I think we realize early in life that physical wounds are not the only wounds we experience.
As we grow up, we learn that emotional wounds can be just as common and can hurt just as bad (if not more).
But while we heal our physical wounds, we can’t say the same for the emotional ones.
A lot of the time, these wounds tend to linger on and affect us in ways that we can’t even comprehend.
It’s important to heal these wounds if you want to live a full-fledged and fulfilling life.
Whether you have been through a traumatizing event, heartbreak, rejection, depression, or any other emotionally taxing incident, you must make sure your past isn’t haunting you.
To that end, let’s take a look at some of the most effective ways of healing emotional wounds.
1) Take Small Steps
Emotional healing can be a long journey depending on how deep your wounds are.
Therefore, you need to focus on taking small steps.
If you start thinking about the whole journey or the finish line, you might become anxious and might quit before you even start.
Think of it as driving your car on a road at night.
You might not be able to see your destination or more than 10 feet in front of your car, but you drive anyway.
You trust that with each passing second, you are making progress, and you will ultimately reach where you want to.
Take this approach to emotional healing, and half of your job will be done right off the gate.
2) Be Patient With Yourself
Again, emotional healing is a long journey, and you need to be patient with yourself.
You need to think of it as pursuing any other dream or goal.
There will be setbacks along the way, there will be days when you won’t feel like you have made any progress, and there will be days when you’ll feel like you are falling back into the trap of your emotional wounds.
It’s totally normal to experience these feelings.
But you have to be patient and persistent, even if it gets a little difficult. In the end, when you will have healed your wounds, it will have been worth it.
3) Accept Support
One reason why so many people don’t heal their emotional wounds is that they don’t accept other people’s support.
Somehow, they feel like they need to be alone or deal with matters on their own.
It might also be that they feel awkward sharing how they feel or that they don’t want to bother other people.
It’s understandable if you have these thoughts.
But know that you don’t have to take the journey alone.
If someone offers help, take it.
That way, it will be much easier to deal with your past.
You can also proactively reach out to your loved ones and open up about your predicament. Tell them exactly what you need from them.
If you don’t know that, that’s okay! Just their presence and understanding will go a long way in helping you heal. Of course avoid any jealeous people or toxic people……
4) Be Yourself
I think this is a great piece of advice in general.
But it is even more important when it comes to emotional healing.
Often, if you are hurting from an emotional wound, you might take on new behaviors, habits, or traits that are not authentic to you.
For instance, if you have been hurt, you might start hurting other people, even if it is not your true nature.
So, it’s important to be your authentic self.
Just do what comes naturally, eat what you want to, wear what feels natural, and stand up for your values and beliefs.
This will help instill a sense of confidence in you.
You won’t feel the need to wear masks of different personalities to hide your inner self from the world.
5) Realize That The Past Doesn’t Exist
Being fearful of an imaginary enemy is a sheer waste of time and energy.
And frankly, it’s silly!
Wouldn’t you agree?
Well, that’s what we do when we let the past haunt us in the present.
Look, for all intents and purposes, the past doesn’t actually exist.
It is gone. That’s why we call it the past!
The present moment is the only real thing.
It’s where you, your thoughts, and your emotions exist.
So, it’s only logical that your attention should be anchored in the present moment.
That way, the past’s effects on you will be greatly reduced. You will realize that it’s better to leave the past where it belongs.
6) Practice Self-Care
It is common for people to forget about their needs and wants when they are dealing with an emotional wound.
Their entire focus is captured by the fact that they were wronged, and it hurt a lot.
Their minds may be in a constant loop trying to figure out why they went through their painful experiences.
Obviously, in such a state of mind, it’s quite easy to forget that you need to take care of yourself.
As such, your physical, mental, and emotional health can deteriorate further.
So, you need to make sure that you practice self-care. I know, it will not feel like it initially, but you have to force yourself to get started.
Once you do, it will get easier by the day. And slowly, it will help you realize that you should be your first priority. And this will help you heal.
7) Engage In A Creative Activity
It’s always fun to engage in creative activities.
They capture your attention like nothing else.
It could be writing in your journal, making a sketch, writing poetry, taking photos, gardening, etc.
You should ensure that you spend at least some time every day engaging in your favorite creative activity.
That way, not only will you do something productive, but your mind won’t wander to dark places.
Plus, such activities can serve as an outlet to express yourself.
They can help you bring out years of suppressed thoughts and feelings.
This will make you feel lighter (even though it might hurt initially). I mean, crying hurts, but it also leaves you feeling lighter.
The same logic applies here too.
8) Help Other People Out
Sometimes, the best way to help yourself is to help other people.
There is something about us human beings that makes us feel great after helping someone in need.
And I am not only talking about doing charity work.
- You could help your family or friends in any way you can.
- You could guide a younger person looking for a word of advice.
- You could even help a random stranger online by answering their questions.
When you do this, you feel good about yourself.
You realize that you are a good person and if someone wrongs you, that’s on them.
Also, helping someone out is a really good karma.
And the universe has to respond kindly to that at one point.
So, just do your thing and make positive changes in people’s lives whenever you can.
9) Reinvent Yourself
Some emotional wounds are so deep and so painful that you just need a fresh start.
This is why so many people move to different states or countries and start building a new life.
If you think this will help you, please take this route.
If not, you could also reinvent yourself by staying where you are.
This will require you to go back to who you really are as a person.
- What do you want from life?
- What are your strengths?
- What are your weaknesses?
- What are your tendencies?
Figure out the answers to all these questions and draw up a fresh plan for your life.
The more you will be in action mode, the less you will think about the past.
And as you start reinventing yourself, your older self (the one who was hurt) will slowly begin to wither away.
10) Take Breaks
Emotional healing can be a little daunting.
I am not trying to scare you… just helping you understand the process.
So, at times, you might feel a little tired or overwhelmed.
This is completely natural and it shouldn’t discourage you from giving up.
What you can do, however, is take breaks.
In fact, it is quite helpful in your healing journey to take frequent breaks and let your mind recharge.
You could take power naps, take off days from work, take a weekend getaway, spend more time in nature, and so on.
11) Avoid Harmful Habits
Finally, on this list of doing things to heal emotionally, I want to include something that you shouldn’t do.
It is quite common for people to develop bad habits or fall back to destructive coping methods when faced with emotional trauma.
This includes things like smoking, drinking, taking drugs, and whatnot.
I think I don’t need to explain what this will do to you.
So, if you are on a healing journey, try to avoid all harmful habits.
It’s not worth it.
It will only make your journey even more difficult.
And you will need additional healing for your current harmful actions! Plus, you will end up hurting your family and friends.
So, what’s the point?
Stay clear, stay clean, stay positive, and do the right thing! probably easier said than done… but at least TRY 🙂
