No one is born in to a complete ideal situation.
Some come close, while others spend most of their lives trying to pick up the pieces.
I was fortunate enough to be born in to a loving home. Of course, there have been some struggles along the way, but the basis of my home life has been nothing but love and acceptance.
Unfortunately, a lot of other homes tell a different story.
Addictions and abuse occur more often than not and if you throw a child in to the picture, you can bet that's going to do some damage.
Even if the child isn't completely aware of the situation, those images of Mom doing a line of coke or Dad beating Mom to unconsciousness don't just disappear. It's fucking heavy stuff.
For the kids with a good home life, in time, they will come across their own personal hell.
School might be full of bullies and in turn, they feel like a bunch of misfits.
Maybe their friends shun them or only keep them around for an ego boost. It's terrible, but not far off. Some kids are ruthless.
Let's fast forward a bit. Meet Grace.
Grace didn't really have any problems at home or school as a kid. She has fond memories of growing up and would give anything to go back. Now, she just graduated college and landed her first corporate job a few months ago. She's stoked. Well, she was.
Her co-workers don't seem to understand her and she's honestly convinced her boss has a sought out scheme to terminate her altogether. She doesn't know what she's doing wrong.
The common denominator in each situation is simple.
We're dealing with a bad environment.
Whether it starts in diapers or heels, we're all bound to come across a time in our lives where we feel distraught by our surroundings.
Maybe we're talked down to, made to feel small, disrespected, or even isolated, however, the point is the same: we're drained.
We know we're in an environment that is no longer serving us, but we're stuck.
We're too young to leave our families, we need an education, and of course, a job to pay the bills.
So, we suck it up and deal with it. It's life. We're always going to be given situations we may not be too thrilled about.
The thing is though, we don't have to attach our moods to our environment.
I may sound insane right now, but stick with me.
As soon as you find inner peace within yourself, nothing external matters anymore.
You're a good person. You're doing completely fine. You're trying your best and making the most of what is handed to you. You know this deep down, dig it up. Bask in it for a moment. Find this harmony within you.
Everything in life fluctuates, including your environment.
Whatever situation you're dealing with now will not be forever.
You'll move out of your parents' home, the school doors will close, and trust me, your career path will work itself out. Don't get so caught up in it.
The fact that everything is temporary tends to trigger something negative within us. We're scared to lose the good things in our lives, especially if we're carrying pain in other parts.
Nonetheless, we can't live off certainty. We have to be willing to let go of everything in our lives, good and bad, to lead us to the next best thing.
You see, if we clutch so deeply to the vision we have for ourselves, we block the Universe from delivering what is meant for us. We have to be willing to release everything. Let go of attachment to any single idea.
In our negative environments, we tend to sulk, complain, and simply wonder why we've been given such terrible circumstances. This does nothing but feed the negativity.
However, what if we were to imagine living our dream life?
Our current situation is long gone, our career pans out exactly how we planned, we moved to an area we never thought possible, and everything feels so surreal.
Pretty incredible, right?
When we live with the mindset that everything we want is already here, there is nothing to get upset about. Positivity is a boomerang. When you put positivity out in to the world, you can expect the same in return. It's all relative.
Yes, our current environment may blow, but that's nothing to get bent up over.
Again, everything is temporary.
This situation will pass, but the awesome thing is, you don't have to wait it out before you can feel better.
Act as if your desires are already here and you're golden.
You need to remember though, our bliss comes from within.
Even when our situations change, something new will always come up. This is why living in a future mindset is so detrimental.
I'll be happy once I move out on my own.
When I get a new job, then everything will finally work itself out.
I'm only upset because I'm alone. Once I make some friends, I'll be okay.
You could get exactly what you want and you still won't feel fulfilled. You need to be okay with where you are right now.
I need you to concentrate on who you are. I know I'm a huge advocate of self-care, but as someone with major depression, this shit works.
Nothing external will ever fix an internal problem and as soon you as realize that, you're leaps and bounds away from who you were.
It's all about catch and release.
When a bad thought comes up, recognize it, catch it, and throw it straight back.
It's all in the mind. We have the power to control what holds purpose in our lives. Don't use your tool to rummage through your negativity. It's not worth the hassle.