negotiate life without the person or pet who is no longer with — Recovering from some form of trauma and hoping to feel safe again.

You’re trying to stay alive…it feels unnatural…you’re trying to cope in a world that doesn’t feel like the world that you’ve known.  You’re lost.  You feel raw.  You want to escape.  It’s the swamp.  It’s a tough place to reside.

Okay, here’s what I know deep in my soul:

Life is life…a series of ups, downs, and sometimes a nice ride hanging out in the middle. Newton’s Third Law of Motion states, “Every action must have an equal and opposite reaction.” I might be crazy (totally am 🙂), but I believe that the depth of your despair in the Dark Swamp will be met with the exact opposing force of grace…of light.

Therefore, I wrote,

“on the other side of the Dark Swamp, is something more beautiful than your current mind can even come close to imagining.”

I wholeheartedly believe that. We break down only to rebuild ourselves stronger. We let go of people and things that don’t serve us, to make room in our lives for what is just waiting for an opening to join us. We come through this painful swampland with wisdom, with self-compassion, with respect and with self-love.  Our lives are changed in ways we never could have imagined.

So, how about you? My guess is that you have your own version of this swampy place. What did you learn about yourself in those dark moments? What did you find when you stepped out of them to discover the world that was waiting for you? Did you imagine that it would look the way it did?  Did you have gratitude and gain self-respect for your awesome inner-warrior? Did you become more in love with your spirit?

Any experience through the Dark Swamp is now a part of the new you.

It was necessary and its purpose was to bring you from where you were to where you are now. It was sent here to show you your humanity, your heart, to connect you with yourself, to find self-compassion and self-acceptance, to show you how strong you are, and to help you rise to a level that you didn’t know was possible.

If you’re currently in the Dark Swamp, please take this in:

The only way find the light that’s on the other side is to keep moving through it.

To ask for help and talk about it.  To acknowledge your pain…the isolation, the heartbreak, the confusion, the anger, the desire to check out. It’s going to get better than you can even come close to imagining.

That’s my truth.  I promise, it will get better.  What you’ve done in the past has predictable outcomes. How about trying something new?