“When we numb the dark, we numb the light.” — Brene Brown

I spent years numbing. Decades even. I kept numbing the dark emotions with things like alcohol and perfectionism so I wouldn’t have to feel any pain, but what I didn’t realize was that I was also numbing the light. I was chasing false light that was never going to be found while I was in the dark.
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Brené Brown says in her book The Gifts of Imperfection, “When we lose our tolerance for discomfort, we lose joy.” I refused to feel discomfort, I numbed it away, and therefore I could never really experience joy.
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Once I quit drinking and started to allow myself to fully feel EVERY emotion whether it sucked or not, joy returned to my life. Not only that, but the spark ⚡️ in myself that was extinguished for years was relit 💡 That picture ☝🏻 could’ve never happened when I was numb. That genuine smile wasn’t a possibility because there was no real joy. I cried when I saw this picture of myself. I hardly even recognized the person I was becoming…and what’s even more crazy was that I was only becoming my TRUE SELF. Who I was MEANT to be.
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If you want to take back your life, if you want to start living in your OWN direction, stop numbing.
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It doesn’t have to be alcohol, you could be numbing with all kinds of things. Brené Brown lists a few, “drugs, food, sex, relationships, money, work, caretaking, gambling, staying busy, affairs, chaos, shopping, planning, perfectionism, constant change, and the Internet.”
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Once I stopped numbing my whole life opened up and I saw the work that needed to be done. It hasn’t been easy but it’s been so worth it and I’m never going back. The world needs our light 💡 I’m with you friends, love you! ❤️