We all feel lost from time to time. To lose our way is to be human, but it’s also ok to want to have methods or tricks for yourself to help resolve the feelings you are experiencing.
An important component of indigenous culture is understanding yourself and being in tune with your emotions. If you are feeling lost, there is likely a deeper reason and you can gain clarity from exploring how you are feeling.
Through several guided techniques, activities, and thought processes, you can use your feelings of loneliness or loss as a way to strengthen your mind and enrich your life.
1. Recognize That It’s OK to Feel This Way
Everyone feels lost and alone sometimes. The first step is simply accepting how you feel and identifying what you can do to change it.
You might even find that there are benefits to being alone sometimes. Learning to be comfortable alone gives you confidence, self awareness, and self reliance. You miss the opportunity to learn about yourself and grow when you are incapable of being alone!
2. Use Your Feelings as a Guide
If you’re feeling lost and alone, you might be missing something or searching for something. Use how you’re feeling to guide you to that missing component. Your unhappy feelings might just lead you to what you’ve always needed!
3. Use Your Loneliness to Help You Face the Truth
Truth is one of the 7 grandfather teachings. It helps us remain sincere and honest in all we do. If you are repressing how you’re feeling, you might not be in tune with your inner truth. This keeps you from being honest with yourself and those around you as you journey through life. The more truthful you are with yourself, the more balanced and harmonious your life will be.
4. Realize You Have More Control Than You Think
If you’re unhappy with the way you’re feeling, you do have control over your life and emotions -- even when it feels like you don’t. Feeling lost and alone can put us in a negative frame of mind about everything happening around us. When this happens, it can be easy to feel like the victim. In reality, you get to choose your attitude and how you respond to every situation.
5. Embrace the Freedom of Being Alone
Being alone has its benefits. There is power and freedom in being alone because it strengthens your connection to yourself. Additionally, it allows you to not have to worry about what others think for a while, which can be a truly freeing experience. In some ways, being alone can give you a much needed break -- and the space to focus on yourself.
6. Acknowledge Your Personal Growth
Take the time alone to reflect on who you are and how far you have come. If you’re feeling down, examining your journey so far and allowing yourself to feel pride about your growth can carry you through until you are feeling more grounded again.
7. Smudge
Smudging can be one of the best ways to clear your head and redirect your focus. Smudging can clear negative energies from your body and your space, allowing you to bring more positive energy into your life. If you’re feeling lost, smudging can provide you with some much needed clarity and focus.
8. Refer to the Medicine Wheel Teachings
The medicine wheel teaches us about the connection between our emotional, physical, intellectual, and spiritual selves. Being alone can be a great time to reflect on these components of our lives. Referring to the teachings of the medicine wheel might help you deduce the reasons behind your feelings and how they might be important to your overall journey.
9. Value Time
Remember that we only have so much time on Earth, so don’t let negativity eat away at your days. It’s easy to sink into despair and regret when we are feeling lost or lonely. Feeding negativity only creates more of it. Acknowledge every small step you take and relish in small victories -- they are an important part of the journey.
10. Remember That Things Happen for a Reason
Certain situations we encounter are designed to teach us lessons. While it might not feel like it right now, your current feelings might be present in order to teach you a lesson -- either for yourself or a lesson that can be passed on to others who need it. Though you might be struggling, it might end up being beneficial to you or someone else in need, which can make the struggle more valuable.
11. Journal
Journaling can help you to process your feelings. Gratitude journaling, especially, can help you to focus on the positive and imbue daily gratitude into your routine. Science shows that practicing gratitude genuinely makes us happier.
12. Remember Others Feel the Same Way You Do
Finally, don’t forget that even when you feel alone, you never truly are. Every day, there are hundreds and thousands of people who feel just like you do. If you can hold onto this fact, it can help you feel less isolated and miserable while you work through your feelings and come out the other side.
We all feel lost and alone sometimes and that’s ok! For additional help and resources, you can sign up for our online workshop. A guided way to process your feelings and pursue personal growth can help you get to the next stage of your journey.
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