Have you ever been labeled by someone else? Of course, you have! We all have, in some way or other been labeled. This past month this idea has come up as I was with some people who spoke about “mental illness.” Also, family gatherings are coming, and family members often create labels for other family members. At first, I was very confused. Later, realizing that I actually work with a population that could be labeled “mentally ill,” I also realized I did not and do not see people as being that.
It appears that many who are diagnosed with a “mental illness” wrap their whole lives around the diagnosis and sometimes make their lives about that. The same is true with labels like “smart, cancer, stupid, fat, thin, nice…”. I often see those who are diagnosed as depressed, anxious, PTSD, and OCD. My take on it is that we all can be a little of all of these, and sometimes we just happen to be in a place at the time we may have been “diagnosed” where those feelings and thoughts are overriding our lives and so becomes a temporary issue to be worked through. Similar to life.
And, a lot of labels we may accept, possibly because we were too young, unconnected with our true self, or for whatever reason, we were susceptible to receiving them, they aren’t necessarily about us. Like when a bully calls someone “stupid” who is actually intelligent, but the bully is insecure himself? That person, when they are confident and connected with their true self wouldn’t accept that label, especially if they have friendly or parental support.
You are not in this moment exactly who you were last week, or even yesterday, sometimes even an hour ago… Everything is temporary. The only eternal is our Creator and our Soul, and I wonder if even our soul can grow in this lifetime. All the rest is temporary experiences that we are granted for our own inner growth. This holiday, and throughout life, if you are willing, you have divine opportunities to release those old labels and discover who you truly are… a divine being in your own right.
