Did you know that people who suffer from chronic pain will develop a pain identity?
It's true.....
Although this is normal, when we use I, My, or Me when describing our pain, it reinforces that this sensation is now part of us. Think for a moment about how you talk about your pain. If you were to tell me about it, would you use words like.......
My back…My knee… I have this… I have that.....
These are the words that make pain ours and part of our identity, and we develop an unhealthy relationship with pain. When our identity is formed around our pain story, it becomes more challenging to let go of and heal.
We become dependent on it and do things to sabotage our progress because we don't know what to do without the story we have identified with for so long. By listening to our pain and acknowledging it for what it is, we can remove it from our identity; this separation of identity and pain is vital in changing our relationship with the sensations we feel.
"As long as you make an identity out of your pain, you cannot be free of it." -Eckhart Tolle.
If you have allowed pain to become part of your identity, please know that you are more than your pain, and you deserve to break free from your suffering.
Here is another common way to hinder your healing.
Not-feeling worthy:
The "I do not deserve to get well" is a very common subconscious belief that has sabotaged many on their healing journey. There is a deeply held belief that you do not deserve to get well whether you acknowledge it or not.
This is the result of a lack of self-love and self-respect. Deep down, you don't believe that you deserve to get well. The feeling of unworthiness comes from holding on to old hurts.
As a child, you might have been scolded and abused, physically or mentally, and now every time the same pattern of abuse appears, it validates your negative belief.
Then these beliefs and stories become part of the excuse you tell yourself as to "WHY NOT" rather than a powerful "WHY."
Some examples I have heard include "this is not the best time to take care of my needs" or "I could not find time to walk or go to buy healthy foods to cook meals." Does this sound familiar?
These stories all seem valid and make sense as something the conscious mind can believe, as the subconscious mind keeps playing the story of your unworthiness repeatedly and doesn't allow you to make yourself a priority.
The great news is that as you heal and notice the repeated stories, you can turn them off, and these reasons will no longer be valid or hold you back.
The voices in your head can be hard to change because you've been listening to them for so long. One of the best ways to heal from negative thoughts is recognizing which voices are not yours. The easiest way to achieve this is to note what you say to yourself; what is the internal dialog?
The comments you make that are nasty and mean and not supportive are NOT YOURS. Once you identify the negative self-talk and get back in touch with the voice of your authentic self, when you notice negative, destructive thoughts, you have the power to change them with positive affirmations and encouraging thoughts.
When we have negative thoughts that replay repeatedly, we start to believe these thoughts and think they are our own. However, negative self-talk is often the beliefs and thoughts of others that we have picked up during our interactions with others.
By learning to identify negative self-talk and changing our internal dialog, we are one step closer to limiting possible self-sabotage on our healing journey. Use positive affirmations whenever you notice a negative thought, negative self-talk, or self-doubt.
You can also switch the negative words with positive, loving words.
If you notice you have the belief that you're not worthy of good health.........
Start to use the affirmation "I'm worthy of experiencing extraordinary health and wellness."
Believe it because it's true...... You are WORTHY 🙂
