Oftentimes when we get sad our whole world becomes dark. I know for me, when I get really down, I physically cannot see the light. I, like most women I know, am excruciatingly hard on myself and I am my own worst critic.

I think we have this universal misconception and we let it affect our everyday lives. We are so hard on ourselves in our transformation that we expect ourselves to automatically mold to our ideal vision with no set backs.

We think that when we have moments of sadness, we aren’t happy. We think that when we have moments of weakness, we aren’t strong. We think that if we have a cheat meal, we ruin our shot at being in shape. This isn’t the case at all, in fact, the very opposite.

Healing not only requires that we feel better, but that we let ourselves feel everything on the road that takes us there.

Healing is not this journey where you commit to being happy instantly. Healing is a journey where grief comes in waves. We don’t live our lives only progressing, we don’t eventually come to a place where all of the pain is gone and foreign. We live our lives day by day and some days are filled with more joy and others we are reminded more of our ache.

You can be an emotional wreck and still be the strongest version of yourself that you have ever seen.

You can still express the utmost sadness and still be healing.

Healing is an accumulation of waves, it’s a combobulation of the variety of feelings we are able to feel. Healing is multifaceted. Healing is everything in the universe combined into one process.

You do not digress by spending some moments with your pain, you do not go backwards by spending moments with your fear of movement, it is all part of healing. Wherever you are, you are part of the healing.

Give yourself time to grieve, give yourself compassion with the process, and give yourself space to let all emotion fluctuate and ride the rollercoaster with yourself.

Give yourself permission to not see the light, I promise you will still heal in the dark.