The Unraveling is Unavoidable: So Now What?
August 26, 2026
Over the last few years, we have written about the ways that we as individuals and a collective at IISC have been navigating the rapid changes and challenges that have been relentlessly coming our way (see Seven Habits for Collaborative Leaders to Make It Through These Times and Network Weaving as “Light” Work).
As we came into 2026, all indications were that there would be no slowing down of what I have been calling The Great Unraveling. Indeed, things feel like they are only accelerating and that virtually no one is being spared the pain and discomfort of mounting pressures.
I personally have been experiencing this quite deeply for the past year, and most prominently in many of my most intimate social and professional circles. I had spent the better part of several years before that doing my own individual healing work, some of which I have written about here. And of course, given that we are interconnected with everyone and everything else, at least at a certain level, there is no healing that insulates us from the suffering of others. In fact, according to many of my healers and elders I know, if we are truly healing, part of “the arrangement” seems to be that we become more – not less – open to vulnerability in the world.
Nothing in so-called “mainstream culture” suggests that this is something we should chase after. And yet, what I have learned is that something much larger than our individual preferences has the ultimate say in this.
However you might characterize the forces that are pushing dominant systems to the brink, one thing seems clear – not everything that is unraveling can, or should, be held together. This does not mean that we should stop standing up for justice and care. Quite the opposite. But it does mean to be open to the bigger energies of change, beyond sick power-hungry people, that are intent on cleaning house and making space for something else.
What is ours to protect? What is ours to transform? And what may need to come apart? Some discernment is crucial in picking one’s battles. And that is one of the big lessons I have learned, along with a few others…
– The unraveling is unavoidable. I repeat, the unraveling is unavoidable. It has been very important for me to adopt this mantra. What we have had as dominant systems for such a long time (at least in the United States) are death traps. The bigger forces of Life are letting us know this LOUDLY. It is time for a new way of doing and being.
– A corollary to the reminder above is the teaching from energy systems science that things have to come apart in order to come together better. This has been the case even in relationships that to some extent might have seemed to be “okay” on the outside. If Fierce Love is what’s taking hold right now (and I believe it is, despite some outward appearances), then that means there is a lot of reckoning to be done, and connections forged in distorted or harmful conditions may be in need of deep cleansing.
– Having all of the feelings that flow from what is happening has also been very important. This includes grief, anger, fear, relief, love, hope, and disappointment. And it has also been important to make sure that my feelings are not running the show. Keeping things bottled up is just not healthy – the pressure gets too great. Allowing them to flow is a key part of the necessary release.
– Maintaining connections with those who can meet me, feed me and be fed by me has been essential. More mutualism feels like it is being called for. And this has meant that my world has gotten smaller at times, which does not necessarily mean I have less. Sometimes a smaller circle can create more room for honesty, reciprocity, and care.
– As the unraveling accelerates, I sense how helpful it is to allow change to happen while also grounding in the energies of the Earth that are here to support us.
– Keep practicing what makes another world possible. Some guiding principles and practices for this have included:
- Keeping the faith and being resolute that a better world is possible and actually wants to come forward;
- Remembering the many things for which I am grateful; and
- Practicing fierce love, balancing generosity with requests for accountability.
This is what “so now what?” looks like for me. Not figuring out how to stop the unraveling, not pretending that it isn’t painful, nor surrendering our commitments to justice, care, or one another.
And it means learning how to stay present as things come apart, what to release, what to protect, what to grieve, and what to nurture. Learning to recognize that the ending of one way of being can also be the beginning of another.
How about you? How are you navigating the unavoidable unraveling without losing hold of what matters most?