perspective

Shifting your perspective has the ability to change EVERYTHING. I truly lived my life with the lens of a pessimist for years. I was so engrained to view every aspect of my life in a negative frame. Anxiety, depression, and grief took control of my mind and I was sitting in the passenger seat for years while I let my mind drive out of control. Now regaining my seat back as the driver, I have the ability to look at life from a brand new perspective.

everything’s changing, i’m scared of the unknown vs. EVERYTHING’S CHANGING, NOTHING’S PERMANENT! 🦋🌷🌈

• Nothing’s permanent, not even those scary thoughts that might consume your mind. You are never stuck. You can think new thoughts. You can create new habits. You can reinvent yourself. How beautiful is it that every day, every hour, every minute, every second we’re evolving. Every single moment of our lives we are changing into the best version of ourselves!

i feel so deeply, i hate being so sensitive vs. I FEEL SO DEEPLY, I HAVE SO MUCH CAPACITY FOR LOVE AND JOY! ❤️

• Big emotions mean you care deeply. You have so much capacity to give and receive love. You can feel joy like no other. How wonderful is it that we get to experience these emotions so intensely!

i’m on a different path than everyone around me, why am i so different? vs. I’M ON A DIFFERENT PATH THAN EVERYONE AROUND ME, MY DREAMS ARE SO BIG!

• I am no longer bound by society’s standards of what a 20 year-old should be doing. I’m on my own path and that looks extremely different than most 20 year-olds but how AMAZINGLY BEAUTIFUL is it that God has such a unique path for my life. My priorities are different than most people my age because my goals are so different than everyone else's. HOW COOL IS THAT! How cool is it that we are all so unique and authentically ourselves. Once you begin to own the authentic version of yourself God made you to be, you begin to realize how freeing life can be!

i’m alone, i’m so lonely vs. I’M ALONE, I’M BOUND BY NOTHING🌎🌞

• We are all on a journey of discovering who we are at our core. If I were to ask you “Who is {insert your name} at your core? What would you say? Personally, my answer would have been somewhere along the lines of being a college student. I would insert some of my resume bullet points. I would talk about my friends and family and that would about sum me up. But who you are at your core is who you are outside the external factors of your life. Who is Emily at her core?  Well, to be honest, I’m still figuring that out, but I do know at my core I am a child of God. I know I was made to be in the sun and by the ocean all the time. I know I have a passion for storytelling, through writing and filming. The rest is still unknown and I’m constantly changing and discovering who I am as we speak. The key to true happiness is looking within yourself. The external world is beyond your control. How beautiful is it to realize the freedom of knowing who you are at your core. You no longer have a desire to chase after people. You can be alone and not just be okay but be happy with it. You can trust that being the person you are at your core is enough to attract and release the right people. HOW FREEING!!!

nothing matters, life is pointless vs. NOTHING MATTERS, I CAN DO ANYTHING!

• So much freedom comes with this phrase! We are all in the driver seat’s of our lives and at the end of the day, we have the power to decide where we go. We have the freedom to change our lives at any given moment to make it meaningful.

If you’re at a point in your life where you are viewing everything from the lens of the pessimistic phrases, you are not alone. I know how isolating this is, but I encourage you to not be discouraged. The external factors of the world more often than not can get the best of us and twist our perception of life. Observe your thoughts and know you are not your thoughts. You are simply the one noticing them. I know how paralyzing regaining control of your mind can be when it is running rampant. The first step on my journey to regaining control was learning to live in the present moment. Focus on the world around you and let your mind take note of the breeze on your skin, your feet in the grass, your skin against the soft blanket, the sun rays hitting your face - whatever it may be. We are all so unique and what works for me won’t always work for the next, but some of the small steps I took to being present in the moment were meditating, journaling, reading, swimming, and only focusing on today’s tasks instead of making my to-do lists days prior. We are all on our own beautifully unique journeys and turning internally can help you to figure out what your first step is. I am by no means a medical professional but I will take any chance I can get to encourage anyone to seek out therapy or medical professionals to guide you on this journey. Without therapy, I would have never made the progress I have. If this is something you are on the fence about, take this as your sign to try it out and open your eyes to the ways it can transform your soul! It took me a few different tries over the last 8 years before I was able to find someone that works for me and fully commit myself to going weekly, but it’s a journey well worth the effort! Just because your transformation is taking time doesn’t mean it’s not happening.

One of the greatest ways to relieve the mind is to let go of the fear of the “what ifs” and judgment of others. Do what’s best for you and OWN IT!

Keep being the most authentic and beautiful version of YOU! The world needs it! <3