Monster in the Coset

Monster in the Closet

You knew it all along … even thought your parents denied it, you could never find it, but somehow deep inside all along you knew it was the truth. There is a monster in your bedroom closet.

“Oh Wow”, you say: “I knew it was true. What did I ever do to be haunted by a monster?” Well, the answer is, you’ve been hoarding. Not newspapers or new shoes, but feelings. Negative ones. You’ve been tucking those negative feelings, thoughts, emotions, anger, and sadness away in a box in your closet. You open the door, toss it inside and slam the door shut again quickly so nothing falls out and you don’t have to look to closely at what’s in there.

It’s overwhelming. Looking too closely at our feelings is uncomfortable and overwhelming. Many of my clients tell me that they are afraid of their negative emotions. They say, “If I were to start crying, I would ever stop”. Or, they tell me that if they acknowledge their anger they would hurt someone. That’s not really true … anger is like exposing chocolate to the heat of the sun … it melts quickly once it’s out in the open. The record for actively crying is 10 minutes. Your sadness or your anger simply cannot hold power over you.

While it is true that feelings and thoughts feed off of each other, you can take your power back. Stop hoarding these thoughts and feelings. Instead, recognize them, acknowledge and forgive them and then express your gratitude for what they can teach you.

Here’s how:
I feel sad. Acknowledge and feel the sadness. Own it. Tell yourself: “I know I feel sad and I forgive the sadness. Because I know sadness, I can feel joy and so I can appreciate the sadness”.

I feel angry. Acknowledge and feel the anger. Own it. Tell yourself: “I forgive myself for feeling angry and I’m grateful for the anger for what it can show me about myself”.

I feel confused. Acknowledge and feel the confusion. Own it. Tell yourself “I forgive myself for being confused, for not know the answer to my problem and I am grateful for this opportunity to experience new beginnings”.

While it may be a repetitive process to conquer these feelings – after all you’ve been stuffing them for a long time – but you will eventually find that the monster that you thought was in your closet is nothing more than a little dust bunny hiding in the corner.
Vickie Griffith
www.break-through.org
Words are powerful. Find out which five will stop your healing process download this free report. http://www.break-through.org/5words.html