If you have felt like you have been living in a sort of Twilight Zone for the past year and a half, you are not alone. If questions such as “What is my purpose, and how can I reignite it?” have crossed your mind, you are not the only one. When a tragedy and a crisis occur, it seems we tend to lose ourselves in all of the negative energy that surrounds us. As humans, we tend to feel guilt as a result of the decrease in our production. You see, in America especially we are taught to work for everything we earn, and when our potential to do that for ourselves decreases, we tend to automatically feel guilty.
This is not to say that this guilt is a weakness, but more a natural reaction. It is an element in the human experience that is almost as prevalent as fear. This pandemic has certainly not lacked copious amounts of fear. It is a more or less normal human reaction to be scared when our livelihoods are taken away in a split second. I am sure it hits differently when it is for the sake of health. However, it does not make the mental toll any less dramatic. Mental health is a real struggle and is one that should be talked about more often.
The sole purpose of this article is to let you know that you are not alone. Sometimes, we tend to get trapped in our own black hole and physically cannot see beyond the darkness. We are blinded by floods of tears that are not only produced from sadness but also an overwhelming amount of frustration. We tend to get hooked on the what ifs, and our anxiety and mindset refuses to let go without consequence. Sometimes, situations like this tend to take over our minds so much that we are swimming in a pool of despair and cannot do anything but drown further. This can in turn cause lack of sleep and a decline in mental clarity. I completely understand.
Our brain and our bodies are no doubt incredible mechanisms. They sustain our lives and keep us going to the best of their abilities. However, while they keep us alive, they can also overcrowd us, and sometimes it becomes so much that we just let our fear and anxiety crowd our space. This can become extremely hard to overcome and walk away from with a sense of pride. One of the main reasons this becomes problematic is because your mind then registers these negative and anxiety ridden thoughts as truth. I believe this is why we are careful not to send our brains into panic overdrive.
If you are feeling this way, you are not crazy or weak like the bulk of society would have you believe. You are simply just a human trying to survive and make your way through an overloaded world. I want you to know that you are not made up of only the negative thoughts your mind perceives. You are also composed of many amazing elements which lend lightness and grace to the world. Someone somewhere out there needs your light to continue to shine as brightly as possible.
Someone out there is particularly inspired by the life you lead, so much so that they would give anything to follow your example. We now know what it feels like to be beaten up and bruised by life. However, we also know what it feels like to come out victorious on the other side. As humans, we do our best to coast through life. Despite the many pressures that society puts out on us to be perfect, please do me a favor and remember that no singular human on this Earth is perfect. We all make mistakes. In fact, mistakes are the bread and butter of the human experience. So, if you take away one thing from this article, let it be that your best is the best you can do, no more or no less. We truly have been working hard on getting through this together. We are doing the absolute best that we can. Remember that the next time you want to beat yourself up for something insignificant. Remember that we are all treading as lightly as possible to jump over these hurdles, and one day, we will look back on everything with a tremendous amount of pride and strength!