SPFPP 327: Fulfillment in Faith
We often have a lot of beliefs that conflict with our behaviors. Our beliefs form our thoughts, become our words, trigger actions, and create our patterns that shape our environment that reinforce our beliefs. This broken down cycle and process becomes a blueprint for achieving our goals and desired outcomes because when broken down, we can see which individual part of the machine needs challenging. On SPFPP 327: Fulfillment in Faith we hear from Stefanie who was diagnosed with herpes 20 years ago AND met her now husband shortly (within months) after.
When it comes to navigating herpes stigma, what we see is religion shame. We believe based on our beliefs about God or our religious upbringing that we’re being punished for the act(s) that caused us to be in the situation we’re in. This part of the machine is the most difficult to examine because how often do we examine our thoughts, let alone our beliefs? The outside in approach is what we’re used to. Our guest this week shares with us her strategies and considerations for examining our beliefs through her experience as a Christian in a way that’s transferable to not just religion, but also creating a faith system that we identify fulfillment in. Your goal may not be a husband and three boys like Stefanie’s but whatever that goal is, her experience can help you start there and get there.
To go from receiving an HSV diagnosis to leaning INTO your faith out of love rather than fear that your diagnosis is a punishment. So much of what we see in regards to sexual shame stems from religious beliefs. The conflict of our behavior and our religious beliefs is where the suffering comes in, and that suffering can be alleviated when there is consistency in our behaviors and beliefs. Trusting what is unseen is synonymous to behaving in a way that aligns with our beliefs. The desired outcome we want to achieve may not always show up, but that’s what faith is. It’s acting in alignment with that which is unseen because you believe in it.
You don’t have to tell the world you have HSV, you don’t have to support people. If you want changes, you DO have to challenge your beliefs and make them consistent with your behaviors in order to alleviate the suffering that comes from NOT examining our beliefs. I always say the fastest way to start doing something is to stop doing the thing that’s in the way of you doing it. Stop NOT examining your beliefs.
We have a co-hort of Yin Yoga intending on utilizing the work of Dr. David R. Hawkins’ Letting Go to begin to look at our beliefs through emotions. You can register for that here. Enjoy this episode of SPFPP and we hope to see you in the cohort!