Karen Wells M.
Published: 2012-09-18
Total Pages: 296
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UnHooked! tackles the struggles of self-hate, fear, unhealthy thinking, emotional pain, grief, and unforgiveness. Karen shares 7 practical steps that will help set women free, based on the principles and truths of God's Word. Step 1. Acknowledge Past Experience. The first step is to acknowledge past experience. We often do not recognize the impact of our stories because we haven't stepped out of denial, accepted our full stories and started talking about them. Step 2. Recognize and Feel Feelings. We need to recognize and feel emotions. We're often afraid of our emotions. We're afraid to let them stay with us. We find unhealthy ways to run from them. Feelings aren't good or bad. They just are. Feelings aren't the issue. The issue is how we deal with feelings. Step 3. Name the Loss. When we experience something tragic, or we've done something we regret, we experience loss. Along with the primary loss of the specific experience or choice, there are many secondary losses we might not be aware of, acknowledge, or take time to figure out. As you explore and define these secondary losses, you'll begin to feel unhooked and start experiencing freedom in your life. Step 4. Understand the Grief Cycle. Everyone grieves, whether it involves a small loss or a big loss. As you name the loss, you'll become aware of the grief cycle. Women often feel there's something wrong with them or that they're not handling things well. They can feel as if they're going crazy. Often times, they're experiencing common components of grief. Understanding the grief cycle can help normalize struggles. Grieving isn't the problem. The problem comes when you get stuck in a particular aspect of the grief cycle. Sometimes you move through the grief cycle quickly, and sometimes you creep through it. As we later explore the specifics of the grief cycle, keep in mind that the pace of moving through it isn't as important as the process of moving. We'll also look at what's normal and what's unhealthy in the grief cycle. Step 5. Challenge Your Beliefs. You have beliefs you've brought from your childhood into your present life, even if you think you haven't or aren't aware of what you've brought along. Your childhood experiences are part of your story. Some beliefs are faulty, including the unhealthy ones that continually pull you back into the past. You'll learn how to recognize faulty beliefs, so you can challenge lies and embrace truths. As we dig deeply into Step 5, you'll get specific tools for recognizing truth from lies. The problem is that lies can look truthful, so you can be deceived. The great thing is that John 8:32 promises, "Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." Step 6. Choose To Forgive. Forgiveness is very hard for many people, and we'll address various reasons. You'll identify what reasons best fit you. The forgiveness process is often the area where the most significant changes take place in women's lives. Forgiveness has powerful spiritual and emotional components that can redirect your life. Harboring unforgiveness can destroy you, but forgiveness is amazing. Step 7. Let Go and Live In Today. The final step in Unhooked! 7 Steps To Emotional Freedom is letting go and living in today, not yesterday or tomorrow. You must learn to recognize when you're slipping back into the past and find strategies for living in the present. You can look into your past to learn from it, but it is your present that builds the future.