WHY do We Feel Guilty?

The holidays often bring out the best and sometimes the worst in us. Old hurtful messages we thought disappeared, of not being enough or not measuring up, resurface. Why do we feel guilty with an anxiety of expectations of ourselves and others that are a part of holidays?

Many of us wish things were different, and we become lost in conjectures of how we think things should be.I’ve heard it said guilt for some is an emotional safety check that allows us to reexamine our behaviors. Many times guilt is merely situational and often misplaced.

How Can we Release Unnecessary and Self-defeating

Feelings of beingGuilty:

1. We Notice our thoughts. Awareness is where our inner-voice comes alive and our ability to change begins. When this happens, it may sound weak; but it is your intuition, your highest self, guiding you. If possible, write it down and revisit it as a prayer in meditation. Are we feeling guilty for eating five Holiday Cookies or for harboring a certain angst against someone? These are examples of situational guilt and we can change, let it go, by not eating five cookies again, and/or by making amends to that certain someone.

2.Replace Self-defeating Messages.With awareness comes the ability to replace old tapes, those messages we’ve heard a thousand times, withpositivefacts about ourselves. Here are three examples until you develop your own that speak to you:

3.Journal.This powerful gateway opens our heart to authenticity and goes far to diminish guilt through positive fact-finding. Wefind a positive examplefor each negative, and before we know it, our mood changes and guilt disappears. We stay away from strict, black or white reflecting and with positive examples, find comfort and our truth, in the middle.

I am better than Ithink I am,
I am doing the best I can and my best is good enough!
I deserve to say what I mean, mean what I say and not say it mean.

What would your positive messages look like and how do they enhance your highest-thinking? If you spot it, then it is already there inside of you. All we do is resurrect it, and put it into practice. The more assertive we become in our self-talk, the fewer opportunities for guilt remain.

4. Prayer and Meditationis the spiritual path for many of us to seek guidance, regardless of the issue. What we focus on, becomes our reality. The practice of open-mindedness moves us to engage the universe and a power greater than ourselves to do for us what we cannot.

5. STOP using demeaning self-deprecating words against ourselves! We are not here by accident. Each of us has a purpose, mistakes to make, and a divine requirement to pass lessons learned on. There is nothing we can give away if we don’t have it.Apersonal promise helps to communicate love and respect to ourselves. Repetition, practicewith a dedication to our deserving selves will change our thinking. Actions follow.

We Let Go of Perfectionistic Thinking

By accepting what is, we embrace ourselves with a positive resolution to change and leave guilty feelings behind because by now, it should be disappearing. Our awareness, with love and kindness, invites a process of letting go of the unnecessary hurtful guilt that kept us stuck in old behaviors and harmful untruths.

What is your personal resolution for the New Year? Less guilt means more freedom to be who you really are. Today is the perfect day torecreate a guilt-free you.