As a very young child, I believed I was powerful. I knew I was special and that there was a divine purpose for my life. My connection to the Divine was deep, strong and pure. Through that connection, I easily manifested that which my heart desired.
As I continued to grow, I absorbed the feelings of shame and unworthiness in the environment around me. By the time I reached adulthood, those feelings had become entrenched in my heart and served to limit my potential.
This weekend I took Kathleen Hanagan’s workshop, Healing the Heart of Money. For me it was four power-packed, emotional hours exploring and releasing the shame and sense of unworthiness that was blocking me from living a life of abundance. I want to share some of what I took away from the workshop.
- Emotions such as shame cannot be released through an intellectual process. You have to allow yourself to feel and express the pain of your shame. If those feelings bring tears to your eyes, don’t fight them or try to hold them back. Allow the tears to flow and breath.
- Hear the message behind those feelings. Feelings such as shame and unworthiness drive limiting beliefs that impact your life. For me, it led me to believe I could not rely on others or the Divine to meet my needs; that I wasn’t worthy of a life of abundance and unconditional love. Explore what beliefs you hold that are driven by the feelings of shame or unworthiness. Becoming consciously aware of these beliefs and their impact on your life will allow you to choose to replace it with an empowering belief and change your future.
- The negative emotions such as shame and unworthiness that were soaked up when you were a child do not belong to you. It belongs to the adults who projected it into your environment. It is a reflection of their lives and how they felt about themselves. Explore what is behind their projected feelings. Love them for who they are and know they did the best they could.
- As adults we can choose to let go of these inherited feelings such as shame and unworthiness. Make a list of all the things in your life for which you are grateful. These things can be small or large or somewhere in between. Hold that feeling of gratitude for each item until you feel it start to change your outlook. A daily practice of gratitude helps remind you of your worthiness.
If you like me have struggled with feelings of shame and unworthiness, I invite you to also join me on a new adventure to discover your remarkableness; to learn that your birthright is a rich, full abundant life. It is waiting for you to claim it. For you truly are worthy!