Let Inner Shift Sanctuary Point You Back To Living A Joyful Life
- Dorry Aben
- May 26
- 5 min read
We all want to be happy. Whether we realize it or not, so much of our time and energy is spent chasing joy—seeking experiences, relationships, or achievements that promise to deliver that unmistakable feeling of lightness, warmth, and contentment. We run toward things that seem to shine with promise and away from the things that feel heavy or painful. And yet, for all our effort, most people find true, lasting joy to be elusive.
So what’s going on? Why does joy seem like something we can touch only occasionally, and never quite hold onto?
Through my journey and my work with clients, I’ve discovered a powerful truth: Joy is not something you find outside of yourself. It is something you remember within yourself. The Inner Shift Sanctuary is a platform in which I offer daily support that helps you uncover the joy and aliveness of being you in this world.
The Chase for External Joy
From a young age, we’re conditioned to believe that joy lives outside of us. We’re told—implicitly and explicitly—that happiness comes from achievements, relationships, wealth, or even spiritual success. As a result, most of us become trapped in a cycle of striving, achieving, comparing, and seeking.
And while we may taste moments of joy here and there, they often feel fleeting. That’s because joy rooted in external circumstances is inherently unstable. As soon as the circumstance changes, the joy fades. And then the chase begins again.
This external dependency creates a sense of powerlessness. If something “out there” has to go right for you to feel okay inside, you’re constantly at the mercy of life. You become reactive, anxious, and caught in cycles of control or disappointment.
But what if joy didn’t need to be earned or chased? What if joy was something you could access, regardless of what’s happening around you?
A Deeper Kind of Joy
In my online virtual safe haven I support you in shifting your relationship with joy for true joy—the kind that lasts—is not an emotion tied to specific circumstances. Instead, it is a vibrational state that lives at the core of your being. It is not something you create; it is something you remember and allow yourself to access.
This inner joy is subtle at first. It often begins as a sense of peace, a quiet spaciousness inside you. But as you continue to align with it, this peace begins to deepen and expand. Over time, it starts to feel blissful, rich, and deeply alive. It’s not dependent on anything. It just is—like the sun shining behind the clouds, always present even when unseen.
This is not the kind of joy you feel only when things are perfect. It’s the joy of being—being you, being alive, being present with what is.
Why Chasing Joy Doesn’t Work
One of the most surprising things I’ve learned is that chasing joy can actually keep it at bay. The more we run toward it, the more we reinforce the belief that we don’t already have it. We become like someone chasing their own shadow—running in circles, never realizing that the thing they seek is already with them.
I help you recognize this pattern and gently release it. Rather than encouraging you to push harder or “think positive,” it invites you to surrender to what is. That might sound counterintuitive at first, especially in a culture that idolizes progress and constant self-improvement. But in surrendering—not giving up, but letting go—something magical happens.
When you stop trying to control your inner state and allow yourself to fully feel and witness your present experience, you begin to drop beneath the surface layers of emotion and into something much deeper: a foundational sense of being that is already whole, already enough, and already joyful.
The Power of Surrender
Many people are afraid of surrender. It can feel like a loss of control or like giving up hope. But true surrender is not resignation—it is liberation. It is the decision to stop resisting your own life and instead open up to the possibility that everything you are experiencing is leading you home to yourself.
You can see the Inner Shift Sanctuary as a doorway into deeper levels of surrender. When you let go of the need to constantly fix, improve, or achieve, you start to feel the aliveness of the present moment. You begin to realize that the joy you’ve been chasing has always been right here—quiet, patient, and waiting for you to stop running.
And here’s the beautiful irony: The more you surrender, the more you receive. When you no longer need life to meet specific conditions for you to be okay, you discover an inner freedom that no situation can take away.
Life Is Not Against You
Another key truth that emerges through spending time with me is this: Life is not your enemy. Even when things feel difficult, life is not trying to break you. It’s trying to open you. Every moment, even the painful ones, holds an invitation to return to your natural state—your vibrant, joyful self.
When you stop fighting life and start flowing with it, you shift from resistance to resonance. You align with your own vibration rather than trying to manipulate the world to suit your needs. And from this place, joy becomes natural. Spontaneous. Consistent.
You start to see beauty in the small things: a breath, a conversation, a moment of silence. Even the mundane becomes sacred because you are meeting it from wholeness rather than lack.
Living the Dream You're Already In
One of the most profound insights that comes through working with me is this: You are already living the dream.
It may not look like the fantasy you imagined. It may not be wrapped in perfection. But when you begin to see through the lens of your vibrational truth, you realize that every moment is saturated with magic. You realize that you—in your authenticity, in your aliveness, in your willingness to show up for life—are the dream you’ve been chasing.
And this is the shift that changes everything. You no longer live for the highs or fear the lows. You live in the now, grounded in a joy that isn’t fragile or conditional. A joy that flows from being fully alive.
An Invitation
If this speaks to something in your heart, know this: joy is not reserved for the lucky or the spiritually advanced. It is your birthright. It’s already inside you. And you don’t have to get it right or do more to access it.
It is my pleasure every day to get to hold space for you in the Inner Shift Sanctuary and help you return to that joy—not by giving you answers, but by guiding you back to the knowing you already hold. Together, we create space for you to feel, release, and realign with the vibrational truth of who you are.
You are not broken. Life is not a mistake. And joy is not a destination—it is a vibration that lives in your very being.
So if you’re ready to stop chasing joy and start living it, I’m here to walk that path with you.
Come as you are. The joy you’ve been looking for has been here all along.
Comments