What does acceptance mean to you?

For me, it means accepting anything outside your control – be it a situation, someone, or something without judgment or trying to change the circumstance.

Learn to Let Go

When I began to suffer from PTSD, I struggled with acceptance.

I found it difficult to accept things that were out of my control. I wanted to wrap everyone I knew in bubble wrap, making it much harder to accept them for what they were.

The more I dove into this issue, the clearer my reasoning behind this control became.

I was in constant fear of losing control; therefore, I felt the need to control others’ lives too.

If I saw someone I loved making (what I thought was) a bad decision, I’d try to intervene rather than simply allow them to just be.

Letting go of this need for control has been incredibly freeing. When you refuse to accept yourself, you project your lack of acceptance onto others – judging and controlling them.

Acceptance Comes With Time – And Empathy

It hasn’t been easy to find acceptance within myself. I’ve spoken before about how awful I was to myself in the past. 

But since I’ve had more compassion and self-acceptance, accepting others followed.

Now, when others have difficulty accepting my choices and try to intervene, I can replace annoyance with empathy. I understand that they’re doing what they think is best because they care about me.

The only constant thing in this world is change. Learn to accept it.

Because happiness can only exist in acceptance!