The Art of Forgiveness


by Rebecca Osborn - Date: 2007-04-28 - Word Count: 288 Share This!

When someone has wronged you, when you have been treated badly and unfairly, lied to and manipulated, the most foreign thing to do it to forgive and forget. But forgiveness is possible and it is necessary for your physical and mental health.

"People who forgive show less depression, anger and stress and more hopefulness," says Frederic Luskin, "So it can help save on the wear and tear on our organs, reduce the wearing out of the immune system and allow people to feel more vital."

So how do you forgive and forget?

1. Calm yourself. To defuse your anger, try a simple stress-management technique. Take a couple of breaths and think of something that gives you pleasure: a beautiful scene in nature, someone you love.

2. Do not wait for an apology. The other person may not have meant to have hurt you, they may see things differently to you or they may have meant to hurt you on purpose. Whatever the case. they are probably not going to apologize first. Forgiving somebody does not mean that you are going to be the best of friends again, but it does mean that you release them in your heart and you do not hold any resentment against them.

3. Recognize the benefits of forgiveness. Research has shown that people who forgive report more energy, better appetite and better sleep patterns. If you are unaware of the distress that bitterness and resentment toward somebody else can have, then you will never realise the importance of forgiving and letting go.

4. Do not forget to forgive yourself. For some people, forgiving themselves is the biggest challenge, but it can rob you of your self-confidence if you don''t do it. Do not blame yourself.


Related Tags: stress, depression, motivational, inspirational, forgiveness, forgive, anger management, rebecca

Is there greatness on the inside of you but you don't know how to achieve it? Jason has just completed his brand new 7 part e-course, 'Find Your Greatness'

Get it free when you subscribe at: Find Your Greatness

Jason and Rebecca Osborn have dedicated themselves to changing thousands of lives by helping people find their greatness and true potential through their Find Your Greatness Newsletter.

Also log onto http://livingword.ie for more inspirational messages.

Your Article Search Directory : Find in Articles

© The article above is copyrighted by it's author. You're allowed to distribute this work according to the Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs license.
 

Recent articles in this category:



Most viewed articles in this category:


  • A Woman's Wrath by Lara Velez
    James 3:6 says; And the tongue is a fire. The tongue is a world of wickedness set among our members,
  • ANGER : Dissected by Gourishankar Patnaik
    Anger : DissectedAnatomy of Anger:A complex set of symptoms, a series of symptoms with various r
  • Rage to Rapture by Anne Walsh
    IntroductionIf you are reading this, there is probably a part of you that is tired of being angry, t
  • Stress and Anger Managment by Shannon Munford
    If you are patient in one moment of anger, you will escape a hundred days of sorrow-Chinese ProverbS
  • Why Do We Need Anger Management? by Joe Leech
    Is there more stress in our lives today than previously? Probably 8 out of 10 people, if asked this
  • Anger Mismanagement by E. Raymond Rock
    We will never succeed at changing ourselves by trying to change ourselves directly. We must do it in
  • Maintaining Health and Harmony in the Modern World by Kimberly Markison
    I'll let you in on a little secret. It's so secret that it's obvious (a secret is always safest from
  • Anger And The Android by Shannon Munford
    Anger is a wind which blows out the lamp of the mind. -Robert IngersollA man makes inferiors his su
  • Cheating Partners: The Only Solution That Brings Happiness by Greg Baer
    It has become increasingly common for partners to cheat on one another. Putting aside the moral and
  • Blame Vs. Responsibility by Kimberly Markison
    Who among us has never felt remorse or guilt for something we have done? And who among us has never