Many people are haunted by things that have occurred in their past, even though the years between the time that they felt the bad emotions to the present can span a lifetime.  It is because of this world of hurt that exists, that there is a need for professional people whose work may be devoted to counseling, therapy or other types of mediated services.  I don't believe for one moment that anybody's life has been perfect and clear of any imperfections, from the moment that they were born.  There is a great need in many people to be able to put their past behind them, in order for them to finally be able to move forward with their future.  I once was at a conference where the speaker spoke about individuals going through life while holding onto a figurative bottle filled with all of this hurt and pain inside of it.  For some the bottle could be as a large as a five gallon container, while others may have a more smaller version that could be the size of a miniature perfume bottle.  The point here was that it takes a lot of effort to walk around constantly holding onto that bottle.  Imagine if you will, conducting this exercise of living and working with a bottle that you hold onto daily, even as you got to sleep at night.  The consequence would probably be that there was a lot of work and effort involved in attempting this and it would be hard to sleep if you had to keep tucking your bottle underneath or over your covers.  If you walk with a bottle long enough, you develop a dependency to it and you may even feel comforted by the bottle itself.  However, if you were to break down the bottle, it would be spilling with hurt, pain and other emotions, which most likely is not what you would want to carry in your daily life.  It can take some time for people to empty out their figurative bottles, so that they can finally reach the point that they no longer need this vessel or container.  If you find yourself carrying around this type of bottle around, begin to ask yourself if it is worth all of the extra effort that it is taking for you to do this.  Is your life moving forward or do you seem to be stuck without feeling that you can succeed at putting this bottle down.  Better yet, give yourself the task of beginning to empty it out, perhaps one day at a time, so that you can get to the place where you no longer need it or that it is part of your life.  Don't let another day go by, without you taking some action to rid yourself of any possible negative feelings that are keeping you from being and doing what you really want in life.  Give yourself the credit and acknowledge the courage it has taken you to get to this stage and finally let the past reside where it belongs, as you begin to move forward to a more happy and harmonious state.