Navigating Denial

Navigating denial is the first stage we all experience when we go through a major loss in our lives. We try to deny the pain we feel and avoid the inevitable by indulging ourselves with things that numb the emptiness grief has left us with. You begin to grieve initially when contemplating walking away from our past existence. Grief does not become present after loss; grief shows up before we physically see the change.

 

Distortion can become our own perception when we choose to lay with our illusions. We begin not to recognize ourselves in the process; we find comfort in illusions, hoping they will provide some sort of relief, convincing ourselves that we made the right decision or that staying complacent can still facilitate growth. Either way, we are grieving who we refuse to be or beginning to grieve who we once were to become who we are meant to be.

 

At a certain point in ourselves, we do not have control over our environment, especially as children. The world around us becomes our experience and shapes us into who we are. We begin to become conditioned by society, institutions, peers, and family to exist in a space where we survive in life instead of experiencing it. It can be hard to unlearn what has been ingrained in us.

 

No one holds us hostage to the system; our power exists within the decisions we make. We can either allow a conditioned lie to take over our lives or begin to find our truth and give it the opportunity to foster growth and healing.