Forgiving Yourself

"An alternative to self-blame is self-forgiveness. When we forgive ourselves for past mistakes and misdeeds, we let go of regret-that is, of self- shaming, the opposite of self-forgiving. We hold our regrets in the spiritual container of saying yes to the inevitable limitations that are part of every human life. This yes is the positive reframing of regrets. We can relate to our limitations rather than let them decimate our self-esteem."

"It is precisely our resistance to our broken selves that blocks our access to the divine within us. When we feel no shame in being limited, we have embraced the virtue of humility. We are then no longer able to feel humiliated. We hear the inner critic or anyone's judgment of us as information, as a teaching that leads to a spiritual practice."

"I let go of my grievances against myself. I let go of being downtrodden by regrets. I make allowances for my limitations and errors. I turn my limits into daring initiatives. I see how much of what my parents, or other influencers, wanted me to do or to think was right was based on their own beliefs and fears. I forgive them. I see my wounds as portals into self-compassion."

Self-forgiveness offers an alternative to self-blame by releasing regret and reframing limitations as inevitable parts of human life. Embracing limitations fosters humility and prevents humiliation, enabling a shift from self-shaming to self-compassion. Resistance to one's brokenness blocks access to inner divinity, whereas acceptance allows inner critics and external judgments to function as information and spiritual teaching. Affirmations such as letting go of grievances, making allowances for errors, turning limits into initiatives, forgiving influencers, and viewing wounds as portals to compassion cultivate a sustained practice of self-forgiveness. Such compassion extends outward, acknowledging shared human brokenness and fostering empathy for others.

Read at Psychology Today