Trusting our gut instincts

[Guest guest]

Greg's observations of his therapist made me think about a lot of

issues arising during my dealing with BPD and Nada, and going NC

with family who remains in nada's space including nada. Last night

after reading Greg's experience, it made me think back to a journal

entry I had about making decisions. Having lived with a person who

has BPD all of my life, I did not know if my decision making process

was intact, or am I just like Nada. So, I had to step outside the

box for a moment, as scary as it is for us because of our lack of

trust--This is something I heard in counseling when my then five

year old daughter was molested by a neighbor, and I blamed myself

for not going with my " gut instinct. "

Decisions that you may not be satisfied with can lead you to ask

yourself how could I have made one choice, when my gut feeling

pointed to the other. Because we can look to the past and imagine

the future with clarity, there exists a tendency to mull over even

minor choices and to over-analyze people and situations. But when we

choose to put aside reasoning processes for just a moment, insights

may be revealed. Listening to your intuitive mind allows you to

access a natural cache of wisdom within. You may find that

in " trusting your gut, " your innate sense of what is right and wrong

will become both strong and reliable.

Intuitive or gut-level reactions may seem less credible than

decisions based on logic or carefully weighed facts because

intuition is perceived by most as a less intelligent way of coming

to conclusions. You may also discount your gut feelings, even when

they turn out to be right, because you may be afraid of what others

will say.

To get in touch with your intuition, first pay attention to sudden

perceptions and feelings, even if nothing more than a prickling of

the hairs on the back of your neck. Acknowledge it and let go of

your fear of being wrong. Trust your inner voice. If you already

have strong gut feelings, practice acting on those feelings without

fear. Don't let doubt keep you from embracing them.

There is no substitute for being prepared, and knowing that you can

comfortably trust in your gut feelings can be a vital part of

preparedness.

I hope this is helpful to you Greg; you always provide us with such

emotion, intelligence, and support. I could only hope that we

learned from your words, and can now help you out in making a

difficult decision, but most importantly helping you to stay strong--

we all support you no matter what decision you make...And this goes

for our entire group who are having to make tough decisions...

erbussmom

[Guest guest]

Erbussmom, That was great. Thanks so much for posting that. I am

saving it, personally I found this very helpful and plan to read it

again and again! You really have a way with words. Love Lizzy

>

> Greg's observations of his therapist made me think about a lot of

> issues arising during my dealing with BPD and Nada, and going NC

> with family who remains in nada's space including nada. Last

night

> after reading Greg's experience, it made me think back to a

journal

> entry I had about making decisions. Having lived with a person

who

> has BPD all of my life, I did not know if my decision making

process

> was intact, or am I just like Nada. So, I had to step outside the

> box for a moment, as scary as it is for us because of our lack of

> trust--This is something I heard in counseling when my then five

> year old daughter was molested by a neighbor, and I blamed myself

> for not going with my " gut instinct. "

>

> Decisions that you may not be satisfied with can lead you to ask

> yourself how could I have made one choice, when my gut feeling

> pointed to the other. Because we can look to the past and imagine

> the future with clarity, there exists a tendency to mull over even

> minor choices and to over-analyze people and situations. But when

we

> choose to put aside reasoning processes for just a moment,

insights

> may be revealed. Listening to your intuitive mind allows you to

> access a natural cache of wisdom within. You may find that

> in " trusting your gut, " your innate sense of what is right and

wrong

> will become both strong and reliable.

>

> Intuitive or gut-level reactions may seem less credible than

> decisions based on logic or carefully weighed facts because

> intuition is perceived by most as a less intelligent way of coming

> to conclusions. You may also discount your gut feelings, even when

> they turn out to be right, because you may be afraid of what

others

> will say.

>

> To get in touch with your intuition, first pay attention to sudden

> perceptions and feelings, even if nothing more than a prickling of

> the hairs on the back of your neck. Acknowledge it and let go of

> your fear of being wrong. Trust your inner voice. If you already

> have strong gut feelings, practice acting on those feelings

without

> fear. Don't let doubt keep you from embracing them.

>

> There is no substitute for being prepared, and knowing that you

can

> comfortably trust in your gut feelings can be a vital part of

> preparedness.

>

> I hope this is helpful to you Greg; you always provide us with

such

> emotion, intelligence, and support. I could only hope that we

> learned from your words, and can now help you out in making a

> difficult decision, but most importantly helping you to stay

strong--

> we all support you no matter what decision you make...And this

goes

> for our entire group who are having to make tough decisions...

>

> erbussmom

>