There was a time when my childhood memories felt like weights I never set down. The trauma I endured shaped me in ways I didn’t always understand. It cast shadows across my relationships, my decisions, and even the way I saw myself.
For years, I searched for healing in different places. Therapy became a guiding light, helping me unravel the complexities of my past. Journalling gave me an outlet, a way to process emotions I had long suppressed. Connecting with others who had walked similar paths reminded me that I wasn’t alone. Slowly, I learned to honour my experiences without allowing them to define me completely.
The most unexpected shift in my healing journey was when I began practicing deep gratitude. It wasn’t for grand gestures or major breakthroughs, but for the simplest gift of all: being alive. On my hardest days, I turned to small moments of awareness. I acknowledged the miracle of breath in my lungs. I felt the warmth of sunlight on my skin. I enjoyed the quiet privilege of experiencing another day.
This practice didn’t erase the past. The scars persist, telling the story of what I have survived. But gratitude created space around the pain—room to embrace joy, wonder, and possibilities I had never seen before. It softened the edges of my suffering and allowed healing to take root in ways I never expected.
One of the most profound realizations was the gratitude I eventually found for my parents. Despite our complicated history, I came to recognize that, above all else, they gave me the gift of life. This existence—with all its pain, all its beauty—is an opportunity I wouldn’t have without them. That recognition has been a cornerstone of my healing. It doesn’t negate the past. It allows me to move ahead with a fuller heart.
To anyone carrying similar burdens, know this: your journey is uniquely yours, and healing isn’t linear. Some days, the weight may feel unbearable. But even in those moments, we can choose how we meet each new day.
Sometimes, the simplest acknowledgment—I am here, I am breathing, I am alive—becomes its own medicine.
Today, I stand in gratitude—not despite my past, but alongside it. Both can exist together. And in that acceptance, I have found a peace I once thought impossible.
#healyourself #traumahealing #loveyourselffirst #gratitude #beingalive #HealingWithLove
Shamanic Healing 