Three years ago, I went through my first dark night of the soul.
At the time, I had no idea what it was. All I knew was that my sense of self was suddenly changing, like a ship adrift in a sea of uncertainty. It was as if life had hit the reset button, and I was left grappling with questions that had no easy answers.
All of a sudden, I didn’t resonate with most of my friendships. I was becoming aware of some family dynamics that were not healthy. And, most importantly, I was becoming aware of my own dysfunctional patterns and protection mechanisms.
It took me more than a year to recover, but I was very proud of myself when I finally did.
Little did I know I’d have to embark on that journey again.
What’s The Dark Night of The Soul?
The dark night of the soul refers to a profound and painful period of spiritual or personal crisis, characterized by feelings of emptiness, despair, and a sense of being disconnected from our usual sense of purpose, meaning, or connection to the divine (whatever that means to you).
The term was first coined in a poem by Saint John of the Cross, a 16th-century Spanish mystic and poet. This phenomenon, within the Buddhist tradition, is sometimes referred to as “falling into the pit of the void.”