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mental challenge

  1. E

    Suddenly feeling terrified

    So I leave for France tomorrow to start my Camino on September 9 and I'm suddenly feeling overwhelmed with fear. I was excited yesterday but now I can't answer why I am doing this and am feeling dread. Has anyone experienced this before leaving? I realize I'm headed into the total unknown, which...
  2. H

    LIVE from the Camino Losing motivation after believing you can finish

    Hello from Ponferrada. I’ve got ten days left on the CF. Only, I feel like I’m losing motivation? When I set out from SJPDP I was truly uncertain as to whether or not I was capable of walking the camino. I’m 70 pounds overweight and lead a sedentary life. Yet here I am, hundreds of kilometers...
  3. Lhollo

    Fears

    I may, or may not, head to SJPDP to walk the CF alone next week. I’ve posted about the complicated background to this in a previous thread. I’m still undecided. But three questions here… 1) Those of you who’ve previously walked caminos but with partners, or staying in private rooms rather...
  4. MaggieQYogini

    Experience of AA members on the Camino?

    [MODERATOR'S NOTE/ADDITION: This link may be helpful for people seeking AA support in Spain: https://www.aaspain.org/ ] _____________________________________________ I am an Alanon member and wonder if anyone who have walked the Camino Frances and also an AA member could be willing to share...
  5. legless

    Crisis of confidence

    Well, it was all going so well. 5 weeks to go, practical preparation is done, physical preparation is in hand but now I am freaking out about whether or not I can do it. The mental preparation is not going well. Who am I kidding? I'm a shy, grieving introvert - how the hell am I going to walk...
  6. Storyteller Matt

    I have lost myself

    I finished the Camino Frances in October 2021. It was a calling I had to fulfill, ever since I dipped my toe in the Camino in 2018 (where I started in Sarria and made a fool of myself). This time, I completed... the best thing I have ever done. Now I am home. This is where everyone says the...
  7. James X

    The Listening Walk - 6000 Miles (9656 Km’s) To Raise Awareness That There's Always Someone There / Samaritans

    I think we all know the benefit of a listening ear, be it here or life in general and whatever you are going through in life you should never be afraid to reach out This is David Matthews who is walking 6000 Miles (9656 Km’s) between all the 200 branches of Samaritans in the UK and Ireland. I...
  8. R

    Happiness and Pilgrimage

    Saw this and thought I'd share: Go For A Walk https://www.theatlantic.com/family/archive/2021/09/happiness-walking-pilgrimage/620075/ Arthur Brooks was head of an American think tank for many years and most recently has been writing stories about happiness research for the Atlantic.
  9. S

    Bored walking

    I done the CF and CP both in weekly stages and absolutely loved them and always wanted to continue on rather than come home. From other posts I read on the forum it seems that a lot of people only seem to be getting into their stride on day seven when their bodies have adjusted or given up...
  10. David

    Why do pilgrims carry on when it is really hard?

    Hi – I have been wondering, pondering really, for a while now. For the religious carrying on when Camino is difficult, terribly difficult, is simple. A Catholic, for instance, has surrendered to a God greater than themselves – they are surrendered and go on pilgrimage with the intention of...
  11. F

    Totally Clueless Beginner

    Hi sorry in advance for the inevitably annoying noob thread :p but I'm in a bit of a panic/rush I have been suffering from an illness (no not that one) it was a mental one and I am mostly better now and on a whim I have decided to walk the camino as someone who inspired me said it changed their...
  12. VNwalking

    Walking through cancer. A thread for inspiration.

    No one used to talk about this. Which is ridiculous, as 1 in 8 of us will have to deal with it at some point. I am thinking of @Anniesantiago today, as she faces a possible diagnosis. Anyone who has been through this will know in their gut how that day feels - no matter how long ago it was...
  13. D

    The Introverted Pilgrim

    Note: Undoubtedly there will be some unintentional flub up I've made while trying to write down my thoughts on this topic, but it is not intended to offend anybody. And I do hope that nothing written is meant to convey an attitude of unfriendliness or unwillingness to help others or lend a hand...
  14. VNwalking

    What was your meltdown point?

    In another thread Dave posted this: Which got me thinking of the times when I've 'hit the wall.' and how different it feels to walk day after say as opposed to undertaling a shorter, limited duration event like (say) a marathon or triathlon. It's easier to persevere in the latter two, because...
  15. SherlyC

    All of a sudden no motivation to start the camino

    Hi everyone! I'd like to ask this question to pilgrims who have already done a camino. Since the beginning of this year I had blocked two weeks of my calendar to do a 2 week camino this summer during July. The blocked date starts already next week but I have zero motivation and still haven't...
  16. M

    Friends of Bill and Alanon in English in Santiago

    Hello Everyone. We are announcing English speaking AA and Alanon once a month now, last Saturday of every month. Next meeting is Sept. 29, 12 to 1 AA and 1 to 2 Alanon. I have attached the flyer with phone numbers if you have more questions. We have 25 meetings in Madrid and pilgrims were...
  17. RobertS26

    25 Habits of Successful and Happy People

    The Washington Post summarized a paper on the habits of successful and happy people that was recently published in Psychology magazine. I was struck by how many of these habits directly applied or related to a successful and happy Camino. 1. Savor the moment. Literally stop and smell the...
  18. Northern Laurie

    Coming home: Help for the heartbroken

    I just finished my first Camino and today is two weeks back home. Camino homesickness is hitting hard, which is arguably why I've been participating in so many forum conversations in the last couple of days. I did not expect that - I thought once I'd finished, I wouldn't need the forum so...
  19. NadineK

    The 'what now?' question after the Camino: a resource

    Hi pilgrims! I recently wrote a little e-book called 'After the Camino'. I've been thinking of doing something like this for the past 3 years, ever since I returned from the Camino Frances in 2014 (and since then, I've been back to walk the Norte, Primitivo, San Salvador, and two weeks on Le...
  20. D

    Article about mental health benefits of walking

    An interesting short article published about the mental health benefits of walking in nature (and disconnecting from electronic devices) that may help explain the Camino addiction some (aka Me :p) seem to suffer from!

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