Regret might be the most painful of emotions because it’s often self-inflicted.

Grief and anger normally come from outside the self, while regret has only one source.

It’s so important to try forgiving ourselves, so that we can move on with life and not carry around the burdens of the past.

How To Forgive Yourself

What Is The Root Cause Of Regret?

Regret is viewed by many to be a mental phenomenon conditioned by evolution.

It’s an evolutionary advantage for a species to learn from pervious mistakes, and remember those mistakes to avoid future related problems.

What Emotion Does Regret Fall Under?

Regret is often closely associated with feelings of guilt or shame.

It’s a negative emotion that occurs when we believe our past actions or behaviours, if changed, may have achieved a better outcome.

Does Everyone Have Regrets In Life?

Yes, even the most successful or happiest person among us has regrets about things in life.

What Are The Most Regretted Things?

Some of the major regrets may include failed relationships, missed opportunities, or poor judgment calls.

A few decisions may have seemed easy at the time but later turned out to have been poorly executed. Others were difficult from the start.

Some regrets are more fundamental, and greater in scope, as in they tend not to focus on a single moment or area, but how life is lived.

Is There Such A Thing As Forgiving Yourself?

Self-forgiveness is more of an action we take to release the pain of an embarrassing or distressing situation.  Self-compassion is a way of being where we allow ourselves to make mistakes and accept that it’s ok.

How to Forgive Yourself

• Accept responsibility for what occurred.
• Treat yourself with compassion.
• Express remorse for your mistakes.
• Make amends and apologize, including to yourself.
• Try understanding your emotions.
• Seek ways to learn from the experience.
• Understand that you are human.
• Accept what you can’t control.
• Seek support from loved ones.
• Talk with a therapist or support group.
• Give yourself space and time to heal.

Why Is Forgiving Yourself So Hard?

Low self-esteem, being naturally self-critical, or growing up in an environment of criticism or abuse, are things that can make it difficult to forgive past mistakes.

Some mental health conditions can make you more likely to experience guilt and have a hard time forgiving yourself.

What Are The Stages Of Self-Forgiveness?

• Identify the events or behaviours you wish to forgive yourself for.
• Explore your responsibility for what happened.
• Accept and experience remorse.
• Notice your thoughts and feelings.
• Make amends.
• Let go.

How Do You Forgive Yourself And Stop Regretting The Past?

• Find objectivity.
• Focus on the good things.
• Have self-compassion.
• Reframe your thoughts about the situation.

How Long Does It Take To Forgive Yourself?

There’s no time limit for forgiveness.

You need time to process your feelings and go through the whole process. It might take time to feel like everything’s back to normal after you make a mistake.

Is Regret A Form Of Depression?

Regret can have damaging effects on mind and body when it turns into pointless rumination and self-blame that keeps people from re-engaging with life.

This pattern of repetitive, negative, ruminative thinking is a characteristic of depression.

Final Thoughts

Forgiving ourselves is part of the bigger picture in letting go of the past.

Striving to have no regrets is fine, but we should realize it’s a part of life and as we touched on, can even be beneficial.

In regret, we get to reassess our lives, the actions we’ve taken, or even the poor decisions we’ve made so that we can improve in the future.

Regrets are a necessary part of being a normal, functioning human being.

Thanks for reading, please comment or follow the links.

Sources and other reading:

How To Forgive Yourself

Living Without Regrets

What’s On Your Bucket List?

Letting Go Of The Past

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