The more time passes, the more regrets we collect. It makes us sad, and sometimes angry too. And we don’t know what to do with all our regrets and the negative emotions they create within us. In other words, how can we free ourselves from regret and live more serenely? Here are 4 great tips.

1 – Freeing yourself from regret means understanding that regret is normal.

We all have regrets. Not necessarily the same ones. But all the same.

You may regret not having worked hard enough at school, you may regret your choice of career path, you may regret not having kissed someone, or you may regret leaving someone.

And that’s normal.

Yes, it’s normal to have regrets, to wonder what our lives would have been like if we’d made different choices.

The problem is, instead of making us feel curiosity and maybe even a touch of nostalgia, these regrets make us feel more or less distressed.

And that’s what’s so terrible. That’s why it’s so important to free ourselves from regret.

However, I wholeheartedly invite you to take a moment to accept that having regrets is normal.

It may even be necessary. In fact, having regrets keeps us awake in our lives, pushing us to make the right decisions for the future.

What do you think?

2 – Relativize certain regrets to free yourself from them

Now, to free ourselves from regrets, we need to question them, one by one.

That’s why I wholeheartedly invite you to take a pen and paper, or open a note on your phone, and list all your regrets. All of them.

Start from the beginning and work your way back to today.

Take the time you need. Pay particular attention to this list, because it’s important for what comes next.

Once you’ve listed your regrets, question them.

In other words, ask yourself if this is a regret that has a real impact on your life, on your level of happiness today, or is it a regret that could be described as “curiosity”.

A regret you have because you wonder what your life could have been like if you’d made a different choice.

Because by questioning your regrets, you’ll put a lot of them into perspective. Yes, you’ll realize that in the end, they’re not as serious as all that, that they were simply opportunities. No more, no less.

And that’s going to do you a world of good!

3 – Making peace to free yourself from regrets

But what can we do about the regrets we can’t really put into perspective, the ones that still have a strong impact on us today?

To free ourselves from regrets, we need to make peace with them.

And, that requires us to look them in the face, really in the face. What do you regret?

Then ask yourself what this regret has taught you, because there’s bound to be a lesson in it.

Let me take a personal example. I regret not keeping in touch with my best friends from high school.

I can’t put this regret into perspective, because I know it has a strong impact on me today and on my life.

So, what can I do to free myself from its weight?

I’ve realized that it was this regret that taught me today to give more importance to friendship in my life, to be more present, more attentive too.

And it’s because I regret not having been so in the past that I’ve learned not to be so today.

Now it’s your turn. What do you regret? And what lesson have you learned or can you learn from your regrets?

4 – Live life to the full to live without regret

Freeing yourself from regret doesn’t mean making it disappear. In fact, our regrets will always be there, inside us, in a corner of our head and heart.

But we mustn’t let our regrets spoil our present life. Why not? Because they don’t have the power to, and because that’s not why they’re there.

In fact, our regrets don’t spoil our lives – quite the contrary.

Our regrets remind us to live our lives with our eyes and hearts wide open.

In fact, when regrets start to take up too much space in our lives, it’s because we’re falling asleep on our lives.

In other words, rather than living, we’re sighing over our regrets.

Eventually, they become false excuses for making no effort to be happy in our lives.

So, if you’re reading this article, the most important thing you need to understand is that your life is what it is, and it’s wonderful.

In fact, you’re just as likely to experience the joys of life in this life as in any other.

Because happiness is as simple as that cup of coffee or tea you’re drinking, or the sky above you…

Happiness, YOUR happiness, is within your reach at every moment.

So live to the full this moment and all those that follow.

Because freeing yourself from regrets is to stop putting conditions on your happiness, and to be happy right here, right now, with what you have, where you are and how you are.

What do you think?

Find out more:

I invite you to read these 2 complementary articles:

Discover Living without regrets: 15 tips for a life without regrets
Discover Turning the page on your past: 5 simple exercises

I recommend this inspiring book:

Radical Forgiveness by Colin Tipping

Radical Forgiveness by Colin Tipping offers a transformative perspective on freeing oneself from regret by embracing forgiveness in its most radical form. The book offers a structured approach to understanding and freeing ourselves from the burden of regret through a process that encourages empathy, acceptance and, ultimately, forgiveness. By adopting the principles outlined in the book, we can navigate the path to self-forgiveness and emotional freedom, just leaving the weight of regret behind and opening ourselves up to a more liberated and powerful life.

A truly amazing book. This is truly an outstanding book that allows us to put those old wounds to rest once and for all.

Thank you very much for reading this article.

If you liked it, let me know in the comments.

Take care of yourself