Forgive Your Past for a Happier Future

Are you the type of person who remains mired in the past, never able to forget the mistakes you’ve made or the pain you’ve suffered? This is true of a lot of people. You can’t help but focus on those bad memories. When you lay down to sleep at night, do you have trouble nodding off without your brain taking you to dark places? You seem to have no choice but to confront the mistakes of your past each night before slumber. Like ghosts, those bad memories will continue to haunt you unless you can learn to forgive your past.

The Past Can’t Be Altered

We all know that we can’t go back in time and do things differently. The past is solidified. It happened and you can’t change it. However, you also can’t let the past define your present or your future. If you do, you are going to be stuck in the muck for the rest of your life. Still, leaving the past where it belongs—behind you—is not easy.

Dwelling on the past can cause negativity to grow in your life today and going forward. You need to learn to forgive yourself. You are human and making mistakes, whether large or small, happens. Don’t torture yourself by replaying those memories time and again. Learn from your mistakes, but don’t let them hold you back.

How Can You Let Go of the Past?

It isn’t always easy, but it is possible with some work. Many different methods can work for different people. Different issues might require different approaches. Below are some you can try, so you can finally forgive and move beyond your past.

First, crying can be a powerful tool. Sometimes, feeling—truly feeling—those old emotions and confronting them can work to get over them. When you have painful emotions, cry about them rather than try to suppress them. After crying, you will often feel better and can gain some perspective.

Second, you need to take responsibility for your healing. When someone else has hurt you in the past, you have the right to blame them and to be angry. However, letting what they did define who you are and how you feel is unhealthy. Realize that you are the only one who is going to heal you. You aren’t responsible for their actions, but you have the power to remove and take control of the pain.

Third, you can focus on the here and now. Think of the good things you have happening in your life, even if there are only a few. Focus on those and the feelings they give you. Strive to find more things that can make you happy and that can keep you present. This can help you stay out of your past.