Care without Carrying

Is it possible to care about something without carrying it?

Often times we get so wrapped up in a situation that we end up carrying it around with us; maybe not literally in our hands, arms, or on our backs, but in our hearts and minds. Being wrapped up becomes overwhelm, and that becomes obsession, and that leads to the slow burn that gradually eats up everything that was once fuel.

Carrying something adds weight to our lives. It weighs us down. If that something is an emotional something it can wear a hole right through us. Where the heart and soul used to be is now a gaping wound, a void. You’ve seen it, the light in the eyes is gone, the spring in the step is missing, the enthusiasm has been replaced with apathy and blah.

Those working in the service professions can’t function at work with an open wound; and although, in a lot of situations, it is the job that caused the hole in the first place, we fill it with work. We want to care so we start to fill the hole with tasks, and obligations. Before we know it we are filled up with and carrying the situation all over again.

How do we heal that wound from the inside out? Just like an actual wound, it needs to heal from the bottom layer to the top, not just fill over with a scab while ugliness festers beneath the surface.

One way is to leave the situation that is too much for us to carry without injury; cut all ties. Another is to learn how to care without carrying. Leave work at work. Learn to say no. Accept help. Learn nervous system regulation practices and do them regularly.