Unlocking your true self

[XxSadAnDConFuSeDxX]

My therapist and I are tying to work on reaching my true self. But, I'm just having such a hard time. It's hard to sort through my feelings, things that have/are happening, ect. Its a mess. I don't know what to ask or what thoughts to ponder on. Any advice?

I'm trying to get some sort of ME back and have a little confidence.

[Feathe]

Why don t you try meditation where you just relax your body, focus on breath and then start asking yourself questions mentally and wait and see what replies you r going to get and this way connecting with your inner self and getting to know your inner self?maybe do this everyday for half an hour and see how you feel

[Hidden]

Part of working through an onslaught of feelings, for me, is recognizing that whatever I am going through is a part of me, it's a part of my true self. Only when I have been able to accept ALL of me have I been able to move past any particular moment. Journaling, meditation (sitting or walking), drawing--these are all things I have tried. When I was in professional school and I would have $20 "extra" each month, I finally walked down into the city and bought pastels and paper and every day after classes, I would sit and draw (I never liked art class as a child so this was big for me). It then gave me something to look forward to (the black and white TV I had found on the side of the road that only really tuned into a Korean soap opera only went so far since I don't speak or understand Korean, LOL), and I'm sure helped me process some of the loneliness and depression. Some things work sometimes and not other. Every time is different for me. Sorting through your feelings... it is a process. I have no idea if you will ever "find" your "true" self ... it almost seems like a way to increase visits................. I am skeptical of the language here, that somehow you are expressing your "false" self.

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

You said "..whatever I'm going through..is part of my true self" I couldn't agree more !

Accepting (and in my case, facing shame directly about) my shortcomings and variations has been been a continual fight for me but it seems to be making me stronger.

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

I'm glad you're sticking with yourself, accepting yourself. Accepting is sometimes much easier than fighting/struggling/searching/seeking. Take care of yourself.

[Runningfargal]

I really understand what you are going through. I just started seeking therapy at age 42 for my mental health. I am finding the more I ponder my childhood and life up until now, the more memories and thoughts it brings. I think of it as if I have been a “hoarder” of my feelings, thoughts and memories. I have never shared anything with anyone since I was a young child. So all my hurts and pain and struggles are a jumbled pile of “stuff” and I find it so difficult to sort though and figure out what is relevant to my identity and self now and what is “just my history” and really doesn’t play a huge part of who I am now or who I want to become. True self is hard to find, I think even people without mental health issues struggle with this. Hang in there and keep digging away at those feelings, memories, thoughts. A good friend reminded me, NOTHING is trivial if it matters to you. It’s your story and you have every right to every piece of it no matter how small you think it might be. So if you have a good and patient therapist, just start by picking a memory that comes to mind and talk about it. Don’t try to sort it out yourself first, let your therapist help you. It may be something that, after being spoken, really doesn’t impact you as much as you thought, so you move on and pick another. But maybe it does, so you start to examine it and talk about it more with your therapist. Hang in there, own your story and start finding you. Best of luck.