HOW DO I BETRAY MYSELF? The worst thing you can do in this life is to betray yourself. (K. Dovlatov) What would you answer if I asked you: how many times a day do you betray yourself? Perhaps you wouldn’t even understand what I mean. But in my work, I constantly encounter betrayal. Betrayal of your Self. Let's look at this in a little more detail. By definition, betrayal is a violation of loyalty to someone or failure to fulfill a duty to someone. And the first thing we usually start with is: external betrayal is often a reflection of betrayal of oneself. How Do you often hide your emotions? For example, you want to cry, but in the presence of other people you are ashamed of your tears. “It’s normal,” you say, “nobody is interested in my sadness.” How do you look at the same situation from the other side? For example, a loved one whom you love and trust will begin to say, “I don’t know this crying person, he’s not with me.” Did he betray you? Is this also normal? Here are a few more examples of how you betray yourself during the day: Betrayal of your desires: in the morning you want to buy yourself coffee on the way to work, but you don’t do it, thinking to yourself: “After all, I can drink it and at work, why waste money." But at the same time, at lunch you buy cookies that you didn’t really want, or cigarettes, although they cost the same money, or in the evening you take a package of sausages on sale, although in fact you don’t really like them. Isn’t this a betrayal of your desire? Betrayal of your body: often looking in the mirror you say to yourself: “How fat I am, I hate my nose (thighs, stomach, etc.).” Now imagine that a loved one tells you this? What's it like? It's unpleasant, isn't it? So why do you think that telling yourself this is quite natural?! In fact, there are a lot of such examples. You betray yourself constantly. And when you start comparing yourself with someone, and when you agree, although in fact you are ready to shout “NO”, and even when you criticize yourself or, on the contrary, forget to praise. So gradually, neglecting your own interests, desires and even feelings, you take the path of betrayal . It becomes so commonplace that you don’t even notice it. So how many times a day do you betray yourself? I’ve been thinking for a long time about what to write at the end of this post. At first I wanted to appeal to you: “WELL, CAN YOU STOP BETRAYING YOURSELF?” And then... Then I thought about these words, is it possible to simply change my behavior? It’s probably not easy. This takes time. I offer you help on this path, so that perhaps not immediately, but gradually, step by step, you recognize your desires, get acquainted with your feelings, and fill your life with what is interesting to you. Start today on the path of self-love and care. The way to take responsibility for your own feelings, desires and needs. And, if necessary, feel free to contact me for support..