“Through all the years of my practice from psychotherapy, from psychedelics, from meditation and yoga, I have never gotten rid of a single neurosis. They are still there. But they have gone from being huge scary monsters to delightful little schmoos. I see one coming along and I say, ‘Oh there you are again. I remember you. Tricky little thing, aren’t you?'” ~Ram Dass
My experience has been very much like what Ram Dass describes. No matter how much work I do, none of my neuroses have ever disappeared. I’ve learned to recognize them better and to befriend them so I can better moderate their impact, but they are still there. I no longer see that as failure. Rather, I celebrate it as successful monster taming every time one transforms into a “delightful little schmoo.”
Image by Nadine Doerlé from Pixabay