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2025 was tough for me, as it seems to have been for so many of us.
I had some pretty big challenges in work and relationships, but I was able to largely keep them at rom-com movie level rather than the horror films I’ve been through in the past.
I’ve dealt with a lot worse, and there was a lot worse going on in other countries. Here in Australia, I felt we were safe. (That was, of course, before the Bondi Beach shooting.)
It was the injustice and pain in the world that was really difficult for me in 2025; it weighed me down like a backpack full of boulders. I never watch the news, and I do my own research to stay informed, but the chaos happening around the world was flowing into my social media feed with great force.
And I was mortified by the things I heard and saw.
I exposed myself to the pain of the world more than I usually do—learning more about the violence, abuse, injustice, and discrimination happening to so many people in our human family. And it engulfed me like a tsunami. It brought up a lot of rage, and truly broke my heart.
I’m extremely sensitive, so I can only tolerate that level of pain for so long without getting sick. And the only way I can deal with harm toward human beings is to do something about it.
But I didn’t know what to do. It felt too big, so I froze and isolated and sometimes just fell into a heap and screamed and cried. I didn’t stop writing but I stopped sharing it as much, and that shut me down even more. And I got sick—more than I have for many years.
All I knew to do was my own inner work—to transmute the fear into love and send that much-needed love into the world. But I often felt too disconnected to do it as much as I normally do, and so it felt like I dropped the ball on that as well. I just didn’t feel like myself.
I was also having periods of going into survival mode because of my work challenges. It made it hard to stay regulated and to share the love in my heart because at times it felt so clouded by fear.
I believed I was no good to anyone if I was too depressed, anxious, and weighed down. And I almost gave up.
But I just kept reminding myself that every little bit counts:
Every five-minute meditation.
Every yoga stretch.
Every walk along the beach.
Every moment of forgiveness.
Every moment of awareness.
Every moment of surrender.
Every smile at a stranger.
Every minute in nature.
Every little act of kindness.
Every comedy movie that makes us laugh and cry and regulates our nervous system to remind us of the good in the world.
And remembering that every little thing counts kept me going.
I still felt less tolerant, more irritable, and just heavier in general, but then I realised that this is not necessarily a bad thing. It just means that I’m raising my standards, which was one of my mantras in 2025.
Honestly, I think we are all raising our standards as a collective.
Humanity is no longer willing to overlook injustice, bullying, lying, abuse, and harmful leaders who display all of these traits. Many are realizing that behaviours they thought were “normal” are actually incredibly damaging. It’s a process I once journeyed through during a dark night of the soul as I healed from narcissistic abuse.
So many people are opening their eyes to dysfunction, and it can be difficult to see at first since it creates more chaos as it comes to the surface. But if we can stay present, and resist the temptation to get caught up in it, it can lead to awakening more love, more joy, more connection, and more harmony.
It can be easy to blame our parents, politicians, our boss, friend, or partner who we’re currently repeating dysfunctional patterns with, but from a wider perspective, it’s a generational pattern coming up to be seen, loved, and shifted.
It’s an opportunity to grow.
In no way am I minimising destruction or saying to tolerate dysfunction, to repress our emotional reactions to it, or to lay forgiveness over the top of unhealed wounds. Facing the pain and injustice, and even blaming others, can be a helpful part of the healing process—particularly if we are in the habit of blaming ourselves.
Do whatever you need to do to face the pain. Cry and scream, speak out and share your truth, even when your voice wobbles.
But when we keep coming back to remembering that we are all flawed humans on this planet and we are still learning, it strengthens our connectedness. And from that place we can more easily forgive others and ourselves.
I don’t believe forgiveness gives perpetrators power—I think it removes their power, because we have taken back our own.
That’s where humor can be so healing, because when we can see an abuser as a little toddler having a tantrum, it can break us out of the fear. And from that place we might even be able to have compassion for that child who was once neglected and abused and deep down is just yearning for love.
Everyone deals with pain and suffering in different ways, but we must avoid creating more pain and suffering by starting unnecessary mini-wars when there are bigger ones happening in the world that need our love. When we remember to be gentle with ourselves and with others, we soften the fear.
Remember that every little bit we do counts. Even if it’s small steps of self-care so we can continue to put a little love out into the world, instead of more hate.
Because that’s what I believe everyone really wants at heart, regardless of opinion or perspective: love. And that love is what connects us all. No matter what.
Here’s to feeling and sharing more of that love in 2026!
~
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