Breaking Chains: Embracing Growth Beyond Our Past Selves

One thing I’ve learned from these past few weeks is that we constantly hold on to our past. 

Like our past is what makes us who we are and the longer we stay in our present state we constantly remind ourselves of our past. 

Like what does the past me think about this? Or how would the past me react to something like this?

We are constantly forgetting that who we currently are is vastly different from the past us. 

We are not our past. We were never meant to live our lives through the lens of our past self. 

We are meant to constantly change. Constantly become the person that we are always meant to be. Constantly grow. 

Here are some things that I have personally learned: 

• My past does not define me. I have been holding on to who I was before things took a turn in my life and have been holding myself to that particular standard. I know in my heart that I am a different person that I was, but my brain is taking its sweet time catching up to my heart. 
• My thoughts are not always true. I have been carrying around this belief that everyone thinks I’m this sick weak girl who only knows how to cry. (I know, a lot is packaged in that one sentence). When I was younger I was hospitalized. I had no control over my body and was diagnosed with MS. So growing up, going to school, I always felt like I was that sick girl. It wasn’t true. It was a story I created for myself to protect myself from getting hurt.
• Just because someone else believes that I am a certain way, doesn’t make it true. Honestly going in to the holidays, our family is always going to bring up our past. It doesn’t matter how much we have grown, changed, even look different, our family will always see us as we were. And that’s okay. That does not mean that you are that person or that you need to be held to that standard. You’re your own person. 

What I am saying is that our past will always keep us captive to who we once were. It does not mean that we are the same person currently. 

But as you grow, as you get out of your comfort zone to be the person you were meant to be, your past will always rear its ugly head. 

So what can you do to not let your past influence your growth? 

Write down everything you believe you are (the past you). What you think defines who you are today. These will be I am statements. Then add “not” after I am. 

What you’re not going to do is let your past define you. Whether its certain attributes that were significant when you needed them to be or what was handed down to you from past generations. 

You have the power to break every chain that holds you back from being your true self. You just have to be brave enough to get the chain cutter and break them.