Courage To Connect

📷: Rhoda Thurston - Lewis 🙏🏻

"You wanna fly, you got to give up the sh*t that weighs you down."

~ Toni Morrison, Song of Solomon

Hello, my open-hearted friends!

Last week I wrote about loneliness and its impact. I'm curious, did you find out what loneliness feels like in your body? Do you better understand how to help yourself through this experience? 

If you missed last week's message, or simply want to refresh, click here.  

Today, another look at how we are wired for connection and the obstacles that might trip us up along the way. 

I am an introvert who cherishes time alone. Knowing this about myself, and honoring this, definitely serves my well-being.  

I also know I put up barriers that keep me separate from others . . . even when I want and need connection. 

What kind of barriers you ask? Hmmmm. Vulnerability alert: this isn't the pretty stuff. Some of my favorite blockades include defensiveness, perfectionism, judgment, and lack of self-worth. 

When any of these barriers go up, and sometimes take center stage, I am sending signals to others to keep their distance. Truth? I can be a force and an unpleasant challenge.

At times, I even default to hiding myself away in order to spare others the totality of who I am. Why would someone want to be around me when I know I am miserable? 

Of course, this is typically when I most desire, and need, connection.

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So . . . how do we be more fully present with ourselves and others? ​Click here to read more.