It is my personal conviction that positive self-transformation will invariably create positive life-transformation. And becoming one’s most authentic and highest self is the greatest contribution any human being can make to the world. It is our most essential purpose and calling in life.
As unique individuals, our strengths, gifts, and abilities will certainly vary, but everyone holds the same intrinsic value and worth. As such, I believe that everyone is also worthy and capable of living a fulfilling and meaningful life. Everyone has the power and potential for positive change and transformation. And, just like all living organisms, the most rapid, healthy and fruitful growth takes the right environmental conditions. As human beings, we can't do it alone. Healing and growth happen in the context of safe connection.
I also maintain the perspective that, in general, seeking wholeness—balance within one’s inner life—will manifest balance in one's outer life. At the same time, life is also paradoxical. And there are many circumstances that are outside of our control. We strive for joy and balance, but storms and struggle are an inherent part of life as well. And so, too, the human existence. Thankfully, this isn't bad news. Adverse conditions are necessary for growth and our personal hardships offer us opportunities for great change. They have the potential to shape and refine our character, to strengthen and fortify our spirit/inner being, to reveal and reorient our priorities, to instill courage and build perseverance, among so many other benefits. Therefore, I believe that the trials and burdens of life, along with the discomfort and pain they often bring, are not to be rejected, ignored, or forgotten but rather proactively and intentionally accepted, acknowledged and integrated.
While chronic depression is a mental health condition that is likely to require therapeutic and/or psychiatric interventions to treat, lamentation and dark nights of the soul have a purpose for a time and ought to be given their proper place in our lives. We should not deny ourselves these feelings and experiences and it is my opinion that to do so is, in fact, not healthy and will only serve to stunt our growth and impede our movement towards true wellness (no toxic positivity here).
I would also clarify that suffering isn't something we should actively seek out or indulge in. To do so is self-destructive, equally contrary to our wellness, and I do not promote it. Instead, my job as a coach is to help my clients approach, appreciate and glean everything they can from all cycles/seasons of life, all facets of the Self and all aspects of our human experience. It’s all part of the adventure.
"You have to live fully to find your life’s purpose…and you also need to go through the darkest of times to become the person that you would have needed in that dark time. And that person that you would have needed is your life’s purpose.” -Source Unknown