Explore your Inner Self

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A state of confusion

The last 100 years have seen a great many radical changes, that have had a dramatic effect on our way of life. Many of these changes were for the better in that today more people had a comfortable lifestyle than they ever did at the beginning of the twentieth century. Some of the effects, however, were not so good. People began to feel stressed and confused, to the extent that they began to question their whole way of life and even their own identity.

'Who exactly am I and why on earth am I doing this?' became a common cri de coeur, if not actually spoken then at least thought. Some who felt a desire to know more about themselves toyed with the idea for a bit, but set it aside and got on with their rat-race lives to the best of their ability. Others again felt that 'Know thyself was a good maxim for the remainder of their lives and set about putting the knowing of themselves into action.

Exploring one's inner self is obviously no mean task. Even thinking of a way to approach the task is daunting. Different people find different courses of action helpful, and differences in situation can affect the nature of the approach. This section describes some of the ways that people explore in order to get a clearer picture of themselves.

Today stress and speed are key words, and many feel that they are on a kind of relentless treadmill from which it is impossible to escape. Everything is in a state of hurry and hassle, and there is no time to stand and stare-let alone to think.

It is understandable that this sort of pressure causes some people to have what are known to the lay person as nervous breakdowns. In the case of others, it is their physical health that breaks down. In yet other cases, it proves to be marriages and relationships that cannot stand the strain. In less dramatic cases, some people simply opt out of what they have previously been doing.

People speak of experiencing a personal crisis - a moment of truth when some kind of decision about their lives has to be made. Others speak of requiring space. Many simply want to get off the roundabout of life, which they feel is somehow hurtling round almost out of control, and to stand still for a while.

Certainly the last decade has found many people feeling lost, as though they have completely strayed from the way on which they had intended to set out. It is a set of circumstances very likely to induce people to try to seek inner strength and inner knowledge in an attempt to improve their lot in some way, and many are doing just that.

It is often something specific that triggers off such a response, some circumstance or life event that makes someone stop in his or her tracks and think. What exactly the crisis point is, of course, differs from person to person and from circumstance to circumstance.

People who have suffered from mental breakdowns, or who have suffered from severe reactive clinical depression in response to some form of life crisis, often begin to explore their inner selves as they begin to recover. Having been seriously ill, they often take a new look at life and at themselves, and some-times alter their entire lifestyles. Those who have been seriously physically ill, such as those who have had a near-death experience during a heart attack, often have a similar response.

It is not always something obviously tragic or unfortunate that leads people to embark on a journey of self-discovery. Sometimes it is a particular age, often the age of forty in men, that triggers it. Sometimes it seems to be nothing in particular that acts as a trigger, just a sudden realization that life is going nowhere and some reappraisal is necessary.

Even a happy event can lead people to try to explore their inner selves. The birth of a baby to a high-powered woman executive might find her suddenly wondering what she really wants out of life and who she really is. Likewise, the marriage of a daughter might find a mother wondering about her role in the family and looking within herself to find out to what extent she has done what she really wanted to do.

The reasons why people embark on a journey of self-discovery are many and varied. The ways in which they set out to explore their inner selves are also many and varied. The following sections deal with these various ways.