I have worked on my self-development, self-love, self-acceptance, and self-compassion, endlessly over the years. And I have come so far. From a scarred, bruised, shell of a person… to someone who is happy, whole and thriving. Credit goes to my unwavering spiritual path, and my commitment to always moving forward in life, and never ever giving up… even when faced with adversity and struggle. I now stand in a very privileged place… full of abundance. And this really does prove to me, that our outer worlds… our experiences in life… really do reflect what is going on inside ourselves. My outer world used to be empty and miserable. It was full of self-loathing and personal inadequacies. Because my inner world was flailing, big time. Consequently, I had very little in my life and very few things to be grateful for.
Now I am committed to a spiritual view of life, where peace and love and faith come naturally to me. I am committed to loving and honouring myself, every day. So, my life is certainly blissful at times… full of hope… full of joy… full of promise… and full of abundance. Even on bad days, I feel grateful and lucky to be who I am and to be living the life that I am. And when you view yourself (and your life) this way, miracles really can and do happen. I truly believe that.
You must do the inner work though. What does that look like? I recommend that you surrender your healing and growth to the universe. If you completely surrender, and pray for guidance, the universe will show you the path forward. You will be able to intuitively know which way to go, and what work you need to do to grow and learn. The inner work for me included introspection, meditation, writing, reading spiritual and personal growth books, and pushing myself beyond my self-imposed limits. Do not discount the inner power and growth that moving beyond your comfort zone will provide. Learning about the art of manifestation and the importance of having unwavering faith in the universe was a big learning curve for me too. When I relax into knowing that the universe always has my back, I am able to surrender and just enjoy life, in the moment. Worrying and stressing about the future just dissipates.
My inner world now looks like this: I am able to be kind to myself, I allow myself to really feel my feelings when needed… and give myself the space to heal. I show myself self-love and self-compassion, which allows me to move through adversity with grace and understanding. I am able to lean on self-acceptance and forgive myself for my shortcomings. I believe in miracles and trust that the universe will provide these miracles in the right timing. I trust and have faith in the universe’s plan and know that the universe is always working towards my highest good. Through the process of surrender I am able to lean into love and joy in the present moment, knowing I am always being supported and taken care of. I believe I am able to co-create my future by using positive affirmations and visualisations, and with it this brings self-empowerment and anticipation for all the wonderful things that I know, in time, will manifest.
As someone who has dealt with serious mental health issues in the past, I know what it is like to be held back in life because of the negative stigma that surrounded me at every turn. This is what it was like for me at the beginning of my journey. And if you can relate to this, I honour you. It is difficult to move beyond society’s expectations. But let my journey show you that despite a mental health diagnosis, you can grow and learn and become a better person. You must be fierce in your pursuit of your dreams though, and do not allow naysayers to get in the way. Simply know, that if you want it badly enough, you can do it. You can move forward and become a vibrant, happy, whole individual who lives an abundant and meaningful life.
Do the inner work, and you will see just how wonderful your outer world can be.
Kate's Niche 