9 Things I Learned in 2012

2012 was a decent year for me. In fact, I would even say it has been the best year of my life so far. Nothing earth-shattering happened, nothing life-changing occurred, and that within itself is what made it amazing.

There was no drama, no huge revelations, no deep, dark, sinister, depressions. I can totally dig more years like that!

Here's a list of what I learned this year.

I do not have to punish myself for being the person that I used to be. Punishing myself does not resolve me of the things that I did in the past. The only thing that I can do is live better, and I am.

Practicing epic self care has changed my life. There's a difference between knowing self care and implementing it into your daily life. This year I began to practice what I preached and it's been amaaaazing.

I realized that I'm a freakin' control freak. It is funny that I really didn't notice it before, seeing as how my word of the year was "Surrender". Letting go of control is something that I am still working on. Not being attached to outcomes is a hard thing to learn, which is what I've learned!

Other people's opinions about my body are irrelevant. It's easy to know it, but it's hard to let it sink in, but it's truth. People can say what they want. Their words don't matter. When I look in the mirror I truly love what I see now. It was a harder journey than I wanted it to be.

I have learned that I need to listen to myself more often. I've always had a habit of letting other people's opinions have more weight than my own, but that's truly no way to live. I'm much happier when I listen to what my heart tells me to do in all things. That's when you really start to become authentic.

I can let go of the people that don't belong in my life. I am not obligated to keep them. They do not  inherently deserve a spot in my life just because. If they earned that spot in the past, it doesn't mean they get to keep it forever. I deserve to have people in my life out of love, not obligation.

When you love who you are and when you embrace your self-confidence, amazing things happen around you. People are drawn to you in a way that they are not drawn to other people. It's a pretty amazing thing to realize people like you for liking yourself and it freaks me out a little bit too, hermit that I am.

Speaking my truth, about not having babies, about my past experiences, about my depression, it all has had it's purpose. A wonderful purpose of letting others know that they are not alone. Sharing my story is something that I have lost the fear of doing.

I've learned that being the main character in my own story is way better than just being a supporting one. I was always putting other people first, it was always about them and never about me. Allowing my life to be about me and what I want? Best thing ever.

Will you share with me one thing that you've learned this year?