2023 is just around the corner.
2022 is almost finished but our lives continue.
Did you set resolutions or intentions at the beginning of the year?
Have you achieved at least one of your resolutions?
If not yet, the good news is you have a lifetime to achieve your resolutions as long as you make a small step towards it.
On another note, did you make mistakes during the year?
Most of us mums are carrying the guilt mum. The guilt of not being at home to care for children, the guilt of going to work, the guilt of missing a school concert, the guilt of not remembering the uniform-free school day, the guilt of yelling at the children and the list goes on.
We are hard on ourselves most of the time.
Forgiving others could be easier than forgiving ourselves.
Society is not much of help either.
We are constantly being judged.
Regret, shame, and guilt prevent us from letting go of our past mistakes.
Rather than reflecting on the experience and learning from it so that we can move forward, we tend to dwell on these unfortunate times.
We easily remain trapped in the past if not consciously making a shift.
There are some simple strategies that can help you come to terms with the things that you have done in the past, learn from these missteps, and embrace a future that includes a fulfilling life.
Try these strategies:
1. Be bluntly honest with yourself and others about your errors and hold yourself accountable.
- Take time to reflect on the mistake that you’re unable to get over. Clearly identify what you did or didn’t do and own up to it instead of trying to justify your actions.
- Acknowledging the error by being honest with yourself and stating where and how you went wrong is the first step to releasing the pain, guilt, and shame that you feel.
- Examine the events and circumstances that led to your faux pas and be honest about how you felt then and are feeling now.
- Consider how your mistake impacted others in both a physical and emotional sense.
- Talk about your slip-up with a close friend, relative, counselor, or religious leader that you trust. Seek their opinion, feedback, and guidance about the severity of your error. It’s likely that they’ll see your mistake in a more forgiving light than you do.
2. Try to remedy the situation and make amends.
Consider what you could have done differently to prevent your mistakes and develop a plan to act differently if you face a similar situation in the future. This can help you forgive yourself. You deserve forgiveness.
- Even if it has been quite some time since the situation occurred, if the result of your error caused harm to others, consider offering an apology and asking for forgiveness. This action alone can be very healing for both you and the person that suffered harm because of your mistake.
- Sometime there is no remedy to the situation and that is OK. If you’re unable to make amends with those who were directly affected, consider doing good deeds and acts of kindness to show to yourself and others that you truly regret your actions.
- If your poor decision resulted in a monetary loss, seek to make restitution.
- Share your story with others so that they might be able to avoid making the same error.
3. Realise that you’ve grown and you’re no longer the same person that made the original slip-up.
Continue to seek ways to help others, pay it by giving advice from your experience and avoid actions that might lead to a similar lapse of judgment in the future.
All of us make mistakes, and sometimes they come with serious and grave consequences.
Regardless of how serious our errors might have been, all of us deserve forgiveness.
Seizing the opportunity to repent and make amends will help everyone involved heal and put it in the past and move forward lightly. We all deserve forgiveness.
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