Acceptance the Anecdote to Avoidance— Allowing Emotions to Flow

Acceptance the Anecdote to Avoidance— Allowing Emotions to Flow

Acceptance doesn't mean liking every feeling — it means recognizing that emotions come and go, (yes just like they say - like clouds across a sky or a leaf floating down a stream, or maybe like a semi zooming past you on the freeway making your life flash before your eyes). Believe me I get it, easier said than done. Sometimes before we can truly accept, we have to trust and believe we can handle any emotion we are thrown aka distress tolerance (which to my knowledge there is no documented history of a human dying from an emotion). As we figure out how to build our belief that we can feel without dying, mindfulness gives us an approach to soften resistance and make room to trust the natural ebb and flow of our human-ness aka life experience.

Acceptance is a cornerstone of mindfulness. It doesn’t mean liking or approving everything we feel, but allowing it to be without resistance or while intentionally working on recognizing and releasing resistance. Emotions are like waves — they rise, peak, and pass. (in fact if we let ourselves feel them (vs avoid them that drives fun anxious cycles). How do we stop avoiding? Mindfulness. Awareness and then Acceptance (not judging or when we notice judging - shifting with compassion). When we accept our experiences as they are, without clinging or pushing away, we find flow which is so freeing. Today, practice saying to yourself: "I can handle this feeling." Neurodivergent / Trauma-informed twist: “I won’t always feel this way and I can handle it in this moment.” Have to keep our time blindness in check sometimes ; )

Thank you for being here and being you!

Mindfully Being,

Michelle Swerin, MA, LPCC, ADHD-CCSP, Autism-CCSP

& Fellow Struggler of Radical Acceptance - but doesn’t stop me from trying

My Mantra for the Day: I won’t always feel this way and I can handle it in this moment.