The Only Way Out is ThroughĀ Blog

The Space Between

achieving the impossble breaking barriers mindset shift overcoming limits Jun 06, 2025

"There is fiction in the space betweenYou and realityYou will do and say anythingTo make your everyday life seem less mundaneThere is fiction in the space betweenYou and me"  ~ Tracy Chapman

 

The words rang in my ears like a church bell at Easter.  I said them out loud to myself and then over again repeating the absolute simplicity of the meaning.  It had been a hard day of setbacks in the office.  The schedule of items to record would have to wait because I sat frozen in fear.  A podcast guest that had been on several huge shows had answered his guest invite within minutes of me sending it out.  I never had thought that he would respond to a new show but there we were with an instant acceptance.  I should have been excited but instead all that I could hear was, "He is answering quickly to see if you are a good podcast to be on...he knows you are not that great...".  I actually never thought it possible that he would even reply to my invite let alone agree.  The fear was a byproduct of the "impossible" narrative that was showing up again after all of my healing work.  Here now on my couch, with popcorn in hand, coveting the series finale of the Handmaid's tale something was beginning to shift.  In front of the hanging bodies on the wall stood two handmaids who had just realized they were at ground zero of the freedom that they had fought for.  The concept of achieving the impossible came up and one said to the other, "I'm thinking of adjusting my concept of the impossible".  The words were like winning the lottery when you are behind on rent.  Over the course of the day I had sat in my impossible thoughts and now I found solace in the idea that I could simply adjust my concept of the impossible.  It was pure magic taking place in that space between impossible and possible.

 We talk a lot about healing. About getting better. About moving forward.  But what about the space between?  That messy, raw, untamed space where everything feels like a question, where "impossible" is the loudest voice in the room? The space where survival meets transformation and where pain is still present, but possibility begins to whisper?  That space is everything.  It’s the bridge between who we were when we shattered and who we can be when we rebuild. And if we can learn to embrace it—to truly see it for what it is—we unlock something powerful.

Most of us think of healing as the moment we feel whole again. The moment we look back and say, “I made it.” But before that moment, there’s a long stretch of time that doesn’t fit neatly into words.  It’s the nights spent staring at the ceiling, wondering if things will ever change.  It’s the days when getting out of bed feels like an act of rebellion.  It’s the small victories—eating, breathing, feeling—amid the weight of everything we’ve endured.  The space between rock bottom and healing is full of contradictions. It’s painful yet beautiful. Exhausting yet full of life. It’s the moment when we start seeing ourselves differently—when survival stops being just about existing and starts being about living.

When we’re at rock bottom, healing feels impossible.  When we start to rise—even just a little—that idea begins to change.  The truth is, “impossible” isn’t real. It’s a perception shaped by exhaustion, trauma, and fear. But perceptions can shift and here is the simple proof:

  • Impossible once said you’d never get through a single day without breaking. You did.
  • Impossible once said joy was out of reach. You’ve felt glimpses of it.
  • Impossible once said you wouldn’t survive. You have.

Every step we take in that space between, every moment where we don’t give up, chips away at the illusion of impossible. And eventually, it crumbles.

Throughout that process something magical happens in the space between.  We start to see ourselves in ways we never thought possible. We begin to trust our own strength.  We learn that healing isn’t about rushing forward—it’s about giving ourself permission to exist in this moment, however messy it may be.  There’s no right way to move through this space. Some days, all we can do is breathe. Some days, we take big, bold steps forward. Both are valid. Both are healing.  This space between isn’t just necessary—it’s powerful. It’s proof that transformation isn’t sudden. It happens in the quiet moments, the small shifts, the decision to keep going.  So if you’re here, in this space, I need you to know that you are already changing. You are already healing. And one day, you’ll look back at this impossible place and realize it was never impossible at all.

When we redefine the impossible, we unlock a world brimming with wonder and potential. Boundaries dissolve, innovation flourishes, and the extraordinary becomes attainable. What once seemed beyond reach transforms into stepping stones toward greatness. In this shift, we don’t just expand our limits—we rewrite reality itself. The magic isn’t in achieving the improbable; it’s in realizing that it was possible all along.  In The Handmaid’s Tale, the fall of Gilead isn’t just an end—it’s the start of rebuilding. Survivors must mend the wounds of oppression, restore trust, and ensure history doesn’t repeat itself. The magic of redefining the impossible lies in their ability to forge a future where freedom is not just reclaimed, but protected.  So I go now to my office to reclaim freedom and protect all of the reasons why I started Whole and Capable in the first place.  "Praise be".

Enjoy that read?  Wondering how coaching could help you get the life you want?  Tap Here!

Anastasia Jorquera-Boschman is a retired teacher, principal and educational consultant who now spends her new life holding space for her clients as a Trauma-Informed Resilience Coach.  She is a writer, speaker and the host of  The Grit Files Podcast   Listen Here

 

 

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