Letting go in December – Why not start the New Year with a clean slate?

December can be a month where we are reminded constantly through glossy family pictures on social media, shops brimming over with stuff and endless pressure to show our best festive self of what we don’t have - both emotionally and physically in our lives.

As we fast approach the end of the year, and as I begin to reflect on 2022 - my successes, my disappointments and those important learning moments - I have found myself beginning to let go of things.

But actually, it’s more than that, I have discovered that as I prepare to launch into 2023, there is a sense of urgency about clearing my path and it feels important to have a clean slate for when I set my intentions for the New Year. That means getting to grips with some serious shedding of the things that no longer serve me, and in a sense it has become a December cleanse.

December, in all of its festive glory is traditionally a month of gluttony, excess, over-indulgence, and desiring and acquiring new things. It can be a month where we are reminded constantly through glossy family pictures on social media, shops brimming over with stuff and endless pressure to show our best festive self of what we don’t have both emotionally and physically in our lives. So choosing it to be the month to let things go might seem counter-intuitive.

“Why not just wait until January?” I hear you say. January is, after all, the month for change, new beginnings, new hopes and dreams, and letting go of attachments is actually really hard: be that a relationship, a friendship, a belief, a job, your ego or something that no longer serves you.

Holding on can feel safe, it is the essence of keeping things how they have always been, keeping the status quo, not rocking the boat, hanging on in there and we humans love to hold onto familiar attachments.

We convince ourselves that it’s a sign of strength to hold on tightly, if we let go we might lose control. It feels comfortable and although the things we may hold onto may be causing us suffering or harm, the thought of letting them go feels terrifying. Fear is often the thing that holds us back from letting go, we are fearful of what others might think of us.

Brené Brown says,

“What's the greater risk? Letting go of what people think – or letting go of how I feel, what I believe, and who I am?”

Letting go clears the path to allow for incredible changes in your life. It creates a space for something new to show up and, more importantly, letting go is a powerful choice to make. It gives you the power to take control of what you want to keep in your life. Essentially taking control of what you do have the power over instead of yearning for control over what you don’t.

Deepak Chopra puts it perfectly: "In the process of letting go you will lose many things from the past, but you will find yourself.”

So, this December I invite you to do a bit of letting go – to liberate yourself from some of those things that have held you back, let go of what feels stagnant and make choices that serve you for a lighter, freer you and a lighter, more joyful 2023!