Reflecting is general enough for every individual to be able to take something away from it. Reflection by definition is “serious thought or consideration.” It is clear that a lot has changed in the past year, even the past couple months, and to some the past couple days.
College has thus far been the most stressful experience personally. I went from having a summer with an easy babysitting job with plenty of time to spare, to counting the minutes of free time I have during the days. Looking back at the time I have had and now don’t have has been painful, to where I feel that now is my period to heal. However, during the summer reflecting back to a difficult spring semester, it was refreshing to be able to see that although I was going through a low point in my life, there are some roses to look forward to.
Reflecting is often referred to as a positive thing, where one is able to see how much they grew and how much better they are doing. It can also be exhausting to look back and see how simple things were and how rigorous things got. Something I recently learned that I never noticed was when reflecting back on a bad time, it gets upsetting to think of what one could have done differently or missed out on, and that is where we focus on healing.
My favorite way of reflection is journaling. Sometimes it is refreshing to see what was going on a few years back and compare it to now and see my progress in healing it. I was never taught “how to journal” so journaling to me is honestly like writing in my diary. I write my accomplishments and my failures. My highs and lows. My thoughts and doubts. How bad I did on my exam and how good I did on my presentation. All things that take place in my life that can sometimes be forgotten.
As someone who suffers from PTSD, reflection is something I tend to do subconsciously but it is not always a positive experience. I am constantly reflecting on my past where I wish my life was different and upset in how it affects me today. What have I learned from that? Time doesn’t stop. As much as I can dwell on the past and focus so hard on reflecting back on what life could have been like, it isn’t effective and will not better me as a person, that is where the post-reflective healing comes along.
As far as healing goes, there is no one-way road in doing so. Healing comes in different forms and ways for every individual person. Therapy has been my best friend in healing and I recommend it to anyone even if you don’t feel you have a specific thing to deal with. To me, healing means having time to breathe and having nothing to do. I tend to be a busy person and recently I have found that it is my way of escaping what I really have to deal with internally since I put all my energy into external forces such as classes, jobs, clubs, and friendships.
My best days to reset are days where I can stay in bed until noon and go through the day in my pajamas and work on a naturally evolving schedule rather than having an extensive to-do list of things. To others, healing may be the opposite. It could be exercising, having check-ins to see progress, or the current state of mind. It could be not changing anything about their day-to-day lives and just adding a quick moment of self-care and self-love. My point in all of this is, healing is what you make it mean.
So have a moment with yourself and ask, how do I measure my progress as an individual? Am I giving myself enough love and support to be my best self? How will reflection affect me?