<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/" xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/" xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" version="2.0" xmlns:itunes="http://www.itunes.com/dtds/podcast-1.0.dtd" xmlns:googleplay="http://www.google.com/schemas/play-podcasts/1.0"><channel><title><![CDATA[Bernard Boey]]></title><description><![CDATA[To explore energy healing through curiosity, compassion, and real-world experience—and to share discoveries that may help others heal.]]></description><link>https://www.thegreatcompassionwithin.me</link><image><url>https://www.thegreatcompassionwithin.me/img/substack.png</url><title>Bernard Boey</title><link>https://www.thegreatcompassionwithin.me</link></image><generator>Substack</generator><lastBuildDate>Sat, 04 Apr 2026 06:52:14 GMT</lastBuildDate><atom:link href="https://www.thegreatcompassionwithin.me/feed" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml"/><copyright><![CDATA[Bernard Boey]]></copyright><language><![CDATA[en]]></language><webMaster><![CDATA[thegreatcompassionwithinme@substack.com]]></webMaster><itunes:owner><itunes:email><![CDATA[thegreatcompassionwithinme@substack.com]]></itunes:email><itunes:name><![CDATA[Bernard Boey]]></itunes:name></itunes:owner><itunes:author><![CDATA[Bernard Boey]]></itunes:author><googleplay:owner><![CDATA[thegreatcompassionwithinme@substack.com]]></googleplay:owner><googleplay:email><![CDATA[thegreatcompassionwithinme@substack.com]]></googleplay:email><googleplay:author><![CDATA[Bernard Boey]]></googleplay:author><itunes:block><![CDATA[Yes]]></itunes:block><item><title><![CDATA[New Earth Is Not Somewhere Else. It Begins Within Us.]]></title><description><![CDATA[The outer world may still look the same, but your experience of it begins to transform.]]></description><link>https://www.thegreatcompassionwithin.me/p/new-earth-is-not-somewhere-else-it</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.thegreatcompassionwithin.me/p/new-earth-is-not-somewhere-else-it</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Bernard Boey]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Fri, 03 Apr 2026 11:34:36 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!3EHg!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F53df1da9-b543-4e2c-9aeb-56a43a456bca_1024x1024.jpeg" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!3EHg!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F53df1da9-b543-4e2c-9aeb-56a43a456bca_1024x1024.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!3EHg!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F53df1da9-b543-4e2c-9aeb-56a43a456bca_1024x1024.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!3EHg!,w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F53df1da9-b543-4e2c-9aeb-56a43a456bca_1024x1024.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!3EHg!,w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F53df1da9-b543-4e2c-9aeb-56a43a456bca_1024x1024.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!3EHg!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F53df1da9-b543-4e2c-9aeb-56a43a456bca_1024x1024.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!3EHg!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F53df1da9-b543-4e2c-9aeb-56a43a456bca_1024x1024.jpeg" width="1024" height="1024" data-attrs="{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/53df1da9-b543-4e2c-9aeb-56a43a456bca_1024x1024.jpeg&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:1024,&quot;width&quot;:1024,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:null,&quot;bytes&quot;:503643,&quot;alt&quot;:null,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;image/jpeg&quot;,&quot;href&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:false,&quot;topImage&quot;:true,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:&quot;https://thegreatcompassionwithinme.substack.com/i/192356531?img=https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F53df1da9-b543-4e2c-9aeb-56a43a456bca_1024x1024.jpeg&quot;,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!3EHg!,w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F53df1da9-b543-4e2c-9aeb-56a43a456bca_1024x1024.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!3EHg!,w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F53df1da9-b543-4e2c-9aeb-56a43a456bca_1024x1024.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!3EHg!,w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F53df1da9-b543-4e2c-9aeb-56a43a456bca_1024x1024.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!3EHg!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F53df1da9-b543-4e2c-9aeb-56a43a456bca_1024x1024.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><div class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg role="img" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><title></title><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a><figcaption class="image-caption">We do not experience life directly, we experience life through consciousness.</figcaption></figure></div><p>One of the ideas I keep returning to in my healing journey is this:</p><p>New Earth is not a different planet.</p><p>It is a different way of experiencing reality.</p><p>At first, when I heard people talk about New Earth, higher frequencies, or shifting timelines, it all sounded abstract. Beautiful, maybe. But abstract.</p><p>Over time, through meditation, healing work, emotional processing, and simply paying closer attention to my own body and life, these ideas started to make more sense in a very practical way.</p><p>Not as an escape from reality.</p><p>But as a deeper understanding of it.</p><h2><strong>What &#8220;New Earth&#8221; Really Means</strong></h2><p>The simplest way I can describe it is this:</p><p>We do not experience life directly.</p><p>We experience life through consciousness.</p><p>That means our inner state affects how we perceive the world.</p><p>If our consciousness is shaped by fear, survival, shame, and stress, then the world often looks hard, hostile, unsafe, and limiting.</p><p>If our consciousness begins to shift toward love, peace, compassion, trust, and awareness, then the very same world can begin to feel different.</p><p>This is what I believe people mean when they talk about New Earth.</p><p>It is not about physically going somewhere else.</p><p>It is about tuning into a different layer of reality.</p><p>Almost like changing channels.</p><p>The outer world may still look the same, but your experience of it begins to transform.</p><h2><strong>Two Earths, Same Place</strong></h2><p>The way I understand it now, there are almost two layers happening at once.</p><p>There is the version of reality shaped by fear, control, scarcity, and separation.</p><p>And there is the version shaped by love, creation, unity, and flow.</p><p>You could call one Old Earth and the other New Earth.</p><p>Old Earth says:</p><ul><li><p>protect yourself</p></li><li><p>compete</p></li><li><p>hold on tightly</p></li><li><p>survive at all costs</p></li></ul><p>New Earth says:</p><ul><li><p>connect</p></li><li><p>create</p></li><li><p>collaborate</p></li><li><p>trust that life can support you</p></li></ul><p>These two realities can exist in the same city, the same family, even the same room.</p><p>I have seen this in my own life.</p><p>There were times when I was carrying so much shame, grief, fear, and emotional pain that the whole world felt heavy. My body felt contracted. My mind felt trapped. My reality reflected that.</p><p>And then, as I began healing, processing, and listening more deeply, I noticed something changing. Not because the whole world changed overnight, but because I changed.</p><h2><strong>Everything Is Energy</strong></h2><p>One of the things that made energy healing make more sense to me was realizing that everything is energy.</p><p>Not just in a spiritual way, but in a very fundamental way.</p><p>Our bodies are energy.</p><p>Our thoughts carry energy.</p><p>Our emotions carry energy.</p><p>And energy vibrates.</p><p>Different states carry different frequencies.</p><p>Dense emotions tend to feel heavy, tight, contracted.</p><p>Lighter emotions tend to feel open, expansive, flowing.</p><p>I have felt this directly in my own body.</p><p>When I am in fear, shame, guilt, or unresolved grief, my body tightens. My breath shortens. My thinking becomes smaller and more survival-based.</p><p>When I am in peace, gratitude, compassion, or love, the body opens. There is more room inside. I can think more clearly. I can feel more possibility.</p><p>This is why I no longer see emotions as random.</p><p>They are information.</p><h2><strong>Emotions Are Your Frequency Language</strong></h2><p>This has become one of the most important lessons in my healing journey.</p><p>Emotions are not interruptions.</p><p>They are signals.</p><p>They tell us what state we are in.</p><p>They show us what is unresolved.</p><p>They point to what needs attention.</p><p>Earlier in my journey, I used to think healing meant getting rid of the uncomfortable emotions as quickly as possible.</p><p>Now I see it differently.</p><p>You do not shift into a higher state by pretending fear is not there.</p><p>You do not become more peaceful by suppressing shame or anger.</p><p>You shift by acknowledging what is there, feeling it, learning from it, and allowing it to move.</p><p>This has been true in my work with trauma, shame, unmet emotional needs, psychosomatic symptoms, and even in the way I relate to my inner parts.</p><p>Every time I have truly healed something, it was not because I bypassed it.</p><p>It was because I stayed with it long enough to understand it.</p><h2><strong>Yin and Yang Taught Me Something Important</strong></h2><p>Another framework that helped me understand this is yin and yang.</p><p>I no longer see darkness and light as good versus bad.</p><p>Yin and yang are complementary forces.</p><p>Stillness and movement.</p><p>Darkness and light.</p><p>Intuition and action.</p><p>Inner world and outer expression.</p><p>Darkness is not automatically evil.</p><p>Sometimes darkness is the unknown.</p><p>Sometimes it is the unconscious.</p><p>Sometimes it is the place where transformation begins.</p><p>So much of my healing happened in the dark.</p><p>Not literal darkness, but the inner darkness of not knowing. Of grief. Of confusion. Of confronting old wounds. Of sitting with the parts of myself I did not want to see.</p><p>Without those moments, I would not have grown.</p><p>At the same time, light is not always pure either. Sometimes what looks like light is just avoidance in prettier language. Sometimes &#8220;love and light&#8221; becomes a way to avoid truth.</p><p>Real healing, at least in my experience, asks for both.</p><p>Truth and compassion.</p><p>Awareness and tenderness.</p><p>Light and shadow.</p><h2><strong>The Splitting of Realities</strong></h2><p>When people talk about realities splitting, I do not think it means the Earth is physically separating.</p><p>I think it means people are living in very different experiences based on their dominant state of consciousness.</p><p>Two people can live in the same place and have entirely different realities.</p><p>One person sees only danger, betrayal, chaos, and loss.</p><p>Another sees lessons, opportunities, support, synchronicities, and growth.</p><p>This does not mean one person is better than the other.</p><p>It means our frequency shapes what we notice, how we interpret life, and how we respond.</p><p>I have lived both.</p><p>I know what it feels like when life is filtered through shame, fear, insecurity, and attachment.</p><p>And I know what it feels like when healing opens enough space for joy, gratitude, peace, and trust to return.</p><h2><strong>Why the World Feels So Intense Right Now</strong></h2><p>To me, the world feels intense because both frequencies are active at the same time.</p><p>Old systems are breaking down.</p><p>Hidden truths are surfacing.</p><p>People are more emotionally activated.</p><p>The pressure is increasing.</p><p>We are being asked, again and again:</p><p>Will we choose fear or growth?</p><p>Control or trust?</p><p>Separation or unity?</p><p>This is not just happening out there.</p><p>It is happening within each of us.</p><h2><strong>How We Shift</strong></h2><p>What I have learned through healing is that this shift is practical.</p><p>It starts with awareness.</p><p>Notice what you are feeling without judgment.</p><p>Then regulation.</p><p>Breathe. Ground. Slow your nervous system down.</p><p>Then integration.</p><p>Ask what the emotion is showing you. Ask what needs healing.</p><p>Then choice.</p><p>Choose the next response from a more aligned place. Not fake positivity. Real alignment.</p><p>Then embodiment.</p><p>Repeat the process until it becomes more natural.</p><h2><strong>The New Earth Is Emerging Through Us</strong></h2><p>This is why I now believe that New Earth is not some distant future event.</p><p>It is emerging through people who are willing to do the inner work.</p><p>People who process instead of suppress.</p><p>People who choose compassion over control.</p><p>People who stay grounded enough to heal themselves and support others.</p><p>My healing journey has taught me that the world changes as we change.</p><p>Energy shapes vibration.</p><p>Vibration shapes emotion.</p><p>Emotion shapes perception.</p><p>Perception shapes reality.</p><p>So when I do healing work, whether on myself or others, I now see it as more than symptom relief.</p><p>It is part of a larger movement toward coherence, awareness, and a more loving way of being human.</p><p>And maybe that is what New Earth really is.</p><p>Not somewhere we wait to arrive.</p><p>But something we help create, one healed state at a time.</p><p>A guided meditation practice is included to support your alignment journey, also available on my <a href="http://youtube.com/channel/UCjA46IYiKUFD8SkUHhFsR7w/">YouTube channel</a> for easy access anytime.</p><div class="native-audio-embed" data-component-name="AudioPlaceholder" data-attrs="{&quot;label&quot;:null,&quot;mediaUploadId&quot;:&quot;6cf781ab-c0ee-4219-af97-e6be810153cb&quot;,&quot;duration&quot;:530.9649,&quot;downloadable&quot;:false,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true}"></div><p></p>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[How Do I Actually Do It?]]></title><description><![CDATA[Using intention and coherence to mindful direct the energy.]]></description><link>https://www.thegreatcompassionwithin.me/p/how-do-i-actually-do-it</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.thegreatcompassionwithin.me/p/how-do-i-actually-do-it</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Bernard Boey]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Wed, 01 Apr 2026 11:53:43 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!qJtf!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Febb75d13-26f4-4671-be8c-c20476e55280_1024x1024.jpeg" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!qJtf!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Febb75d13-26f4-4671-be8c-c20476e55280_1024x1024.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!qJtf!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Febb75d13-26f4-4671-be8c-c20476e55280_1024x1024.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!qJtf!,w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Febb75d13-26f4-4671-be8c-c20476e55280_1024x1024.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!qJtf!,w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Febb75d13-26f4-4671-be8c-c20476e55280_1024x1024.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!qJtf!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Febb75d13-26f4-4671-be8c-c20476e55280_1024x1024.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!qJtf!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Febb75d13-26f4-4671-be8c-c20476e55280_1024x1024.jpeg" width="1024" height="1024" data-attrs="{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/ebb75d13-26f4-4671-be8c-c20476e55280_1024x1024.jpeg&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:1024,&quot;width&quot;:1024,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:null,&quot;bytes&quot;:231994,&quot;alt&quot;:null,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;image/jpeg&quot;,&quot;href&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:false,&quot;topImage&quot;:true,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:&quot;https://thegreatcompassionwithinme.substack.com/i/192018562?img=https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Febb75d13-26f4-4671-be8c-c20476e55280_1024x1024.jpeg&quot;,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!qJtf!,w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Febb75d13-26f4-4671-be8c-c20476e55280_1024x1024.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!qJtf!,w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Febb75d13-26f4-4671-be8c-c20476e55280_1024x1024.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!qJtf!,w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Febb75d13-26f4-4671-be8c-c20476e55280_1024x1024.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!qJtf!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Febb75d13-26f4-4671-be8c-c20476e55280_1024x1024.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><div class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg role="img" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><title></title><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a><figcaption class="image-caption">Once there is connection, distance becomes less relevant.</figcaption></figure></div><p>A friend asked me a simple question recently:</p><p>&#8220;How do you do it?&#8221;</p><p>Not in a skeptical way.</p><p>Not in a challenging way.</p><p>But in a genuinely curious way.</p><p>And I realized&#8212;it&#8217;s a fair question.</p><p>Because from the outside, energy healing, especially remote healing, can feel abstract.</p><p>Even mysterious.</p><p>So I sat with that question.</p><p>And instead of trying to give a perfect answer, I&#8217;m going to share how it feels from my experience.</p><h2><strong>Where It Begins</strong></h2><p>If I were to describe it in the simplest way, I would say this:</p><p>It starts with connection.</p><p>Not just connection to the person I&#8217;m working with.</p><p>But a broader sense of connection&#8212;to something larger.</p><p>Some people might call it the universe.</p><p>Some might call it consciousness.</p><p>Some might call it presence.</p><p>For me, it feels like a combination of all of those.</p><h2><strong>The Role of Coherence</strong></h2><p>One word that has become important in my understanding is:</p><p><strong>Coherence</strong></p><p>When I begin a session&#8212;whether in person or remote&#8212;the first thing I do is bring myself into a coherent state.</p><p>That means:</p><ul><li><p>my mind is calm</p></li><li><p>my body is grounded</p></li><li><p>my attention is steady</p></li></ul><p>There&#8217;s no rush.</p><p>No force.</p><p>Just alignment.</p><p>Because from what I&#8217;ve observed, the quality of the healing is directly related to the quality of my state.</p><p>If I&#8217;m scattered, the session feels scattered.</p><p>If I&#8217;m present, something different happens.</p><h2><strong>Tuning Into the Person</strong></h2><p>Once I&#8217;m grounded, I bring my attention to the person.</p><p>If they&#8217;re in front of me, that&#8217;s straightforward.</p><p>If they&#8217;re not, I still focus on them.</p><p>Not as an image&#8212;but as a sense.</p><p>A presence.</p><p>Over time, I&#8217;ve learned that distance doesn&#8217;t feel like a barrier.</p><p>Which leads to something I didn&#8217;t expect to relate to&#8212;but now makes sense in its own way.</p><h2><strong>A Simple Way to Think About Remote Healing</strong></h2><p>There&#8217;s a concept in physics called quantum entanglement.</p><p>At a very basic level, it suggests that two things can remain connected&#8212;even when separated by distance.</p><p>I&#8217;m not saying energy healing is exactly the same.</p><p>But as an analogy, it helps.</p><p>Because what I experience is this:</p><p>Once there is connection, distance becomes less relevant.</p><h2><strong>What Happens During a Session</strong></h2><p>After I establish that connection, I begin to listen.</p><p>Not with my ears.</p><p>But with my awareness.</p><p>I notice:</p><ul><li><p>areas that feel dense</p></li><li><p>areas that feel blocked</p></li><li><p>areas that feel more active</p></li></ul><p>It&#8217;s not visual in the traditional sense.</p><p>It&#8217;s more like sensing patterns.</p><h2><strong>Working With Intention</strong></h2><p>From there, I don&#8217;t &#8220;push&#8221; energy.</p><p>I guide it.</p><p>Gently.</p><p>Using intention.</p><p>Sometimes I place my hands (if in person).</p><p>Sometimes I simply hold focus (if remote).</p><p>The process feels less like doing&#8230;</p><p>and more like allowing.</p><h2><strong>The Role of the Body</strong></h2><p>One thing I&#8217;ve learned is that the body already knows how to heal.</p><p>What I&#8217;m doing is not replacing that.</p><p>I&#8217;m supporting it.</p><p>Creating conditions where:</p><ul><li><p>tension can release</p></li><li><p>flow can return</p></li><li><p>and balance can re-establish</p></li></ul><p>Sometimes the shift is physical.</p><p>Sometimes emotional.</p><p>Sometimes subtle.</p><h2><strong>What People Experience</strong></h2><p>Everyone experiences it differently.</p><p>Some people feel:</p><ul><li><p>warmth</p></li><li><p>tingling</p></li><li><p>relaxation</p></li></ul><p>Others feel:</p><ul><li><p>emotional release</p></li><li><p>clarity</p></li><li><p>or simply calm</p></li></ul><p>And sometimes, they don&#8217;t feel anything during the session&#8212;but notice changes afterward.</p><h2><strong>What I Pay Attention To</strong></h2><p>During a session, I&#8217;m constantly observing:</p><ul><li><p>how the energy shifts</p></li><li><p>how my own body responds</p></li><li><p>when to stay</p></li><li><p>when to move</p></li></ul><p>It&#8217;s not scripted.</p><p>It&#8217;s responsive.</p><p>Each session is different.</p><p><strong>The Importance of Not Forcing</strong></p><p>One of the biggest things I&#8217;ve learned is this:</p><p>You can&#8217;t force healing.</p><p>If you try to push too hard, it doesn&#8217;t work the same way.</p><p>The process requires:</p><ul><li><p>patience</p></li><li><p>trust</p></li><li><p>and openness</p></li></ul><p>Sometimes the best thing to do is&#8230; less.</p><h2><strong>After the Session</strong></h2><p>When the session feels complete, I gradually step back.</p><p>I let the connection soften.</p><p>And I allow the person&#8217;s system to integrate what it needs.</p><p>Because the session doesn&#8217;t end when I stop.</p><p>The body continues to process.</p><h2><strong>What I Don&#8217;t Do</strong></h2><p>I think it&#8217;s just as important to say what I don&#8217;t do.</p><p>I don&#8217;t:</p><ul><li><p>diagnose</p></li><li><p>promise specific outcomes</p></li><li><p>or claim to fix everything</p></li></ul><p>What I offer is support.</p><p>A shift in state.</p><p>A possibility.</p><h2><strong>What I&#8217;ve Come to Understand</strong></h2><p>If I step back and look at the bigger picture, this is how I would describe it:</p><p>Energy healing is not about control.</p><p>It&#8217;s about relationship.</p><ul><li><p>relationship with your body</p></li><li><p>relationship with your awareness</p></li><li><p>relationship with something larger than yourself</p></li></ul><p>And when those relationships become more coherent&#8230;</p><p>something begins to change.</p><h2><strong>Why This Matters</strong></h2><p>You don&#8217;t have to be a healer to benefit from this.</p><p>Even simple awareness can create shifts.</p><p>Being present with your body.</p><p>Noticing what you feel.</p><p>Allowing instead of resisting.</p><p>These are small things&#8212;but they add up.</p><h2><strong>Can Anyone Do This?</strong></h2><p>This is another question I get.</p><p>And my honest answer is:</p><p>I think everyone has some capacity for awareness and connection.</p><p>But like anything, it develops with:</p><ul><li><p>attention</p></li><li><p>practice</p></li><li><p>and experience</p></li></ul><p>For me, this has been a process of learning&#8212;not mastering.</p><h2><strong>Still Learning</strong></h2><p>I&#8217;m still figuring this out.</p><p>Still refining how I understand it.</p><p>Still learning from each session.</p><p>And I think that&#8217;s part of the process.</p><h2><strong>Closing</strong></h2><p>So when my friend asked:</p><p>&#8220;How do you do it?&#8221;</p><p>This is the closest answer I can give.</p><p>Not as a final explanation.</p><p>But as a reflection of what I&#8217;ve experienced so far.</p><p>If you&#8217;re curious, you don&#8217;t need to understand everything.</p><p>You can start by noticing.</p><p>By being present.</p><p>By exploring your own connection.</p><p>And seeing what unfolds from there.</p>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[What I’ve Been Quietly Practicing—and Why I’m Ready to Share It]]></title><description><![CDATA[Energy healing not as a replacement for medical care, but as a form of support.]]></description><link>https://www.thegreatcompassionwithin.me/p/what-ive-been-quietly-practicingand</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.thegreatcompassionwithin.me/p/what-ive-been-quietly-practicingand</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Bernard Boey]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Mon, 30 Mar 2026 12:34:13 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!gqsW!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fada3d525-37e2-4b94-925e-30ac043f77ce_1024x1024.jpeg" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!gqsW!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fada3d525-37e2-4b94-925e-30ac043f77ce_1024x1024.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!gqsW!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fada3d525-37e2-4b94-925e-30ac043f77ce_1024x1024.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!gqsW!,w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fada3d525-37e2-4b94-925e-30ac043f77ce_1024x1024.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!gqsW!,w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fada3d525-37e2-4b94-925e-30ac043f77ce_1024x1024.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!gqsW!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fada3d525-37e2-4b94-925e-30ac043f77ce_1024x1024.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!gqsW!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fada3d525-37e2-4b94-925e-30ac043f77ce_1024x1024.jpeg" width="1024" height="1024" 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srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!gqsW!,w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fada3d525-37e2-4b94-925e-30ac043f77ce_1024x1024.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!gqsW!,w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fada3d525-37e2-4b94-925e-30ac043f77ce_1024x1024.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!gqsW!,w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fada3d525-37e2-4b94-925e-30ac043f77ce_1024x1024.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!gqsW!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fada3d525-37e2-4b94-925e-30ac043f77ce_1024x1024.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><div class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg role="img" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><title></title><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a><figcaption class="image-caption">Every person&#8217;s body responded differently. Every situation had its own pattern.</figcaption></figure></div><p>Over the past few months, I&#8217;ve been doing something quietly.</p><p>Not publicly.</p><p>Not as a formal offering.</p><p>But consistently.</p><p>I&#8217;ve been practicing energy healing.</p><h2><strong>Starting With the People Around Me</strong></h2><p>I didn&#8217;t begin with a big plan.</p><p>I started with the people closest to me:</p><ul><li><p>friends</p></li><li><p>family</p></li><li><p>colleagues</p></li></ul><p>Not because I wanted to prove anything.</p><p>But because it felt natural.</p><p>If I had something that could help&#8212;even a little&#8212;I wanted to try.</p><p>So I began offering simple, informal sessions.</p><p>Sometimes in person.</p><p>Sometimes remotely.</p><p>Always with curiosity.</p><p>Always with care.</p><h2><strong>Learning Through Real Experiences</strong></h2><p>What surprised me wasn&#8217;t just that I could feel energy.</p><p>It was how different each experience was.</p><p>Every person&#8217;s body responded differently.</p><p>Every situation had its own pattern.</p><p>So instead of assuming, I observed.</p><p>I paid attention to:</p><ul><li><p>where the tension was</p></li><li><p>how the body responded</p></li><li><p>what changed during and after</p></li></ul><p>And over time, I started to notice something:</p><p>Even small shifts mattered.</p><h2><strong>The Types of Support I&#8217;ve Seen</strong></h2><p>Through these sessions, I&#8217;ve worked with a range of conditions.</p><p>Not as a replacement for medical care&#8212;but as a form of support.</p><p>Some of the experiences included:</p><ul><li><p>easing nerve discomfort and sensitivity</p></li><li><p>helping bring awareness and sensation back to parts of the body after a stroke</p></li><li><p>helping with physical and mental cravings</p></li><li><p>holding space for emotional pain</p></li><li><p>reducing headaches</p></li><li><p>reducing symptoms of common colds and sore throats</p></li><li><p>relieving tension in the back, shoulders, neck, and knees</p></li><li><p>supporting circulation and movement in swollen feet</p></li><li><p>supporting mobility and strength during recovery from injuries</p></li><li><p>supporting recovery from sprained wrists and ankles</p></li><li><p>working with stress-related physical symptoms</p></li></ul><p>In most cases, what I observed was not a sudden &#8220;fix.&#8221;</p><p>But a shift.</p><p>A softening.</p><p>A sense of relief.</p><p>Sometimes temporary.</p><p>Sometimes longer-lasting.</p><h2><strong>What I&#8217;ve Learned About Healing</strong></h2><p>One of the biggest things I&#8217;ve learned is this:</p><p>Healing is not one-dimensional.</p><p>It&#8217;s not just physical.</p><p>It often involves:</p><ul><li><p>emotional layers</p></li><li><p>mental patterns</p></li><li><p>energetic states</p></li></ul><p>And when you approach it from that perspective, the process becomes more nuanced.</p><p>Less about control.</p><p>More about support.</p><h2><strong>Why I Do This</strong></h2><p>If I&#8217;m honest, I didn&#8217;t start this with the intention of becoming a healer.</p><p>I started because I care.</p><p>Because when someone I know is in pain&#8212;physically or emotionally&#8212;I feel it.</p><p>And if I have the ability to help, even slightly, it feels natural to offer it.</p><p>There&#8217;s no transaction in those moments.</p><p>Just connection.</p><p>Just intention.</p><h2><strong>Expanding My Understanding</strong></h2><p>At some point, I realized I needed more structure.</p><p>Not to limit what I was doing&#8212;but to deepen it.</p><p>So I began studying Reiki.</p><p>Learning the principles.</p><p>Understanding how others have approached energy healing.</p><p>And eventually, I received my Level 3 Master certification.</p><h2><strong>Integrating What I&#8217;ve Learned</strong></h2><p>What&#8217;s been interesting is how this training has integrated with my own experience.</p><p>I don&#8217;t see it as separate.</p><p>I see it as complementary.</p><p>Reiki gave me:</p><ul><li><p>language</p></li><li><p>structure</p></li><li><p>and a framework</p></li></ul><p>But my own practice is still rooted in:</p><ul><li><p>observation</p></li><li><p>intuition</p></li><li><p>and lived experience</p></li></ul><p>When I work with someone, I&#8217;m not just applying a technique.</p><p>I&#8217;m listening.</p><p>To their body.</p><p>To their energy.</p><p>To what&#8217;s present in that moment.</p><h2><strong>The Scope of What&#8217;s Possible</strong></h2><p>So far, I&#8217;ve mostly worked one-on-one.</p><p>Occasionally in small groups&#8212;up to six people.</p><p>And even in those settings, I&#8217;ve noticed:</p><p>Energy doesn&#8217;t feel limited by distance.</p><p>Or by the number of people.</p><p>But I&#8217;ll also be honest.</p><p>I&#8217;m still exploring this.</p><p>Still learning what&#8217;s possible.</p><p>Still understanding where the boundaries are.</p><h2><strong>Being Honest About Results</strong></h2><p>It&#8217;s important for me to say this clearly:</p><p>I don&#8217;t claim to cure everything.</p><p>And I don&#8217;t see this as a replacement for medical treatment.</p><p>What I offer is support.</p><p>A way to:</p><ul><li><p>reduce discomfort</p></li><li><p>create space in the body</p></li><li><p>and shift how energy moves</p></li></ul><p>Sometimes that leads to noticeable improvement.</p><p>Sometimes it&#8217;s more subtle.</p><p>But even subtle shifts can be meaningful.</p><h2><strong>The Question I&#8217;ve Been Sitting With</strong></h2><p>Lately, I&#8217;ve been asking myself a simple question:</p><blockquote><p>Can I do more with this?</p></blockquote><p>Not from a place of ambition.</p><p>But from a place of responsibility.</p><p>If this work can help people&#8212;</p><p>even in small ways&#8212;</p><p>should I be sharing it more openly?</p><h2><strong>What Holds Me Back</strong></h2><p>At the same time, I&#8217;m aware of the hesitation.</p><p>Questions like:</p><ul><li><p>Is this the right time?</p></li><li><p>Am I ready?</p></li><li><p>How do I share this in a way that feels grounded and real?</p></li></ul><p>Because I don&#8217;t want this to feel exaggerated.</p><p>Or disconnected from reality.</p><p>I want it to stay human.</p><h2><strong>What Feels True</strong></h2><p>What feels true right now is this:</p><p>I&#8217;ve seen enough to know that this work has value.</p><p>Not as a promise.</p><p>But as a possibility.</p><p>And I&#8217;ve experienced enough to know that:</p><p>It&#8217;s worth continuing.</p><h2><strong>An Invitation</strong></h2><p>If you&#8217;re curious about energy healing&#8212;</p><p>whether you fully understand it or not&#8212;</p><p>You don&#8217;t have to believe anything.</p><p>You can approach it the same way I did:</p><p>With curiosity.</p><p>With observation.</p><p>With openness.</p><h2><strong>Moving Forward</strong></h2><p>I&#8217;ll continue to share more of these experiences.</p><p>What I&#8217;ve seen.</p><p>What I&#8217;ve learned.</p><p>What&#8217;s still unclear.</p><p>And over time, I may begin offering more structured sessions.</p><p>Both individually and in groups.</p><h2><strong>Closing</strong></h2><p>This journey has been quiet, but meaningful.</p><p>And while I&#8217;m still exploring what this path looks like, one thing is clear:</p><p>Helping people feel even slightly better&#8212;</p><p>more relaxed, more balanced, more at ease&#8212;</p><p>is something I want to continue doing.</p><p>If you feel drawn to this, I&#8217;m glad you&#8217;re here.</p><p>And as always, I&#8217;d love to hear your experience.</p>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[The Work No One Sees: Sitting With Trauma]]></title><description><![CDATA[Avoiding emotions didn&#8217;t make them go away, it made them stronger.]]></description><link>https://www.thegreatcompassionwithin.me/p/the-work-no-one-sees-sitting-with</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.thegreatcompassionwithin.me/p/the-work-no-one-sees-sitting-with</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Bernard Boey]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Fri, 27 Mar 2026 19:13:31 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jwxQ!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f523b46-d590-47af-a760-052248f0cb9b_1024x1024.jpeg" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jwxQ!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f523b46-d590-47af-a760-052248f0cb9b_1024x1024.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jwxQ!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f523b46-d590-47af-a760-052248f0cb9b_1024x1024.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jwxQ!,w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f523b46-d590-47af-a760-052248f0cb9b_1024x1024.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jwxQ!,w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f523b46-d590-47af-a760-052248f0cb9b_1024x1024.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jwxQ!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f523b46-d590-47af-a760-052248f0cb9b_1024x1024.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jwxQ!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f523b46-d590-47af-a760-052248f0cb9b_1024x1024.jpeg" width="1024" height="1024" data-attrs="{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/8f523b46-d590-47af-a760-052248f0cb9b_1024x1024.jpeg&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:1024,&quot;width&quot;:1024,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:null,&quot;bytes&quot;:152997,&quot;alt&quot;:null,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;image/jpeg&quot;,&quot;href&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:false,&quot;topImage&quot;:true,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:&quot;https://thegreatcompassionwithinme.substack.com/i/192005047?img=https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f523b46-d590-47af-a760-052248f0cb9b_1024x1024.jpeg&quot;,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jwxQ!,w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f523b46-d590-47af-a760-052248f0cb9b_1024x1024.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jwxQ!,w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f523b46-d590-47af-a760-052248f0cb9b_1024x1024.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jwxQ!,w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f523b46-d590-47af-a760-052248f0cb9b_1024x1024.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jwxQ!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f523b46-d590-47af-a760-052248f0cb9b_1024x1024.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><div class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg role="img" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><title></title><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a><figcaption class="image-caption">If something keeps coming back, it probably hasn&#8217;t been processed yet.</figcaption></figure></div><p>Lately, in my free time, I&#8217;ve noticed a pattern.</p><p>I&#8217;ll be on Substack reading through different posts, or scrolling through Instagram, watching creators I follow.</p><p>And one topic keeps showing up again and again:</p><p><strong>Trauma.</strong></p><p>Not always in the same language.</p><p>Not always in the same depth.</p><p>But it&#8217;s there.</p><p>And as someone who spent most of the past year facing my own trauma, I find myself pausing more often when I see it.</p><p>Because I know what it feels like&#8212;not just conceptually, but experientially.</p><h2><strong>Becoming More Sensitive</strong></h2><p>Somewhere along the way, something shifted in me.</p><p>I don&#8217;t remember the exact moment.</p><p>But I began to notice that I was becoming more emotionally aware.</p><p>More sensitive&#8212;not in a fragile way, but in a perceptive way.</p><p>I could feel more.</p><p>Not just the obvious emotions, but the subtle ones too.</p><p>And I think this came from a combination of things:</p><ul><li><p>years of group therapy</p></li><li><p>personal reflection</p></li><li><p>and the practices I had been exploring</p></li></ul><p>Over time, I learned something important:</p><p>Avoiding emotions didn&#8217;t make them go away.</p><p>It made them stronger.</p><h2><strong>What Didn&#8217;t Work</strong></h2><p>For a long time, I tried the usual strategies:</p><ul><li><p>ignoring how I felt</p></li><li><p>distracting myself</p></li><li><p>pushing things aside</p></li></ul><p>And sometimes, that worked temporarily.</p><p>But the emotions didn&#8217;t disappear.</p><p>They stayed.</p><p>And eventually, they showed up in other ways:</p><ul><li><p>tension in the body</p></li><li><p>patterns in relationships</p></li><li><p>reactions that felt bigger than the situation</p></li></ul><p>That&#8217;s when I started to understand:</p><blockquote><p>If something keeps coming back, it probably hasn&#8217;t been processed yet.</p></blockquote><h2><strong>When Everything Comes Up</strong></h2><p>This past year, it felt like everything I hadn&#8217;t dealt with&#8230; came forward.</p><p>Not all at once&#8212;but consistently.</p><p>Situations, memories, and emotions resurfaced:</p><ul><li><p>old fears</p></li><li><p>insecurities</p></li><li><p>unresolved relationships</p></li><li><p>moments where I felt hurt or rejected</p></li><li><p>parts of myself I didn&#8217;t fully accept</p></li></ul><p>Even things I thought I had already moved on from.</p><p>It was like my system was saying:</p><blockquote><p>It&#8217;s time.</p></blockquote><h2><strong>The Parts We Hold Onto</strong></h2><p>What surprised me wasn&#8217;t just the emotions themselves.</p><p>It was how attached I was to them.</p><p>To the stories.</p><p>To the identities.</p><p>To the idea that:</p><p>&#8220;This is just who I am.&#8221;</p><p>But when I looked closer, I started to question that.</p><p>Were these really me?</p><p>Or were they patterns I had learned?</p><p>Responses I developed to protect myself?</p><h2><strong>The Reality of the Work</strong></h2><p>I&#8217;ll be honest.</p><p>This process wasn&#8217;t easy.</p><p>There were moments where I spent:</p><ul><li><p>hours sitting with uncomfortable emotions</p></li><li><p>days feeling overwhelmed</p></li><li><p>nights reflecting on things I didn&#8217;t want to revisit</p></li></ul><p>There were times I cried without fully understanding why.</p><p>Times I spoke out loud, trying to process what I was feeling.</p><p>Times I questioned whether any of this was necessary.</p><p>Because it didn&#8217;t look productive.</p><p>It didn&#8217;t look efficient.</p><p>It didn&#8217;t look like progress.</p><h2><strong>Why We Avoid It</strong></h2><p>I started to understand why most people avoid this kind of work.</p><p>Because it asks a lot from you.</p><p>It asks you to:</p><ul><li><p>slow down</p></li><li><p>feel deeply</p></li><li><p>and stay present with discomfort</p></li></ul><p>And in a world that values speed and distraction, that&#8217;s not easy.</p><p>There&#8217;s also something else.</p><p>Facing trauma often means letting go of the identities we&#8217;ve built around it.</p><p>And that can feel like losing a part of ourselves.</p><h2><strong>When Old Ways Stop Working</strong></h2><p>At some point, I realized something clearly:</p><p>The way I had been coping wasn&#8217;t helping me anymore.</p><p>It wasn&#8217;t bringing me:</p><ul><li><p>more happiness</p></li><li><p>deeper connection</p></li><li><p>or the kind of relationships I wanted</p></li></ul><p>Instead, it was keeping me in patterns.</p><p>Repeating the same cycles.</p><p>Feeling the same limitations.</p><h2><strong>The Turning Point</strong></h2><p>The shift didn&#8217;t come from finding a perfect solution.</p><p>It came from a decision.</p><p>A quiet one.</p><p>To stop running.</p><p>To stop avoiding.</p><p>And to start facing things more directly.</p><p>Not all at once.</p><p>But one layer at a time.</p><h2><strong>Major and Minor Events</strong></h2><p>As I reflected on my life, I started to see it differently.</p><p>There were what I would call &#8220;major events.&#8221;</p><p>Moments that shaped me deeply.</p><p>Moments that created strong emotional imprints.</p><p>Moments that influenced how I saw myself and the world.</p><p>And then there were &#8220;minor events.&#8221;</p><p>Smaller experiences that still mattered&#8212;but didn&#8217;t carry the same weight.</p><p>Both were part of my story.</p><p>But the major ones were the ones I had to spend more time with.</p><h2><strong>What Processing Actually Looks Like</strong></h2><p>Processing trauma, at least from my experience, isn&#8217;t about reliving everything in detail.</p><p>It&#8217;s about:</p><ul><li><p>allowing yourself to feel what wasn&#8217;t fully felt</p></li><li><p>understanding what those experiences meant to you</p></li><li><p>and slowly creating a different relationship with them</p></li></ul><p>Sometimes that looks like:</p><ul><li><p>sitting quietly and noticing what comes up</p></li><li><p>acknowledging emotions without judgment</p></li><li><p>giving yourself space to respond differently</p></li></ul><p>It&#8217;s not dramatic.</p><p>But it&#8217;s consistent.</p><h2><strong>Learning to Stay</strong></h2><p>One of the biggest shifts for me was learning how to stay.</p><p>To stay with a feeling&#8212;without immediately trying to fix it.</p><p>To stay with discomfort&#8212;without escaping it.</p><p>To stay present&#8212;even when it was difficult.</p><p>And over time, something interesting happened.</p><p>The intensity began to change.</p><p>Not because I forced it.</p><p>But because I allowed it.</p><h2><strong>Letting Go of the Past as Identity</strong></h2><p>Another important realization was this:</p><p>My past experiences shaped me.</p><p>But they don&#8217;t have to define me.</p><p>That distinction changed everything.</p><p>It allowed me to:</p><ul><li><p>appreciate what I&#8217;ve gone through</p></li><li><p>without being limited by it</p></li></ul><h2><strong>Moving Forward With Less Weight</strong></h2><p>I&#8217;m still in this process.</p><p>But I can feel the difference.</p><p>There&#8217;s more space.</p><p>More clarity.</p><p>More lightness.</p><p>Not because everything is resolved.</p><p>But because I&#8217;m no longer carrying it the same way.</p><h2><strong>What I&#8217;ve Learned About Trauma</strong></h2><p>If I had to put it simply:</p><p>Trauma is not just about what happened.</p><p>It&#8217;s about what wasn&#8217;t processed.</p><p>And healing is not about erasing the past.</p><p>It&#8217;s about changing how we relate to it.</p><h2><strong>An Invitation</strong></h2><p>If you&#8217;ve been noticing patterns in your life:</p><ul><li><p>emotions that keep returning</p></li><li><p>reactions that feel familiar</p></li><li><p>experiences that feel unresolved</p></li></ul><p>You don&#8217;t have to rush to fix them.</p><p>You can start by simply noticing.</p><p>By staying curious.</p><p>By giving yourself space to feel&#8212;without judgment.</p><h2><strong>Closing</strong></h2><p>This kind of work isn&#8217;t visible.</p><p>It doesn&#8217;t always look like progress.</p><p>But it matters.</p><p>And over time, it changes how you experience yourself&#8212;and the world around you.</p><p>If you&#8217;re on a similar path, I see you.</p><p>And I&#8217;m walking it too.</p>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[The Thing We Don’t Talk About—But Carries the Most Weight]]></title><description><![CDATA[Shame is not separate from healing, it&#8217;s part of it.]]></description><link>https://www.thegreatcompassionwithin.me/p/the-thing-we-dont-talk-aboutbut-carries</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.thegreatcompassionwithin.me/p/the-thing-we-dont-talk-aboutbut-carries</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Bernard Boey]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Tue, 24 Mar 2026 12:44:27 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!RBM2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F2602e549-640d-4040-aa5f-77809e1b1a86_1024x1024.jpeg" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" 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srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!RBM2!,w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F2602e549-640d-4040-aa5f-77809e1b1a86_1024x1024.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!RBM2!,w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F2602e549-640d-4040-aa5f-77809e1b1a86_1024x1024.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!RBM2!,w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F2602e549-640d-4040-aa5f-77809e1b1a86_1024x1024.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!RBM2!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F2602e549-640d-4040-aa5f-77809e1b1a86_1024x1024.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><div class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg role="img" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><title></title><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a><figcaption class="image-caption">Shame was limiting me.</figcaption></figure></div><p>There&#8217;s something most of us don&#8217;t want to talk about.</p><p><strong>Shame.</strong></p><p>Not the light kind.</p><p>Not the passing embarrassment.</p><p>But the kind that sits quietly in the background&#8230;</p><p>shaping how we see ourselves&#8230;</p><p>and how we move through the world.</p><h2><strong>Why This Is Hard to Write</strong></h2><p>This is probably one of the hardest things I&#8217;ve had to put into words.</p><p>Because writing about shame means facing:</p><ul><li><p>vulnerability</p></li><li><p>judgment</p></li><li><p>and the possibility of being misunderstood</p></li></ul><p>There&#8217;s also something deeper.</p><p>A part of me that still wants to protect my image.</p><p>To &#8220;save face.&#8221;</p><p>To stay in control of how I&#8217;m seen.</p><p>And at the same time, another part of me knows:</p><blockquote><p>If I don&#8217;t face this, I stay stuck.</p></blockquote><h2><strong>The Role of Shame in Healing</strong></h2><p>In my own healing journey, I&#8217;ve started to see something clearly:</p><p>Shame is not separate from healing.</p><p>It&#8217;s part of it.</p><p>Not because we need to suffer more.</p><p>But because what we avoid tends to hold the most weight.</p><p>And shame&#8230; carries a lot of weight.</p><h2><strong>The Breaking Point</strong></h2><p>There was a point in my journey where everything felt like too much.</p><p>What I had been holding inside&#8212;unspoken, unresolved&#8212;finally surfaced.</p><p>It didn&#8217;t happen all at once.</p><p>But over time, it built up.</p><p>And eventually, it led to what I can only describe as a breakdown.</p><p>At the time, I didn&#8217;t fully understand why.</p><p>Now, looking back, it makes more sense.</p><h2><strong>What Was I Carrying?</strong></h2><p>Shame doesn&#8217;t come from just one thing.</p><p>It&#8217;s layered.</p><p>In my case, it showed up across different parts of my life:</p><ul><li><p>health</p></li><li><p>relationships</p></li><li><p>identity</p></li><li><p>belonging</p></li><li><p>self-worth</p></li></ul><p>Topics I didn&#8217;t want to talk about.</p><p>Topics I thought I had to hide.</p><h2><strong>The Questions That Followed</strong></h2><p>As I sat with all of this, certain questions kept coming up:</p><ul><li><p>Who am I when no one is watching?</p></li><li><p>What am I afraid will happen if people know the truth?</p></li><li><p>Am I creating these fears in my own mind?</p></li><li><p>Or are they actually real?</p></li></ul><p>And maybe the biggest one:</p><blockquote><p>What would it feel like to not carry this anymore?</p></blockquote><h2><strong>The First Step: Saying It Out Loud</strong></h2><p>For a long time, I kept everything inside.</p><p>Because that felt safer.</p><p>But at some point, I realized something:</p><p>Keeping it inside wasn&#8217;t protecting me.</p><p>It was limiting me.</p><p>So I made a decision that felt uncomfortable&#8212;but necessary.</p><p>I started talking.</p><h2><strong>Starting With Safe Spaces</strong></h2><p>At first, I shared with a few close friends.</p><p>People I trusted.</p><p>Even then, it wasn&#8217;t easy.</p><p>There was hesitation.</p><p>There was fear.</p><p>But something unexpected happened.</p><p>Instead of judgment, I experienced:</p><ul><li><p>understanding</p></li><li><p>support</p></li><li><p>and a kind of quiet acceptance</p></li></ul><p>And with that&#8230; a small sense of relief.</p><h2><strong>Going Deeper</strong></h2><p>Eventually, I sought professional support.</p><p>Working with a therapist created a different kind of space.</p><p>One where I could go deeper.</p><p>One where I could say things I never thought I would say out loud.</p><p>Things I once believed I would carry forever.</p><h2><strong>What I Discovered</strong></h2><p>As I went through this process&#8212;over weeks and months&#8212;I began to notice something important:</p><p>The things I was most afraid to share&#8230;</p><p>were the things that were holding me back the most.</p><p>Not because they were inherently &#8220;bad.&#8221;</p><p>But because of the meaning I attached to them.</p><h2><strong>The Layers of Shame</strong></h2><p>For me, these experiences touched on different areas of life:</p><ul><li><p>navigating health challenges</p></li><li><p>dating and relationships</p></li><li><p>living as an immigrant</p></li><li><p>searching for belonging</p></li><li><p>understanding my identity</p></li></ul><p>Each one came with its own layer of emotion.</p><p>And often, its own layer of shame.</p><h2><strong>How It Showed Up</strong></h2><p>What surprised me most was how much these unprocessed experiences shaped my life.</p><p>They influenced:</p><ul><li><p>how I saw myself</p></li><li><p>what I believed I deserved</p></li><li><p>how I showed up in relationships</p></li></ul><p>At times, I felt incomplete.</p><p>Like I was only showing part of who I was.</p><p>And that led to patterns I didn&#8217;t fully understand at the time:</p><ul><li><p>anxiety in relationships</p></li><li><p>attachment patterns</p></li><li><p>seeking validation externally</p></li></ul><p>Looking back, it makes sense.</p><p>When you don&#8217;t feel whole within yourself, you look for that wholeness outside.</p><h2><strong>The Turning Point</strong></h2><p>The real shift didn&#8217;t come from fixing everything.</p><p>It came from facing it.</p><p>Not all at once.</p><p>But gradually.</p><p>With honesty.</p><p>With care.</p><p>With support.</p><h2><strong>What Healing Actually Looked Like</strong></h2><p>Healing, for me, wasn&#8217;t dramatic.</p><p>It wasn&#8217;t a single breakthrough moment.</p><p>It was a process that required:</p><ul><li><p>honesty</p></li><li><p>patience</p></li><li><p>self-compassion</p></li><li><p>and willingness</p></li></ul><p>Sometimes it meant sitting with discomfort.</p><p>Sometimes it meant revisiting things I would rather avoid.</p><p>Sometimes it meant simply acknowledging:</p><blockquote><p>This is part of my experience.</p></blockquote><h2><strong>Letting Go of the Old Identity</strong></h2><p>At a certain point, I realized something else.</p><p>I had been identifying with these experiences.</p><p>Letting them define who I was.</p><p>And while they were part of my story&#8230;</p><p>They were not the whole story.</p><p>So I began to let go.</p><p>Not by denying what happened.</p><p>But by releasing the idea that it defined my worth.</p><h2><strong>Integration</strong></h2><p>Instead of pushing these parts away, I started integrating them.</p><p>Understanding:</p><ul><li><p>what they taught me</p></li><li><p>how they shaped me</p></li><li><p>and how I could move forward with more awareness</p></li></ul><p>This didn&#8217;t make everything disappear.</p><p>But it changed my relationship with it.</p><h2><strong>Where I Am Now</strong></h2><p>I can honestly say I&#8217;m in a very different place today.</p><p>Not perfect.</p><p>But more grounded.</p><p>More aware.</p><p>More at peace.</p><p>I feel:</p><ul><li><p>more joy</p></li><li><p>more gratitude</p></li><li><p>more appreciation for life</p></li></ul><p>Not because everything is easy.</p><p>But because I&#8217;m no longer carrying everything the same way.</p><h2><strong>What I&#8217;ve Learned About Shame</strong></h2><p>If there&#8217;s one thing I&#8217;ve learned, it&#8217;s this:</p><p>Shame grows in silence.</p><p>But it softens in safe spaces.</p><p>When we bring it into awareness&#8212;</p><p>with the right support, at the right pace&#8212;</p><p>it begins to lose its power.</p><h2><strong>An Invitation</strong></h2><p>If you&#8217;re carrying something you haven&#8217;t spoken about&#8230;</p><p>You&#8217;re not alone.</p><p>You don&#8217;t have to share everything publicly.</p><p>But maybe there&#8217;s one safe space.</p><p>One person.</p><p>One moment.</p><p>Where you can begin.</p><p>Gently.</p><p>At your own pace.</p><h2><strong>Moving Forward</strong></h2><p>This journey has helped me understand myself in a deeper way.</p><p>Who I am.</p><p>What I want.</p><p>And how I want to live.</p><p>It wasn&#8217;t easy.</p><p>In fact, it was one of the hardest periods of my life.</p><p>But it also brought me somewhere I couldn&#8217;t have reached otherwise.</p><p>A place of:</p><ul><li><p>peace</p></li><li><p>acceptance</p></li><li><p>and a more authentic way of being</p></li></ul><p>And for that, I&#8217;m grateful.</p><p>If you&#8217;ve read this far, thank you for being here.</p><p>And if any part of this resonates with you, I&#8217;d love to hear your experience.</p>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[Meeting the Parts of Me I Thought Were “Not Me”]]></title><description><![CDATA[The interdependence of self.]]></description><link>https://www.thegreatcompassionwithin.me/p/meeting-the-parts-of-me-i-thought</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.thegreatcompassionwithin.me/p/meeting-the-parts-of-me-i-thought</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Bernard Boey]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Mon, 23 Mar 2026 18:19:50 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!J8JB!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb7dcfa26-5849-4b37-a235-89cfb46ab2ce_1024x1024.jpeg" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!J8JB!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb7dcfa26-5849-4b37-a235-89cfb46ab2ce_1024x1024.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!J8JB!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb7dcfa26-5849-4b37-a235-89cfb46ab2ce_1024x1024.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!J8JB!,w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb7dcfa26-5849-4b37-a235-89cfb46ab2ce_1024x1024.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!J8JB!,w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb7dcfa26-5849-4b37-a235-89cfb46ab2ce_1024x1024.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!J8JB!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb7dcfa26-5849-4b37-a235-89cfb46ab2ce_1024x1024.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!J8JB!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb7dcfa26-5849-4b37-a235-89cfb46ab2ce_1024x1024.jpeg" width="1024" height="1024" data-attrs="{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/b7dcfa26-5849-4b37-a235-89cfb46ab2ce_1024x1024.jpeg&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:1024,&quot;width&quot;:1024,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:null,&quot;bytes&quot;:552294,&quot;alt&quot;:null,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;image/jpeg&quot;,&quot;href&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:false,&quot;topImage&quot;:true,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:&quot;https://thegreatcompassionwithinme.substack.com/i/191865640?img=https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb7dcfa26-5849-4b37-a235-89cfb46ab2ce_1024x1024.jpeg&quot;,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!J8JB!,w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb7dcfa26-5849-4b37-a235-89cfb46ab2ce_1024x1024.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!J8JB!,w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb7dcfa26-5849-4b37-a235-89cfb46ab2ce_1024x1024.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!J8JB!,w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb7dcfa26-5849-4b37-a235-89cfb46ab2ce_1024x1024.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!J8JB!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb7dcfa26-5849-4b37-a235-89cfb46ab2ce_1024x1024.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><div class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg role="img" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><title></title><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a><figcaption class="image-caption">Introducing the Internal Family System (IFS).</figcaption></figure></div><p>Early in my healing journey, something unexpected happened.</p><p>After I began to feel a more stable connection&#8212;to what I can best describe as the universe, or a deeper intelligence within&#8212;I started receiving insights in ways I didn&#8217;t fully understand at the time.</p><p>One of the most impactful introductions I had was to something I later learned is called <strong>Internal Family Systems (IFS).</strong></p><p>But I didn&#8217;t discover it through a book.</p><p>I experienced it directly.</p><h2><strong>The First Encounter</strong></h2><p>During one of my meditations, I became aware of something unusual.</p><p>There was a sense&#8212;almost like a voice&#8212;that suggested there were &#8220;intruders&#8221; in my mind.</p><p>At that moment, I reacted quickly.</p><p>Without fully understanding what was happening, I imagined removing them, placing them into an object, and separating them from myself.</p><p>At the time, it felt like I was protecting myself.</p><p>Like I was clearing something out.</p><h2><strong>Something Didn&#8217;t Feel Right</strong></h2><p>I went about my day, but something felt&#8230; off.</p><p>There was a subtle emptiness.</p><p>A disconnection.</p><p>On my way downtown, I realized this might be more serious than I initially thought.</p><p>So I turned around and went home.</p><p>Not because I had answers&#8212;but because something in me knew I needed to.</p><h2><strong>The Realization</strong></h2><p>When I sat back down and tuned inward again, something shifted.</p><p>What I thought were &#8220;intruders&#8221; didn&#8217;t feel foreign anymore.</p><p>They felt familiar.</p><p>And then a realization came through&#8212;quiet but clear:</p><blockquote><p>These are not outsiders.</p><p>They are part of you.</p></blockquote><p>That moment changed how I understood myself.</p><h2><strong>We Are Not Just One</strong></h2><p>Up until then, I had always thought of myself as a single, unified identity.</p><p>But this experience showed me something different.</p><p>It felt like my inner world was made up of multiple parts:</p><ul><li><p>emotions</p></li><li><p>reactions</p></li><li><p>patterns</p></li><li><p>voices</p></li></ul><p>Each one had its own tone.</p><p>Its own role.</p><p>Its own perspective.</p><p>And together, they shaped how I experienced the world.</p><h2><strong>The Role of These Parts</strong></h2><p>Over time, I began to understand that these parts weren&#8217;t random.</p><p>They had purpose.</p><p>In many ways, they acted like:</p><ul><li><p>protectors</p></li><li><p>responders</p></li><li><p>caretakers</p></li></ul><p>They were trying to keep me safe.</p><p>Trying to help me navigate situations.</p><p>Trying to process what I was going through.</p><h2><strong>A Misunderstanding</strong></h2><p>At first, I misunderstood this completely.</p><p>Because I saw them as &#8220;mine,&#8221; I assumed I could control them.</p><p>Direct them.</p><p>Send them away when I didn&#8217;t want to feel something.</p><p>So for a few days, I tried exactly that.</p><h2><strong>The Consequence</strong></h2><p>And then something strange happened.</p><p>I lost access to my emotions.</p><p>Not partially&#8212;almost entirely.</p><p>I remember being in a group setting, where emotions would normally arise naturally.</p><p>But there was&#8230; nothing.</p><p>No anger.</p><p>No sadness.</p><p>No joy.</p><p>Just a kind of flatness.</p><p>At first, I thought maybe this was calm.</p><p>But it didn&#8217;t feel like calm.</p><p>It felt like something was missing.</p><h2><strong>Calling Them Back</strong></h2><p>That experience made me realize something important:</p><p>These parts were not meant to be removed.</p><p>They were meant to be included.</p><p>So I began the process of reconnecting.</p><p>Not by forcing anything.</p><p>But by gently inviting them back.</p><p>By acknowledging:</p><ul><li><p>what I had done</p></li><li><p>what I didn&#8217;t understand</p></li><li><p>and my willingness to listen</p></li></ul><p>Slowly, my emotional range returned.</p><p>And with it, a deeper respect for these inner parts.</p><h2><strong>What They Really Want</strong></h2><p>Through continued observation and experience, I began to see a pattern.</p><p>These emotions and parts don&#8217;t want control.</p><p>They want recognition.</p><p>When something arises&#8212;whether it&#8217;s:</p><ul><li><p>frustration</p></li><li><p>sadness</p></li><li><p>anxiety</p></li><li><p>or even joy</p></li></ul><p>What seems to help is very simple:</p><ol><li><p><strong>Acknowledge it</strong></p></li><li><p><strong>Name it</strong></p></li><li><p><strong>Feel where it lives in the body</strong></p></li><li><p><strong>Understand what it&#8217;s trying to show you</strong></p></li><li><p><strong>Thank it</strong></p></li><li><p><strong>Allow it to move on</strong></p></li></ol><p>Not suppressing.</p><p>Not holding on.</p><p>Just processing.</p><h2><strong>Meditation Practice</strong></h2><p>I&#8217;ve started turning this process into a simple meditation practice. </p><p>It&#8217;s not about fixing anything, but about learning how to relate to what we feel in a different way. </p><p>By acknowledging, naming, and gently listening to our emotions in the body, something begins to shift. </p><p>What once felt overwhelming becomes something we can sit with, understand, and eventually release. </p><p>I created a guided meditation based on this approach to help you experience it for yourself&#8212;gently, at your own pace.</p><div class="native-audio-embed" data-component-name="AudioPlaceholder" data-attrs="{&quot;label&quot;:null,&quot;mediaUploadId&quot;:&quot;4a303571-1cdf-44cc-9f1f-3bca6d95a897&quot;,&quot;duration&quot;:561.4759,&quot;downloadable&quot;:false,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true}"></div><h2><strong>Where We Get Stuck</strong></h2><p>From what I&#8217;ve seen&#8212;in myself and others&#8212;the challenge isn&#8217;t feeling emotions.</p><p>It&#8217;s what we do with them.</p><p>We tend to:</p><ul><li><p>avoid them</p></li><li><p>distract ourselves</p></li><li><p>or hold onto them longer than needed</p></li></ul><p>And over time, that creates buildup.</p><p>Not just emotionally&#8212;but physically.</p><h2><strong>Looking Outside Instead of Within</strong></h2><p>In modern life, it&#8217;s very easy to look outward for solutions.</p><p>We look for:</p><ul><li><p>validation</p></li><li><p>distraction</p></li><li><p>comfort</p></li><li><p>answers</p></li></ul><p>And while those can help temporarily, they often don&#8217;t address the root.</p><p>What I&#8217;ve been learning is this:</p><blockquote><p>Many of the answers we&#8217;re looking for already exist within us.</p></blockquote><p>But accessing them requires something we don&#8217;t practice often:</p><p>Stillness.</p><h2><strong>A Recent Experience</strong></h2><p>I had a more recent experience that reinforced this understanding.</p><p>Back in December, I was going through a period of intense stress.</p><p>There were multiple pressures happening at once.</p><p>And I felt it building&#8212;mentally and emotionally.</p><h2><strong>When Stress Becomes Physical</strong></h2><p>Eventually, that stress showed up in my body.</p><p>It started as itchiness.</p><p>At first, it was small&#8212;just around my neck.</p><p>But then it spread:</p><ul><li><p>elbows</p></li><li><p>stomach</p></li><li><p>back</p></li></ul><p>It became persistent.</p><p>At one point, I thought it might be an allergic reaction.</p><p>But something didn&#8217;t quite add up.</p><h2><strong>Listening Differently</strong></h2><p>Instead of immediately trying to &#8220;fix&#8221; it externally, I decided to observe.</p><p>To sit with it.</p><p>To ask:</p><p>What is this trying to show me?</p><p>And what I noticed was this:</p><p>The itchiness wasn&#8217;t random.</p><p>It felt connected to internal tension.</p><p>Unprocessed stress.</p><p>Emotions that hadn&#8217;t been fully acknowledged.</p><h2><strong>Learning to Self-Soothe</strong></h2><p>So I shifted my approach.</p><p>Instead of resisting the sensation, I began:</p><ul><li><p>grounding my body</p></li><li><p>breathing into the areas</p></li><li><p>acknowledging what I was feeling emotionally</p></li><li><p>offering myself a sense of calm and reassurance</p></li></ul><p>Not forcing it away.</p><p>Just being with it.</p><h2><strong>What Changed</strong></h2><p>Over time, the intensity began to decrease.</p><p>Not instantly.</p><p>But gradually.</p><p>And more importantly, I felt a shift internally.</p><p>More regulated.</p><p>More aware.</p><p>More connected.</p><h2><strong>What I&#8217;m Learning</strong></h2><p>If there&#8217;s one thing this journey keeps showing me, it&#8217;s this:</p><p>Our bodies are constantly communicating with us.</p><p>Through:</p><ul><li><p>sensations</p></li><li><p>emotions</p></li><li><p>energy</p></li></ul><p>Nothing is random.</p><p>Even discomfort has a message.</p><h2><strong>An Invitation to Observe</strong></h2><p>You don&#8217;t need to fully understand any framework or system to begin.</p><p>You can start simply by:</p><ul><li><p>noticing what you feel</p></li><li><p>staying present with it</p></li><li><p>and getting curious instead of reactive</p></li></ul><p>That alone can open something meaningful.</p><h2><strong>Moving Forward</strong></h2><p>I&#8217;m still learning how to navigate this.</p><p>Still observing.</p><p>Still refining my understanding.</p><p>But I continue to be surprised by how much wisdom exists within us&#8212;when we take the time to listen.</p><p>If any part of this resonates with you, I invite you to explore it in your own way.</p><p>Gently.</p><p>Curiously.</p><p>At your own pace.</p><p>And as always, I&#8217;d love to hear what you notice along the way.</p>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[The Training I Didn’t Ask For—But Needed]]></title><description><![CDATA[Journey of becoming fully conscious and self-aware.]]></description><link>https://www.thegreatcompassionwithin.me/p/the-training-i-didnt-ask-forbut-needed</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.thegreatcompassionwithin.me/p/the-training-i-didnt-ask-forbut-needed</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Bernard Boey]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Fri, 20 Mar 2026 19:07:13 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!r013!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff8f7279e-deba-42c8-9a75-44e9667eb41b_1024x1024.jpeg" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!r013!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff8f7279e-deba-42c8-9a75-44e9667eb41b_1024x1024.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!r013!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff8f7279e-deba-42c8-9a75-44e9667eb41b_1024x1024.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!r013!,w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff8f7279e-deba-42c8-9a75-44e9667eb41b_1024x1024.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!r013!,w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff8f7279e-deba-42c8-9a75-44e9667eb41b_1024x1024.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!r013!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff8f7279e-deba-42c8-9a75-44e9667eb41b_1024x1024.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!r013!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff8f7279e-deba-42c8-9a75-44e9667eb41b_1024x1024.jpeg" width="1024" height="1024" data-attrs="{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/f8f7279e-deba-42c8-9a75-44e9667eb41b_1024x1024.jpeg&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:1024,&quot;width&quot;:1024,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:null,&quot;bytes&quot;:459064,&quot;alt&quot;:null,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;image/jpeg&quot;,&quot;href&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:false,&quot;topImage&quot;:true,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:&quot;https://thegreatcompassionwithinme.substack.com/i/191612568?img=https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff8f7279e-deba-42c8-9a75-44e9667eb41b_1024x1024.jpeg&quot;,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!r013!,w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff8f7279e-deba-42c8-9a75-44e9667eb41b_1024x1024.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!r013!,w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff8f7279e-deba-42c8-9a75-44e9667eb41b_1024x1024.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!r013!,w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff8f7279e-deba-42c8-9a75-44e9667eb41b_1024x1024.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!r013!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff8f7279e-deba-42c8-9a75-44e9667eb41b_1024x1024.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><div class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg role="img" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><title></title><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a><figcaption class="image-caption">The jourey of healing begins with self-awareness.</figcaption></figure></div><p>When I look back at my journey, I&#8217;ve come to realize something important:</p><p>The universe didn&#8217;t just tell me I was a healer.</p><p>It made sure I was trained to become one.</p><h2><strong>The Beginning of the Training</strong></h2><p>After I started seeing energy&#8212;those shifting colors behind my eyes&#8212;something in my life began to change.</p><p>Not all at once.</p><p>But steadily.</p><p>And sometimes&#8230; intensely.</p><p>At first, I thought learning to work with energy would mostly involve:</p><ul><li><p>techniques</p></li><li><p>books</p></li><li><p>practices</p></li><li><p>maybe a few teachers</p></li></ul><p>But what actually happened felt very different.</p><p>It felt like life itself became the training.</p><h2><strong>A Different Kind of Education</strong></h2><p>Instead of formal lessons, I was placed into experiences that required me to grow in ways I didn&#8217;t expect.</p><p>Looking back, I can see the themes clearly now:</p><ul><li><p>perseverance</p></li><li><p>endurance</p></li><li><p>discernment</p></li><li><p>letting go</p></li><li><p>processing grief</p></li><li><p>non-attachment</p></li></ul><p>At the time, it didn&#8217;t feel like &#8220;training.&#8221;</p><p>It felt like challenges.</p><p>Moments where I had to sit with discomfort.</p><p>Moments where I didn&#8217;t have clear answers.</p><p>Moments where things didn&#8217;t go the way I wanted.</p><p>But something in me kept observing.</p><p>That part of me&#8212;the curious observer&#8212;became my anchor.</p><h2><strong>Learning to Discern</strong></h2><p>One of the most important things I&#8217;ve learned is discernment.</p><p>Not everything that feels intense is meaningful.</p><p>Not everything that feels good is aligned.</p><p>Energy work, at least from my experience, requires a kind of quiet listening.</p><p>Not reacting immediately.</p><p>Not forcing outcomes.</p><p>Just noticing:</p><ul><li><p>What feels grounded?</p></li><li><p>What feels off?</p></li><li><p>What shifts over time?</p></li></ul><p>This ability didn&#8217;t come from reading.</p><p>It came from experience.</p><h2><strong>Letting Go and Non-Attachment</strong></h2><p>Another lesson that kept showing up was letting go.</p><p>Letting go of expectations.</p><p>Letting go of outcomes.</p><p>Letting go of control.</p><p>This was not easy.</p><p>Especially when you care deeply about people&#8212;and want them to feel better.</p><p>But I began to understand something:</p><p>Healing doesn&#8217;t come from forcing change.</p><p>It comes from creating space for it.</p><p>And sometimes, the most supportive thing you can do is simply:</p><p>Be present.</p><p>Hold awareness.</p><p>Allow.</p><h2><strong>Being Introduced to a Bigger Perspective</strong></h2><p>Around this time, I was also being exposed to new ideas about consciousness.</p><p>One concept that stood out to me was the idea of a higher vibrational world&#8212;often described as a shift in awareness rather than a physical place.</p><p>At first, I approached this with curiosity rather than belief.</p><p>I asked myself:</p><p>What does &#8220;higher vibration&#8221; actually mean in real life?</p><p>From what I&#8217;ve observed, it&#8217;s not about escaping reality.</p><p>It&#8217;s about how we show up within it.</p><ul><li><p>more aware</p></li><li><p>more compassionate</p></li><li><p>more intentional</p></li></ul><h2><strong>Observing the World Around Us</strong></h2><p>At the same time, I couldn&#8217;t ignore what was happening in the world.</p><p>There&#8217;s a lot of tension.</p><p>Systems that once worked&#8212;or at least appeared to&#8212;are showing cracks:</p><ul><li><p>financial systems</p></li><li><p>political structures</p></li><li><p>social dynamics</p></li></ul><p>You can feel it in conversations.</p><p>In people&#8217;s stress levels.</p><p>In the general sense of uncertainty.</p><p>For a while, I wondered:</p><p>Is this a sign that something is going wrong?</p><p>But another perspective started to emerge.</p><h2><strong>What If This Is a Reset?</strong></h2><p>There&#8217;s a simple principle we often hear:</p><p>What goes up must come down.</p><p>When something becomes too imbalanced, it eventually corrects itself.</p><p>From that lens, what we&#8217;re seeing might not just be breakdown.</p><p>It might also be recalibration.</p><p>A moment where we are collectively being asked to:</p><ul><li><p>notice what isn&#8217;t working</p></li><li><p>question what we&#8217;ve accepted</p></li><li><p>and imagine something different</p></li></ul><h2><strong>The Role of Awareness</strong></h2><p>In my own journey, healing has always started with awareness.</p><p>Before anything shifts, there is a moment of seeing clearly.</p><p>That applies to the body.</p><p>And it also applies to systems.</p><p>When something becomes visible, we can no longer ignore it in the same way.</p><p>And that visibility can feel uncomfortable.</p><p>But it&#8217;s also where change begins.</p><h2><strong>What Kind of World Are We Moving Toward?</strong></h2><p>I don&#8217;t claim to have a full answer.</p><p>But based on what I&#8217;ve observed&#8212;and what I feel&#8212;there are a few qualities that seem increasingly important:</p><ul><li><p>connection</p></li><li><p>compassion</p></li><li><p>empathy</p></li><li><p>cooperation</p></li></ul><p>Not as abstract ideas, but as practical ways of living.</p><p>A world where people:</p><ul><li><p>support each other</p></li><li><p>share knowledge and resources</p></li><li><p>and recognize that well-being is interconnected</p></li></ul><h2><strong>The Role of Healing</strong></h2><p>This is where energy work, at least for me, begins to make more sense.</p><p>Not as something separate from everyday life.</p><p>But as a way to support:</p><ul><li><p>regulation</p></li><li><p>balance</p></li><li><p>awareness</p></li></ul><p>When people feel even slightly more at ease in their bodies, something shifts.</p><p>They think more clearly.</p><p>They respond differently.</p><p>They relate differently.</p><p>And small shifts, multiplied across many people, can become meaningful over time.</p><h2><strong>Why I&#8217;m Sharing This Now</strong></h2><p>Everything I&#8217;ve gone through&#8212;the challenges, the learning, the observations&#8212;has shaped how I approach healing today.</p><p>Not as something mystical or unreachable.</p><p>But as something we can explore:</p><ul><li><p>with curiosity</p></li><li><p>with patience</p></li><li><p>and with openness</p></li></ul><div class="native-audio-embed" data-component-name="AudioPlaceholder" data-attrs="{&quot;label&quot;:null,&quot;mediaUploadId&quot;:&quot;86077cfa-2f8f-47a2-935a-a66fa61f69e1&quot;,&quot;duration&quot;:561.4759,&quot;downloadable&quot;:true,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true}"></div><p>Recently, I created a short guided meditation designed to help you:</p><ul><li><p>ground your body</p></li><li><p>connect with energy</p></li><li><p>and gently direct that energy to areas that need attention</p></li></ul><p>It&#8217;s simple.</p><p>And you don&#8217;t need prior experience.</p><h2><strong>An Invitation</strong></h2><p>If you&#8217;ve been feeling:</p><ul><li><p>overwhelmed</p></li><li><p>curious</p></li><li><p>or simply interested in understanding yourself more deeply</p></li></ul><p>I invite you to try it.</p><p>Not with expectations.</p><p>But with observation.</p><p>See what you notice.</p><p>See what shifts&#8212;however small.</p><h2><strong>Moving Forward</strong></h2><p>This journey is still unfolding for me.</p><p>I&#8217;m still learning.</p><p>Still observing.</p><p>Still refining my understanding.</p><p>And I&#8217;ll continue sharing:</p><ul><li><p>real experiences</p></li><li><p>honest reflections</p></li><li><p>and practical tools</p></li></ul><p>If any part of this resonates with you, I&#8217;m glad you&#8217;re here.</p><p>And if you try the meditation, I&#8217;d genuinely love to hear how it goes.</p>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[How I Slowly Realized I Was Meant to Work With Energy]]></title><description><![CDATA[Story of a modern day energy explorer.]]></description><link>https://www.thegreatcompassionwithin.me/p/how-i-slowly-realized-i-was-meant</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.thegreatcompassionwithin.me/p/how-i-slowly-realized-i-was-meant</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Bernard Boey]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Thu, 19 Mar 2026 18:42:56 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!VYpi!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7f30744b-f1df-4d1b-a6aa-94390f9aa6f0_1024x1024.jpeg" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!VYpi!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7f30744b-f1df-4d1b-a6aa-94390f9aa6f0_1024x1024.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!VYpi!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7f30744b-f1df-4d1b-a6aa-94390f9aa6f0_1024x1024.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!VYpi!,w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7f30744b-f1df-4d1b-a6aa-94390f9aa6f0_1024x1024.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!VYpi!,w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7f30744b-f1df-4d1b-a6aa-94390f9aa6f0_1024x1024.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!VYpi!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7f30744b-f1df-4d1b-a6aa-94390f9aa6f0_1024x1024.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!VYpi!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7f30744b-f1df-4d1b-a6aa-94390f9aa6f0_1024x1024.jpeg" width="1024" height="1024" 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srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!VYpi!,w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7f30744b-f1df-4d1b-a6aa-94390f9aa6f0_1024x1024.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!VYpi!,w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7f30744b-f1df-4d1b-a6aa-94390f9aa6f0_1024x1024.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!VYpi!,w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7f30744b-f1df-4d1b-a6aa-94390f9aa6f0_1024x1024.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!VYpi!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7f30744b-f1df-4d1b-a6aa-94390f9aa6f0_1024x1024.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><div class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg role="img" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><title></title><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a><figcaption class="image-caption">Living a life as a healer.</figcaption></figure></div><p>During Easter Sunday in 2024, I was sitting in my living room, meditating like I normally do.</p><p>Then something unexpected happened.</p><div class="subscription-widget-wrap-editor" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://www.thegreatcompassionwithin.me/subscribe?&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Subscribe&quot;,&quot;language&quot;:&quot;en&quot;}" data-component-name="SubscribeWidgetToDOM"><div class="subscription-widget show-subscribe"><div class="preamble"><p class="cta-caption">Thanks for reading! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.</p></div><form class="subscription-widget-subscribe"><input type="email" class="email-input" name="email" placeholder="Type your email&#8230;" tabindex="-1"><input type="submit" class="button primary" value="Subscribe"><div class="fake-input-wrapper"><div class="fake-input"></div><div class="fake-button"></div></div></form></div></div><p>It didn&#8217;t feel like a thought. It felt more like a clear message:</p><blockquote><p>You are a healer. Everything you need is already in place. All you have to do is step in.</p></blockquote><p>At the time, I didn&#8217;t fully understand what that meant.</p><p>It stayed with me, but also confused me for a while.</p><p>It wasn&#8217;t until the past few months that I began to truly understand&#8212;and more importantly, accept&#8212;what that message was pointing me toward.</p><h2><strong>Where It Really Started</strong></h2><p>Looking back, the signs were there much earlier.</p><p>About three years ago, I visited Puerto Vallarta. After returning from that trip, I started noticing something unusual.</p><p>Whenever I closed my eyes, I would see colors.</p><p>Not darkness. Not just light.</p><p>But shifting colors&#8212;appearing, disappearing, changing.</p><p>At first, I didn&#8217;t know what to make of it.</p><p>But I became curious.</p><p>And curiosity has always been one of my strongest traits.</p><p>So I started observing more carefully&#8212;especially during meditation.</p><p>That curiosity led me to explore chakras.</p><p>I began reading books, learning how different colors correspond to different energy centers in the body, and what happens when those centers are out of balance.</p><p>For about a year, I studied quietly:</p><ul><li><p>observing the colors I saw</p></li><li><p>matching them with what I learned</p></li><li><p>noticing patterns</p></li></ul><p>At some point, something clicked.</p><p>Energy started to feel less abstract&#8212;and more real.</p><h2><strong>The Moment It Became Tangible</strong></h2><p>In the summer of 2024, I was dating someone who introduced me to psychedelics.</p><p>During my second experience, something shifted.</p><p>The colors I used to see became more dynamic&#8212;they started to move.</p><p>And more importantly, I noticed something new.</p><p>When I placed my hands on him, I could feel his energy.</p><p>Not in a vague way&#8212;but in a very specific way:</p><ul><li><p>areas of tension</p></li><li><p>places that felt &#8220;blocked&#8221;</p></li><li><p>subtle differences across the body</p></li></ul><p>Without overthinking it, I followed my instinct and began working with that energy.</p><p>That was the first time I realized:</p><blockquote><p>This isn&#8217;t just something I&#8217;m seeing. It&#8217;s something I can interact with.</p></blockquote><h2><strong>Expanding Awareness</strong></h2><p>Around the same time, I had another experience that changed my perspective.</p><p>I was at a friend&#8217;s place where they had a crystal grid.</p><p>Before that, I&#8217;ll be honest&#8212;I was skeptical.</p><p>I thought crystals were mostly symbolic, or even just a way to sell products.</p><p>But as I became more sensitive to energy, I started noticing something:</p><p>There was a flow.</p><p>Not something visible in a physical sense, but something I could perceive&#8212;almost like movement or structure.</p><p>That made me pause.</p><p>So again, I followed curiosity.</p><p>I started learning about crystals:</p><ul><li><p>their properties</p></li><li><p>how they interact with energy</p></li><li><p>how they may amplify intention</p></li></ul><p>Over time, my perception expanded further.</p><p>I began noticing energy not just in people&#8212;but also in plants.</p><p>And in quiet moments, it even felt like there was a form of communication happening&#8212;not through words, but through sensation and awareness.</p><h2><strong>Learning Through Experience</strong></h2><p>As my sensitivity grew, I naturally began experimenting&#8212;mostly on myself.</p><p>This part was very important.</p><p>Before trying anything on others, I wanted to understand:</p><p>What does energy actually feel like in the body?</p><p>So I explored:</p><ul><li><p>working on my own sore back, neck, and shoulders</p></li><li><p>sensing how energy moves through different areas</p></li><li><p>using concepts from Chinese medicine (yin, yang, five elements)</p></li><li><p>experimenting with techniques similar to acupuncture&#8212;without needles</p></li><li><p>practicing modalities like Quantum Touch</p></li></ul><p>Each time, I paid attention:</p><ul><li><p>What changed?</p></li><li><p>What didn&#8217;t?</p></li><li><p>What felt different afterward?</p></li></ul><p>I didn&#8217;t approach this as &#8220;I know what I&#8217;m doing.&#8221;</p><p>I approached it as:</p><blockquote><p>Let me observe. Let me learn.</p></blockquote><h2><strong>The Role of Playfulness</strong></h2><p>If I had to describe what guided this whole journey, it would be this:</p><p>Curiosity + Observation + Experience</p><p>But there&#8217;s one more element that made it possible:</p><p>Playfulness.</p><p>I wasn&#8217;t trying to prove anything.</p><p>I wasn&#8217;t trying to become anything.</p><p>I was simply exploring.</p><p>Trying things.</p><p>Feeling things.</p><p>Learning through experience.</p><p>And over time, that playful curiosity turned into something more structured.</p><h2><strong>Stepping Into It</strong></h2><p>More recently, I began learning Reiki and practicing remote healing.</p><p>I started offering sessions to friends, family, and colleagues.</p><p>The results have varied&#8212;which is important to say honestly.</p><p>But there have been moments of real impact:</p><ul><li><p>people feeling relief</p></li><li><p>emotional shifts</p></li><li><p>a sense of calm or lightness</p></li></ul><p>Each experience continues to teach me something.</p><p>And I&#8217;m still learning.</p><h2><strong>Why I&#8217;m Sharing This</strong></h2><p>This space is not about claiming that I have all the answers.</p><p>I don&#8217;t.</p><p>It&#8217;s also not about presenting energy healing as a cure for everything.</p><p>Because healing is complex&#8212;and often requires personal effort, lifestyle changes, and many different forms of support.</p><p>What I do believe is this:</p><p>When people experience even a small amount of relief&#8212;</p><p>physical, emotional, or mental&#8212;</p><p>it can create space for something important:</p><p>hope</p><p>And that matters.</p><h2><strong>What This Publication Is About</strong></h2><p>This Substack is where I will share:</p><ul><li><p>real experiences from energy healing sessions</p></li><li><p>observations about how energy shows up in the body</p></li><li><p>different healing modalities and how they work</p></li><li><p>simple practices you can explore on your own</p></li></ul><p>Everything I share comes from:</p><ul><li><p>curiosity</p></li><li><p>compassion</p></li><li><p>and lived experience</p></li></ul><p>Not certainty.</p><h2><strong>Moving Forward</strong></h2><p>In the coming weeks and months, I plan to publish regularly.</p><p>Some posts will be stories.</p><p>Some will be reflections.</p><p>Some will be practical.</p><p>I&#8217;ll also begin sharing guided healing content you can try yourself.</p><p>If you&#8217;re curious about energy, healing, or simply understanding your body and mind in a different way&#8212;</p><p>You&#8217;re in the right place.</p><div class="subscription-widget-wrap-editor" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://www.thegreatcompassionwithin.me/subscribe?&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Subscribe&quot;,&quot;language&quot;:&quot;en&quot;}" data-component-name="SubscribeWidgetToDOM"><div class="subscription-widget show-subscribe"><div class="preamble"><p class="cta-caption">Thanks for reading! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.</p></div><form class="subscription-widget-subscribe"><input type="email" class="email-input" name="email" placeholder="Type your email&#8230;" tabindex="-1"><input type="submit" class="button primary" value="Subscribe"><div class="fake-input-wrapper"><div class="fake-input"></div><div class="fake-button"></div></div></form></div></div>]]></content:encoded></item></channel></rss>