Alright, so I know I’ve been posting quite a lot recently. But my head has been swirling with thoughts, and sometimes writing is the only way I can slow them down and make sense of it all.

Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about how heavy it can feel to carry the past. Old experiences. Old stories. Old versions of ourselves. Holding onto them can be exhausting. And while forgiving the past and letting it go isn’t always easy, it really does change how life feels.

That doesn’t mean we suddenly stop having unhelpful thoughts. We’re human - thoughts will always show up. What changes is what we do when they appear. Most of the time, we’re not even fully aware of what we’re thinking. But if you notice you’re feeling low, anxious, or heavy, chances are your thoughts aren’t being very kind in that moment. And the real trouble starts when we cling to those thoughts - replaying them, analysing them, building whole stories around them. That’s when things can spiral fast. I know how quickly “feeling a bit off” can turn into “feeling awful.”

The thing is, feeling rubbish is normal. We all do. Feelings, just like thoughts, come and go. The goal isn’t to fight them or judge them - it’s to notice them, allow them, and not let them take over. When you realise that a low feeling is often just the result of what you’re thinking right now (and that it will pass) it loses some of its power. You don’t have to let it define you.

One thing that’s helped me hugely is reminding myself that my past doesn’t get to decide who I am today. I make a conscious effort to notice the good in my life every single day, and it’s genuinely changed things for me. That doesn’t mean I never feel bad, of course I do. If I didn’t, I’d be a robot.

Just the other day, I shared how I found myself worrying about a mum with three kids going through a stressful time. My mind completely ran away with it. I pictured her struggling, overwhelmed, trying to hold everything together on her own.

But the truth is, I didn’t actually know how she was feeling in that moment, how she was coping, or what her reality really looked like. I had no real facts, just thoughts. And yet, my mind created a whole story anyway.  And those stories created some pretty rubbish feelings.

If I truly wanted to know how she was, the only way would be to have a conversation with her. In that moment, I’d be far more grounded - present with what’s actually happening, maybe even able to help in some small way - instead of being lost in imagined scenarios.

I saw something recently that said something along the lines of: If you live in the past, you’re depressed. If you live in the future, you’re anxious. To be honest, I kind of get that.

When I think about work and everything I need to get done, I feel anxious - like I have to have things finished by a certain time. If I’ve got an upcoming event, overthinking it can make me anxious too. And when I think about certain things from the past, it can make me feel sad.

I’m learning to let go of the past - not by pretending it never happened, but by releasing the feelings and stories I attached to it. Where I still catch myself is projecting into the future. Imagining outcomes. Worrying about things that haven’t even happened yet. And when I pause, I realise, it’s all just a story in my mind.

The more I see that, the less grip those thoughts have on me. What I’m getting better at is coming back to now. And honestly, that’s where the peace is. Because when you really think about it, today is the only place life is actually happening.

Letting go isn’t just about time, it’s about people too. It’s about releasing the assumptions, labels, and stories we create about others, and simply being with them. Being present. Having the conversation. Feeling the connection. Enjoying the moment exactly as it is.

When thinking isn’t helping, we can always return to the present moment and gently ask ourselves: What would help right now while I let these feelings pass? Because they will pass. They always do. As Jessie often reminds me, getting lost in thought is part of being human. All of us do it. I’ll notice someone looking pensive and think, She’s lost in thought. And then I catch myself and realise - yep, I do that too. Constantly. The funny thing is, we often forget that we’re thinking at all. Thought feels like life itself, so we don’t question it, we just get swept along.

Instead of judging ourselves when that happens, we can meet it with kindness. We can see our thinking not as something wrong, but as something to understand. And when we do, it naturally brings more compassion - for ourselves and for others. Because when people are caught up in their thinking, it looks completely real to them. They suffer under its weight without realising why. And as Jessie says, that's an innocent misunderstanding.

Seeing this brings peace. And that peace doesn’t stay contained, it ripples outward. The more peace we experience within, the more gently we show up in the world.

Not long ago, I was deeply caught up in my own thoughts. And one thing I’ve learned is this: we’re not here to eliminate bad feelings. They’re part of life. They come and go, just like thoughts do. The difference now is that I’m not afraid of them. I know they’ll pass. I can ride them out. The not-so-great feelings still show up - but they don’t own me anymore.

And honestly, I truly believe that if more of us lived from that quiet, steady inner wisdom we all have, the world really would be a gentler, more peaceful place. 🩷