The Gratitude Challenge

Yesterday I was challenged on Facebook to participate in something called the Gratitude Challenge. This type of challenge is awesome because it allows you to focus on all of the positive things in your life instead of the negatives. I know we always try to focus on the positive things, but with all of the things we've got going on in our everyday lives, it's kind of hard.

Most people know me as a pretty happy person, who is always smiling and seems to be enjoying life. They're right, for the most part I am. However, my life hasn't always been sunshine and rainbows. I've seen my fair share of demons and have battled with self-esteem issues my whole life. The psychologist in me blames all of these issues on the absence of a father figure in my early childhood. Because I didn't have a dad growing up, I strived to be perfect. When I wasn't perfect, things were bad and I felt like an empty space. I've hit some pretty rock bottom places, but have always seemed to get myself out. I pretended like everything was okay when it wasn't, and I got good at playing that game. I actually ended up going to see a therapist and it was probably the best decision of my life. It was honestly an investment in my mental well being, which I deserved. I took the therapist's words to heart and have never looked back.

Fast forward to now, and I feel like I've become a well-adjusted (hahaha or so I like to pretend) adult. I've surrounded myself with an incredible support system and try to welcome the positive in instead of the negative. I pray a lot and try to give back to not only the community but to other countries as well. I've got so much to be thankful for, and I think when you look at your life in its entirety, you realize that you don't have it so bad.

So why did I lay this out on the table? Because I think sometimes we pretend to have a perfect life when we don't. We don't want people to see our weaknesses or our struggles. I remember I used to feel like I was so alone when I was struggling with certain issues. I felt like I couldn't share my problems with anyone else for fear of being judged. I realized that thinking this way is probably the stupidest thing ever. It didn't make sense. How else are we supposed to be lifted up when there's no one there to lift us up? I've learned better...

So what now? Honestly, I'm not too sure. I'm still taking it one day at a time. I make a lot of mistakes, but I learn from them and move on. I'm not perfect, and I'm slowly starting to accept that, but overall, I'm pretty happy with who I am right now. I'm sure you're over my deep thinking post, so I'll leave by saying.. Try the gratitude challenge.. I promise you'll enjoy it :)