No matter where you look these days, you will probably hear something about the practice of “manifesting.”

As someone who provides mental health therapy and has developed an online program tailored for healing past trauma, I get asked a lot about my feelings on manifesting.

Manifesting is the process of intentionally bringing your desires and goals into reality through focused thought and positive energy.  While on its surface this seems like a spiritual or mystical concept, manifesting can help your business by encouraging you to remain focused, motivated and positive as you work toward your business goals.

As with so many mental health practices, there are pros and cons to the manifesting world, but ultimately I feel that manifesting results in a net positive in my life.

The key is to find the proper balance between what works well and what doesn’t.

Unsure of whether or not you want to dive headfirst into the manifesting world? Let me tell you some of the pros and cons I have experienced since dedicating myself to the practice.

Pros

1. It promotes a positive mindset. 

   Cognitive behavioral therapy is based on the idea that “if we can change our thinking, it will change our feelings and thus change our actions.” Manifesting is similar, as it helps put you in the driver’s seat of your mental health by attempting to promote a positive train of thought. Whether it’s through journaling, meditating, or writing a gratitude log, these will all help us rewire the brain for positive psychology.

2. Take charge of your healing.

   One of the manifesting coaches I follow is named Brad Yates, and he starts all of his EFT Tapping sessions off by saying that “we have the choice to take full responsibility for our own well-being.” Trauma survivors often think that only bad things happen to them and that they are a victim of their own circumstances, nothing else. Healing this belief lets you see that you are capable of much more.Manifesting also emphasizes doing “shadow work,” where you attempt to heal your past wounds, fears, and anxieties. Doing so makes room for new experiences, feelings, and beliefs. Think about it; if you were going to buy a new couch, you would need to make sure you made enough space in your living room for the couch first!

   Investing in our well-being in the present will benefit our future selves.

3. You are in charge of your own destiny.

   Tony Robbins often refers to the term a “compelling future” when discussing how to handle the stress life throws at you. What he means by this is that if you mentally tell yourself that you will have whatever it is you desire in the future, it will give you the strength to handle stress better as it presents itself.

Cons

1. It can be a culture of toxic positivity.

   Earlier this year, someone broke into my office and damaged and stole property. I was devastated. It felt like they had stolen more than just property that evening.Unsure of how to process the event, I decided to share my story on Instagram. Mostly, I was met with overwhelming support from my friends, family, and followers. But, I also received messages from some of my friends within the manifesting world who were attempting to put a positive spin on what had happened.”How might this end up helping you out in the long run?””What is wrong with your energy?” “Can you imagine what that person must have been going through to do this?”

   While there was no ill-intent among these sentiments, the truth was that this event had nothing to do with me or my energy but rather was caused by another person utilizing their free will to break into my office. At this moment, I needed to feel the hurt of having my safety violated.

   If we do not allow ourselves to hurt, we never allow ourselves to heal. Instead, we end up burying these emotions and creating future roadblocks to our success and happiness.

   One way I like to put it: how could we appreciate the sun if there were no rainy days?

   2. The “everything happens for a reason” dilemma.

   Within the manifesting world, the phrase “everything happens for a reason” can get tossed around quite frequently, and I disagree with the sentiment. Sure, this applies in many scenarios, but as a licensed mental health therapist, I have seen things that happened to people I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy. These types of severe traumas cannot be just dismissed as an event that “happened for a reason.” Otherwise, it causes the victim to feel like something is wrong with them or that they have inherently bad energy.

   People have the free will to do good or bad. Some things happen to us that are entirely beyond our control. These events should not always be dismissed as a potential stepping stone toward a greater purpose.

Through the good and bad, I feel that manifesting has given me the personal space to help organize my thoughts and feelings. It also has empowered me to feel as though I can heal my past and present so I can move forward in my life and embody the person I want to become.

I will warn you that the benefits are not immediate and may take a trial and error period.

We are not stuck with our belief systems. We can heal what is no longer serving us and move forward to the goals we are excited to achieve.

Still unsure if manifesting is a practice for you? Click here to take my free masterclass!