Sometimes people wonder what the difference is between letting go and repressing/denying their thoughts and feelings. At first glance, it can be difficult to understand the difference between not letting something control you and denying it to yourself.
However, there is a fundamental difference. If we deny or push away what we carry inside of us, it eventually leads to burnout, some sort of nervous breakdown, or illness. This often happens when we cannot accept ourselves as we are, i.e., we do not want to be aware of what we think and feel or the motives that control us.
A person who, for example, has a strong framework and perception of right and wrong often ends up suppressing his feelings. If the person in question always wants to be positive, honest or "loving", they easily end up in a stage of strong imbalance. He tries to force himself to think positively or be happy. The consequence is that the person pushes away his negative thoughts and feelings. Often such a person becomes very judgmental of himself and others; on the inside, he is often tormented by anxiety and worry.
Another example is a person who always must be good. Such a person perceives - perhaps a little pointedly - that the world stands and falls with his effort. It can be at work, in family life or in other contexts. Such a person has difficulty asking for help, delegating tasks or trusting others. Inside, the person is very insecure in himself, but is unable to feel his needs to be listened to, understood, comforted and loved and instead tries - more or less unconsciously - to hide this by being good and strong. Over time, such a person runs the risk of becoming burned out and ill.
Meditation is often a good solution to deal with these problems. When we meditate, we look inward and examine ourselves and become aware of our patterns. By becoming aware of our patterns, we can accept them. When we accept them, we can also begin to let them go. Then there is a lasting change and our mind becomes free.
In the aforementioned cases, the results will be these:
Those who always want to be loving and positive now allow themselves to also see their dark sides, such as hatred, jealousy, judgments, anger, sadness, irritation, etc. This leads to the person gradually being able to accept himself, which eases the inner conflict. Through meditation, the person gets a tool to let go of these thoughts and feelings and will, over time, become naturally balanced. A natural calm appears in the person's interior. He will be straightforward and honest will be pleasant to be with.
In the second case, the person in question will allow himself to be weak, dare to speak up when it becomes too much, dare to ask for help. He will allow himself to fail and not do everything perfectly. He will feel significantly better and have greater inner peace. The person's capacity will also increase as the person dares to try new things and can let other people into his life and achieve synergies and collaborations with others.
Starting to meditate is the best thing that we can do for ourselves. It leads to increased self-awareness and quick results in terms of well-being.
Michael