I was speaking with someone the other day and we were discussing how if we are not careful that we can find ourselves “stuck” in an emotional place from the past and not even realize it. We spoke about triggers and how they can be indicators that we are stuck. For example, just the mention of the name of someone from your past can emotionally send you to a place that you did not intend to go. It can be the alcove of anger or the closet of complaining or even the room of rage, perhaps even the pantry of self-pity. Suddenly, I said, “Yep you can be ‘stuck like Chuck’ and not even know it!” I started to laugh hilariously and so did she. I repeated the phrase and we howled! I had not heard anyone use that phrase in years and for some reason it just sent us both into a spell of thigh slapping laughter. It is not funny to know that either of us could be stuck! The situation of being stuck is not funny. But I am reminded again that laughter really is good medicine and perhaps, just perhaps that was the beginning of healing for at least one of us or both of us.
Think about it for a minute. Have you noticed any triggers in your life? Are there memories that act as a spark to negative emotions? Maybe it is time to stop trying to ignore them or keep them buried and face them. After all, if they keep coming up…they may be buried but are buried alive. Be brave enough to talk to someone about them. It is okay to seek professional help too. We are at the beginning of a brand-new year so why not do something different? How about working on becoming the best “you “that you can be so that you can, effectively, help someone else. Let’s kick “stuck like Chuck” to the curb. It’s time to move on!