Tag: Feelings
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fear is (not) a liar
Fear is (not) a liarBy Lindsay L. O’ConnorI used to try to divorce myself from inconvenient feelingsthat seemed to:- stand in the way of my goals- threaten my connection with people I loved or depended on- make me uncomfortable.Those poor dears!They cowered in the dark, shoved down, covered up,sealed tight by shame, guilt, and anxiety.Do…
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unedited
What would you say if you stopped editing yourself? Not in a public forum, but just alone with your Self, and maybe even with God. Part of my deconstruction has been finding the safety to stop editing myself in what I share with God. I used to be so bound up in behaving correctly and…
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free play
Free PlayWhat would you do if you weren’t afraid? Those dear protectorsonly want to keep us safebut sometimes, they hem us in, behind and before, so our little world shrinkssmaller and smallerand we can’t see a way out anymore. Many times, what they want most in the world is to be heard, seen, acknowledged, validated.…
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children’s books for mental health awareness month
May is Mental Health Awareness Month! I keep hearing disturbing stats about the recent decline in mental health for kids, teens, and adults. Of course, there are many ways we must address this individually and collectively, but these are some really beautiful books to support children’s mental health. They cover topics such as anxiety, depression,…
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the inconvenience of our sadness
The Inconvenience of Our Sadness Do you ever feel so tired, you just weep and weep and weep? Weeping sounds so beautiful, like a willow— elegant sadness stretching out perpetually, showing off her delicate leaves draped on bending branches. My sadness never feels that lovely. It feels ugly, self-indulgent, and inconvenient— an obstacle to all…
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when you begin to feel again
When life is overwhelming, our wise bodies sometimes take an overdue break and our obedient hearts and minds follow suit. Maybe it feels like fatigue or illness or depression or apathy. Everything just shuts down. It all felt like too much, and it was. You were never meant to carry so much alone. And then,…
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Anxiety Dance
Anxiety Dance I used to think anxiety was a moral failure, a personal flaw, an indication of a lack of faith. I thought if I tried hard enough and prayed often enough, I could send her away, her departure the reward for my spiritual growth. Then, do you know, the more I tried to get…
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listen to your rage
Listen to your rage and hear the ache underneath— the excruciating gap between “should be” and “is actually.” Sometimes we call it grief. Feel it in your body— a burning, consuming flood of adrenaline priming you for action because “is actually” is actually unbearable. When your rage collapses, listen for its wisdom. Let it tell…
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this is why it hurts
this is why it hurts Did it hurt, the first time you gave yourself away? Did it sting, when the little pieces splintered into fragments that you wished you could take back, offered up like candy on the altar of broken relationships? Unaware, perhaps, of the crime you were committing, you were focused on perfecting…
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Jesus wept. We can, too.
We don’t have to buy into the cultural lie that sadness, anger, and grief are unholy indicators of a lack of faith. In fact, I would argue that a faith that hasn’t wrestled with doubt and grief is in danger of becoming, or has become, atrophied. In scripture, we see a Jesus who wept, got…
Lindsay L. O'Connor 