Intentional living is choosing to have a life of choice rather than chance. You can live intentionally through your grief, anxiety, anger, and depression. By detaching self-limiting beliefs about ourselves we can create a life that fits who we are today. Intentional living begins with letting go of emotional pain that causes us to repeat behaviors that are harmful to ourselves or to those we love. By examining your present life you can determine if the life we are living today is the life we want or is it one based on our old way of thinking, behaving, and feeling. Accepting the past in it’s fullest without hauling it around daily and living mindfully in the present will free you to enjoy peace of mind or serenity. Living an intentional life is a process involving cutting away our constraints (emotional and behavioral barriers) little by little. Your future can be brighter than the past. Intentionally you can begin living joyfully in the present.
How can therapy help?
Counseling can help eliminate emotional pain and distress. It can help you build new skills that you can begin to use to work with your current concerns. Counseling can restore relationships. It can improve your self-esteem. It can teach you that there is more than one option, or how to free yourself from struggles. Counseling can help you accomplish all of this and more. The only thing it can’t do is change you. You have to do that by yourself. It is up to you to apply what you learn. I often remind my clients that if we keep doing what we have always done, we will continue to get what we have always gotten. Nothing will change until you change it.
How can I tell if it is working?
Progress in counseling usually feels like something has changed. You might feel more sure of yourself, or more optimistic. Usually you are applying the new skills and acting on new ways of thinking. You may also find that you are now successful at getting better results from behaviors that in the past might not have been so successful. It really comes down to you and the attempt you make toward your treatment goals.