You feel stuck… like no matter what you do, your life isn’t moving.

You want progress — you see the milestones others celebrate and you want them too. But no matter what you do, you continue to celebrate others’ milestones while nothing seems to shift for you.

You would give anything to see the progress you so wish for — but year after year, nothing seems to happen, and that gnawing fear sits in the pit of your belly, reminding you time and time again that this is where you have always been and has probably convinced you that this is where you will remain.

You know that feeling — like the world moved on and left you behind. A grief of dreams not coming true, or plans not falling into place even when you have done the work — especially when you have done the work.

I lived stuck for years — and maybe I still am in some areas of my life.

For years, I lived in a house I did not feel at home in. I made the insides pretty and told myself I liked it there because it was close to everything — and really, it was close to everything. But there was a certain ache within where I knew deep down that I no longer wanted to be there.

It was a lovely place — brutally cold in winter and unbearably hot depending on the season. An uncomfortable place I learned to adapt to, for years.

Yours may not be a house like mine. Maybe it’s a job, a relationship, a habit, a dream — the one you feel stuck in.

If you asked yourself why you felt stuck and you took your time to think about it — like really think about it — what would be your answer?

Would your answer be tinted by frustration — the unbearable feeling of wanting something, someone or somewhere, and yet not getting there no matter how much you tried?

Would it be anger — at what you think is holding you back? And maybe you are justified in your anger, because let’s face it, sometimes things keep us stuck that we have no control over. But are you truly helpless to whatever is keeping you stuck?

Or perhaps tears — the grief of wanting, desiring, and simply not making any progress.

The truth is, I had all these reactions and many reasons, and I am sure you do too.

Mine was fear.

I had ended up in that house due to neglect, abandonment, and simply having no one in my corner — navigating life without any anchor or compass, trying to make everyone happy and prove something to people who didn’t matter.

Deep down, I was still that young woman who had been untethered. Who had drifted to that place through circumstances beyond her control.

So what is your reason?

Are you stuck because the unfamiliar feels scary?

Or are you reaching for something that was never yours in the first place?

Or like me, you have no compass, and feel anchored to a past that no longer serves you.

Because one thing I know is that staying stuck came at a cost — one I paid over and over.

And I know you know the cost.

Perhaps for you the cost is not living fully in your own life while focused on a future that isn’t guaranteed.

Or shrinking yourself to endure what no longer holds or serves you.

Maybe spending resources on something that no longer has the legs to carry you forward.

You know the cost. You’ve paid it, and probably still are.

The shift came when I started learning to trust myself more.

I had too many whys in my life that I had not found answers to outside of myself. So I looked within by sitting with myself. The more I sat with myself, the more I realised how disconnected I was from my own life. My past had taught me to accept my lot and make do with it.

That was no longer enough for me.

Maybe you are not stuck.

Maybe like me, you are afraid. Or perhaps you have lived your life being everything to everyone and nothing to yourself. That type of disconnection with one’s self sets you up to be good at helping everyone and an expert at feeling helpless in your own life.

Whatever the reason or fear underneath that feeling of being stuck — you can set it down and become unstuck.

A little step like trusting myself led to curiosity about myself — eventually taking me on a journey that would lead me to move.

The first thing I noticed in my new home was the improvement in my breathing.

If there is anything you take away from this today, let it be this:

Self-trust goes a long way. I know you may have done the work and tried everything — but I encourage you to trust that you can move yourself from where you are now to where you deserve to be.

Yes, to build trust with yourself takes time. It is not something you wake up one day and start doing.

Simple things like keeping promises to yourself, no matter how small, can start the journey to trusting and choosing yourself.

Saying no, and trusting that no is a complete sentence.

It will be uncomfortable at first — but consistency is key.

If this is where you are right now, you don’t have to navigate it alone.

I hold space for this work in my 1:1 mentoring — The Practice of Staying with Yourself and Living From What Matters.

If you’re ready to explore this deeper, the mentoring is here.