Living with unresolved childhood trauma up until my late 20s and struggling with major depression and anxiety into my early 40s made it easy to often feel like I hated life.Ā
Maybe it was a way of coping with feeling overwhelmingly intense emotions day in and day out. Maybe it was black and white thinking or getting stuck in a moment with an all or nothing viewpoint. Maybe it was (or is) truly how I feel but not the whole picture.
I've always loved roses and it dawned on me one day that I don't care for thorns but that doesn't make me hate roses. I could choose to view life the same way, or at least try to.
I can hate parts of life AND choose to see the beauty in life.
I don't care for the pain and struggles but I don't have to hate everything about life. Itās been quite the journey since then but I'm pretty sure that's when a roseylicious life mindset was born.
Itās been about a decade since that enlightened moment. Iām happy to report that the struggle can ease up and life can indeed get easier to manage. The journey is not easy and it takes work and persistence to find your path, but recovery is possible.
Iāll be sharing more insights and reflections pulled from over 17 years of lived expertise learning to reach then maintain recovery from major depression, anxiety and complex trauma (including childhood sexual abuse).
Sending you survivor love + healing vibes,
Viv