Most of my work as a coach is to help people raise their consciousness. That sounds very woo- woo, so what exactly does it mean to raise consciousness? It means to pull our heads out of the sand and face our world, face our decisions, face our relationships, face our feelings and face our thoughts. All of it. It’s full-on ownership of who we are, why we are the way we are, and why we show up the way we do. It’s a life long journey and as one client recently told me, “I’m going back in the sand.” She and I laughed about it, but it makes perfect sense because sometimes as we become conscious, we start to feel all of the feelings.

There is sadness in consciousness. There is grief. There is acceptance of the pain many of us had in childhood or in relationships. There’s looking back at things that we did and maybe feel regret or guilt for what was. These are understandable feelings and they are hard to face. It’s hard to look at ourselves and often really hard to look at our past. However, what’s the alternative? Hide? Pretend? Put our head back in the sand? Our head in the sand might seem safer and more comfortable, but it really isn’t sustainable. 

Hiding means hiding from joy as well as from sadness. It means hiding from beautiful moments as well as the scary, tragic ones. It means looking at your past from a more open, vulnerable space and yes, it can be sad. Many of my clients have had very challenging childhoods. To look back at the pain of our younger selves is a challenging journey and yet if we don’t look at it, how will we keep it from negatively influencing how we show up today? Learning how to be aware of why we think and feel the way we do allows to also choose how we want to think, feel, and show up to our lives today. 

We can’t change the things we don’t look at. We can’t live full lives without getting conscious. So what will it take for you to pull your head out of the sand and face this one life that you have to live? Although it’s a bit scary outside of the sand, the rewards are astronomical. Plus, sand is messy, especially on your head!

Love,

Lisa Kaplin Psy. D. PCC