Guilt's Sting

While taking responsibility and looking over your mistakes is the right thing to do, punishing yourself is not a healthy way of dealing with problems. Sometimes, blaming oneself can only hurt a person by preventing them from learning from the hardships and moving on. Reverend Dimmesdale suffers greatly because of his guilt in the Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Not only does his guilt disturb his moral conscience, but it also takes a toll on his body. One of Reverend Dimmesdale's biggest issues is that he has kept his secret of adultery hidden for such a long period. It also doesn't help that he is an admired minister of the town. This is why the guilt keeps growing bigger to the point that it engulfs his life in shame and pain.
My mother used to have this problem as well. She would blame herself for a long time and would not forgive herself. Even if someone forgave her she would not be able to do the same. Unlike her, I try to forget about the problem once it is solved. She envies that I can do this so easily. However, recently my mother has been changing her way of dealing with guilt. Just like me, she is starting to move on more easily and it has made her happier in general.
Letting something such as guilt take over your life will never help you. The better way to make up for your mistakes is to learn from them and try not to make history repeat itself.