Enough

Believing we’re not enough is the resultof not having received enough.

Believing we're not enough is a hard place to navigate life from. It's the playground for those critical Parts of us. The ambiguity embedded within 'enoughness' compounds it even further, making confronting it a wild goose chase.

What's enough? What's the measure? An outcome? A amount? A felt-sense? How would we know when enough is enough?

These questions, albeit interesting to ask, might not be the best path to explore. Instead, try this on:

Give yourself a moment and connect with the FEELING of 'not enough,' not the STORY that fuels it. Notice the intimate details of this feeling of 'not enough.' What does this mean? Where do you sense it in the body? Is it in the frontal plane of the body? Below the waist? Is it embedded in a clenched jaw or tense shoulders? Take your time and deeply explore this.

Next, get a sense of the familiarity of this feeling. Is it new? Is it old? How old? Follow the path of this felt-sense back in time, curiously and compassionately. Observe where it takes you.

For me, I followed it to a fourth-grade classroom as well as a dining room table.

Once you get there, see the younger you that took on the load of not enoughness. Notice their pain. Notice their anxiety. Notice their fear.

What did that little version of you need in that moment that they didn't receive? What didn't the teacher, the babysitter, the parent, the coach, the (X) provide you that you REALLY needed? Patience? Love? Curiosity? Undivided attention? Think on this, deeply. What is it that this little Part of you needed and didn't receive enough of?

Now, looking at this little, <anxious, fearful, embarrassed> Part, how would you have shown up for them? What would you have provided them more than enough of?

Imagine giving it to them. Feel what happens when you do.

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Our belief of not being enough is the descendant of not having received enough. There is no blame, no fault, no responsibility for someone else to take. We're all always doing the best we can with what we have. And sometimes, it's not enough.

When we become the source of the stuff that supports us feeling enough, we're set free. This is a first step in doing so.

Start walking. It's the Vulnerabold® thing to do.