“Embrace the Suck” is a military term.
Occasionally I heard military stuff while working in a law enforcement environment with guys who were or are still in the military in some capacity. “Embrace the Suck” is a fascinating concept actually. When they are in a war like Iraq or Afghanistan, things are going to suck from time to time. They have to get through it whether they like it or not. They can’t avoid it. They have to deal with the stuff that sucks.
One of my guru’s Joseph Campbell said the same thing (albeit a little more eloquently):
“We’re in a free fall into future. We don’t know where we’re going. Things are changing so fast. And always when you’re going through a long tunnel, anxiety comes along. But all you have to do to transform your hell into a paradise is to turn your fall into a voluntary act. It’s a very interesting shift of perspective . . . Joyfully participate in the sorrows of the world and everything changes.”
So, “embrace the suck” in your life. Something sucks in your life. Maybe it hasn’t reached the point of a crisis or depression, but we’ve all been there and know that when it DOES reach that point you can go into a pity-party-for-one that can be completely debilitating. You can’t see a way out. You feel stuck. No one can help you. Nothing makes sense anymore. Nothing is working out for you. Life really sucks.
If you are in a tailspin – EMBRACE THE SUCK.
This perspective turns EVERYTHING on it’s head. Just say:
Okay, this is how it is, this is what is happening in my life, in my relationships, on my job, with my finances, with my health, etc…it’s bad…actually it SUCKS…now… just embrace that. This IS how it IS. When you can “joyfully participate” in “the suck” like you “joyfully participate” during the wonderful times in your life… when things are going well…when you are in love, when you get the job you think you want, when you have money in the bank, when you have friends, etc…it’s good…actually it’s GREAT…now try to embrace “The Suck” JUST LIKE THAT…it’s GREAT. How do you act? What do you do when you are “happy” when things are “positive”? Just START doing some of those things. For some of you it might mean to JUST GET UP OUT OF THE BED. Nope, it’s not something easy to do, but it provides a release. It’s like a relief valve. It actually feels like you are cheating the “negative” things from allowing you to stay stuck in them and seeing them as “bad”, or just replaying how much things really suck over and over and over again in your head…instead of understanding and appreciating that it’s just a part of life….your life…your story…
What about your life currently “sucks”?
Identify it. Admit it. Take a good long look at it.
Embrace it.
This blog is about letting go and you CAN’T let go of something that you are denying and pretending is not there. You have to fully embrace what is not working in order to make a change.
Note to Self: There is NO WAY I could have written this post today if I had not Embraced The Suck…The Many, Many, Many Sucks that are going on right now in my life. I’m looking forward to posting about this time once I’m on the other side of yet another dark and dank tunnel of change.