Upright Keywords: Feeling Trapped, restriction
Symbolism & Meaning
This card is all about confronting constraints that are limiting, uncomfortable and even self imposed. A blindfolded and tied woman stands on a beach, waiting sombrely for tide to come back in. The eight swords are around her and a castle is in the background. The swords, due to the fact they are not pointed at her, symbolise the perception of fear. It can also represent issues from the past that we may be holding onto, preventing us from moving forward.
How the Eight of Swords is relevant to Me
This card is telling me that I am feeling trapped. This could be by circumstances, the past or my own uncertainties. All of these ring true given my current situation. This became very clear in my first EMDR session on Tuesday. It was more of a preparation session so that Zoe could decide what area to focus on for the treatment. It is very obvious that my perception of fear is driving many of my issues. My fight or flight receptors are kicking in and due to my lack of memory, I am filling in the blanks with the worst case scenario.
This is very limiting. Physically, I feel that I could get the bus and be more independent. From a psychological point of view, even just typing this is raising my anxiety levels to the point where I even feel a bit light headed. It is all very frustrating to me because this is the total opposite of who I was before the accident.
From a career point of view, I also feel trapped. Realistically, I know that I do not feel able to return to previous job. Money worries aside, I need them to either decide to let me go or I need to resign, at the right time. It feels very complicated and out of my control. Once this has been resolved, I can move on and decide what I want to do long term. I know what I WANT to do but that is dependent on many other factors.