Black in classic

This post was initially supposed to be released on New Year’s Day, but life got hectic and busy. Nonetheless, here we are. I want to be very candid about my experience in THERAPY. Yes, therapy. I went to see a therapist for a little over six months. So, let’s start at the beginning, therapy had always been something that I knew I wanted to do because I never felt like I had an outlet to freely talk about my feelings and emotions. So, for some time, I became very depressed. It was right after I graduated undergrad and I felt like many things in my life were spiraling out of my control and in addition, events were happening that caused old wounds to open again. Now, I won’t go into so much detail because that really is not your business and it doesn’t relate to the purpose of this post.

               The purpose behind this post is to get rid of the stigma that going to therapy is a bad thing. I do believe that everyone should be seeing a therapist. Life is CRAZY! There is no way to think that you can handle it all on your own and not have someone (a third party) to talk to and hash things out. During my experience, I could discuss my past, present and future. It gave so much clarity that I would’ve never found on my own.

Many, if not all of us, are battling certain demons. These could be childhood traumas, abuse, or just the woes of life. There are things that bare down on us and we cannot be expected to carry on with all of it. Therapy for me was like one of my favorite Erykah Badu’s songs, Bag Lady. We are carrying BAGGAGE! Many of us are scared to unpack it and sift through it. When you walk into that first session of therapy it’s scary, but then you realize that the fear you are creating is simply in your mind. It’s you and one other person, who is there to just listen and help you sift through all your bags. In six months’ time, I could sift through all my baggage, repack it, and leave it there. I DID NOT NEED IT ANYMORE. You don’t have to carry this pain with you for the rest of your life. It’s not beneficial to you. It is killing you softly. Self-medicating and ignoring it is not helping the problem. No one is too old or too young to sift through their baggage.

               It has now been, a year since my last therapy session and I cannot tell you how much my life has improved. Being able to repack and release my baggage in therapy allowed me to get closer to myself.  I found myself. I could let go of the stories and the things that happened to me because I DID NOT NEED THEM. Pain is not supposed to last or be something that you take with you daily as you navigate through life. LIFE IS HARD ENOUGH. I hope that I inspire one person to give therapy a try. Give yourself a chance to be happy, to rediscover yourself before all the craziness went down. Be kind to yourself. It’s okay to feel a way about therapy… Society has raised us to feel like that. BUT I am telling you, there is NO SHAME in wanting better for yourself. I am VERY PROUD of my experience in therapy and if I feel like there’s a point in my life where I need to speak with a therapist, I WILL GO AGAIN AND AGAIN. You cannot shame me for wanting to be at peace. I feel sorry for our people who suffer in silence because therapy seems like it’s unnecessary. I hope you find your peace.