Do you feel like you are in an Isolation Bubble? Well, 2020 sure put a magnifying glass on isolation, not only with covid, politics, and social unrest. Something else I have realized is that we often put ourselves in Isolation by backing away from the world and withdrawing from life. Sometimes it is a protection response to hurt or anger, sometimes it is fear of failure or even success (yes we can be afraid of success too), sometimes we aren’t even aware we have locked our true self away because the face we show in public is a facade. Whatever the circumstances that put you in your isolation, once you realize where you are then you can plan your escape route.
I think sharing is caring so I’d like to share a bit of my own story for a moment. I truly am a fairly private person so it is not always an easy task. I have worked in public service both in the medical and law enforcement field and both were very rewarding, I worked in hospitality and customer service industry then for years from ground up to management positions in the corporate world, again they were rewarding at the time. Then I found ways to stay home and work for myself doing independent contracting for companies, scheduling my time to work and still be around more for my family. Oh, now I thought I had found my ticket to making it all work. It has not always been smooth sailing, but it was the right path for me and allowed me to have both an income and precious time with my husband and grandkids whom we shared in raising. Flash forward many years the grandkids grew up and moved on, my husband’s health led to many hospital stays and a new form of isolation to keep him as healthy as possible for as long as possible, but he passed right as covid was raising its ugly head. Wow, that was a lot of sharing. So now what?
Well, grief has it’s own path and journey, we can only influence any of it by how we look at it. My faith and belief have always given me the ability to see positivity in everything. My realism let’s me know not everything is under my control, but taking control of how I respond to the reality of my world is my choice. So with that in mind, I gave myself permission to grieve, remember when I need to, but never let either of those things become paralyzing to my envisioning a future and a now of satisfaction and happiness. I daily pray, meditate, and move forward, ( my 20/20/20 plan).
2020 kept me in physical isolation and 2021 is still proving a challenge there, but this world, this universe is more than a physical one is it not? We can connect with almost anyone today in so many ways, (phone, text, social media, apps, email, snailmail). Don’t get me wrong, I have become even more aware of how precious it is to see human interaction and the touch of another human, and I will never take that for granted again. The realist with a positive outlook also sees I can poke some holes in my isolation bubble just by using other virtual forms of communication. My voice is not silent as long I am sending out my signals and inviting others to join me in the conversation.
I work online and I work with others who also are good listeners, teachers, coachs, or mentors, or just friends and team players. You have a voice. Let us hear from you.
Reach out and touch someone today!!!