I need help. The family I grew up in didn’t model healthy romantic relationships, and didn’t teach me how to be kind to myself either. Sometimes, I think it’s a miracle I ever made it out of that place and got away to college. I’m ready now to challenge my mom’s voice in my head telling me “you’re ugly.” I’m ready to not date a man like my father who didn’t respect me. But I need help unlearning.
Alex Haley once said, “in every conceivable way, the family is the link to our past and the bridge to our future.” Within our families, we learn what is acceptable and unacceptable. We learn how to talk and how to think. We learn who we are as we grow and change.
It seems like your family taught you other things, too. How to be cruel to others. How to tear down your self-worth. How to allow emotions to flood you and yet how to feel empty inside. That vulnerability isn’t safe, that others can’t be trusted. You’re right that there may be many things to be unlearned.
Maybe take a minute to watch this video about our Bethesda, MD counseling practice–it references a powerful poem I often share with clients. The poem is about learning and unlearning and our video is about how individual therapy can help.
So this is what individual therapy will help you learn– You’ll learn how to be transparent with others without compromising personal boundaries. You’ll learn how to be honest and genuine without becoming overwhelmed by vulnerability. You’ll learn how to accept your past without letting it poison your future. You’ll learn how to love yourself and honor your worth. As I’ve written before: you are a person of worth, worthy of love.
Call us today. We can help.