Hi Ausdog
To say that feeling lost is an incredibly tough, frustrating and painful experience at times would have to be an understatement. I think sometimes it can be downright depressing and not necessarily just basically depressing, I find it can feel deeply depressing on occasion.
At first it can begin as a simple observation, 'I feel so lost. I have no idea what I want to do or even who I am for that matter'. But then this simple observation can take on a whole different form. If I could compare it to something I'd say it feels like you can be walking this satisfying and sometimes even joyful path in life, like through some forest where there a signs everywhere, pointing you in different directions, toward a variety of opportunities, and you're free to pick just about any direction you wish (within reason). Then you don't realise but gradually the signs seem to lessen, the forest becomes gradually darker and you find yourself standing there alone or so it seems, not knowing which way to go, partly out of fear and partly due to having no clear vision of where you're meant to be heading. And the longer you stand there, the darker it gets and the harder it becomes to move. To make it even more challenging, you can have people calling out to you in the dark all these different directions, such as 'You need to change jobs', 'You need to change your lifestyle', 'You need to stop overthinking', 'You just need to gain more energy' and on it goes. If the depression's bad enough, it just feels like you're glued to the ground. So even if you know some of those things or directions will make a difference, it's like you can't move to begin making your way down those paths, towards brighter parts of the forest.
This is where I find myself now, glued to the spot, feeling completely lost in the dark. As a 53yo gal, you'd think I'd have it all together by now but if there's one thing I've worked out to be the undeniable truth, it's this...sometimes we simply don't know how to do life without the right kind of guidance. It's that guidance that releases us from that spot. It's not that we are heavy weights for other people, the truth is it's sometimes we who are anchored, simply not knowing how to do life under the circumstances. I'm wondering whether anyone comes to mind for you, in the way of guidance. The reason I ask is because every part of me has been dictating lately, in one way or another, that I have got to go and see a brilliant guide/counselor I tend to see about once every few years or so. He's an incredible deeply soulful person who I've discovered I just can't live without when things become this challenging. He's always been able to see the way ahead for me.
