Everyone feels trapped by different things in different capacities at different times. That emphasis on the word different (yes, that was intentional) reminds us that no one person’s life or situation matches that of another, at any given time. Yet, there is unity in the sameness. There is unity in the fact that this feeling of entrapment is shared by all of us in a variety of ways. It tells us we are not alone, and gives us comfort in knowing our experience may not be 100% on par with someone else’s but sometimes it may come close.
And if it stands true we are all experiencing something tough, it also stands true we all have an opportunity to rise above the occasion or situation. There is something, some way to get out, to end the struggle and the strife. Others have done it. Others around us are doing it. So why aren’t we? What is keeping us?
The difference between me and the next person when I am fixating on my problems is that I am failing to do. To act. To take control. To surrender. It looks different to different people; in one situation taking control is the road to freedom, and in another surrendering leads to freedom. But unless I am actively seeking a resolution, a solution, freedom from this thing that has frustrated me or trapped me to what is feeling like no end, I will get nowhere.
No one is going to fix my problems for me, or for you. But what others can do for you is hold you accountable, remind you to do, ask you how the process is going, and even inspire you. But unless you invite others in, they won’t know you need the support. Maybe this is the “do” step that has been holding you back and you are tired of going at it alone.
You have the freedom of choice to keep going, keep moving, change things, impact things, engage others, whatever it is that will help your situation and lead to “freedom” from what is keeping you. But unless you do, the feeling stuck or trapped or overwhelmed will continue to entrap you.
It is never an overnight process to deal with something that has got you stuck, frequently entertains your thoughts, frequently makes you feel ways you do not want and potentially are not intended to feel. It can be mentally, physically, or in a variety of other capacities.
But there is beauty in the first step and freedom in the next one. And when you work toward it, you will soon find that those little steps are adding up to form big steps. And those big steps are contributing to milestones, and those milestones lead to achievement and accomplishment in the face of what traps you. No matter how impossible this process seems, it is possible for you. You can do it, and there are people out there who want to join you in your journey.
Where do you need to experience the freedom to do? What does your “do” look like? Who can help you in your journey? There are answers worth discovering, so keep working toward it, chin up, and you will certainly get there. There is freedom in your journey, waiting to be discovered.