Waking From the Spell: Fairytales as Paths to Healing

Hello and welcome back to The Therapist Diaries, 

As Halloween sneaks ever closer I was thinking about the darker fairytales we have in our libraries. Yes, Grimms' Brothers, I’m calling you out! There’s a story I often return to, not so much for its darkness (though it has that too), but for its surprising depth. It's the tale of Hansel and Gretel. Yes, the Grimm brothers' eerie fairy tale of two children lost in the forest, lured by a house made of sweets, and forced to outwit a witch. At first glance, it's a survival story. But beneath it, there’s a profound metaphor for the mindfulness work I do every day, with clients and with myself.

We are all, in some way, leaving breadcrumb trails in our lives; tiny efforts to feel safe, to remember who we are, or to find our way back when we feel lost. And like Hansel and Gretel, we don’t always know where we’re headed. Sometimes the forest is just that overwhelming.

In therapy, clients often describe the “forest” as anxiety, burnout, grief, or disconnection. They come into session saying things like, “I feel like I’m just going through the motions,” or “I don’t know how I got here, but I feel lost.” Much like Hansel and Gretel, they’ve been pushed into survival mode, often by forces outside their control. A difficult childhood. A toxic relationship. Chronic stress. Or simply the exhaustion of trying to meet everyone else’s expectations.

In the story, Hansel tries to leave a trail of breadcrumbs to find their way back home but the forest birds eat them. This image hits me every time. It’s such a vulnerable, human moment. We try to stay grounded, maybe through routines, journaling, or talking to a friend, but life “eats up” those efforts. The emails, the kids, the deadlines, the self-doubt, they peck away at our trail until we don’t know how to return to ourselves.

Then comes the house made of sweets. Yes, the "Gingerbread House" or as it’s better known in the real world, the illusion of safety. It looks like refuge. Relief. A way out. In today’s world, it might be scrolling endlessly on social media, overworking to avoid feelings, numbing out with food, alcohol, or Netflix binges. Things that offer momentary comfort but have a hidden cost.

The witch in the story isn’t just an external threat. She represents the parts of us that feed on our unconsciousness. When we’re not present, we’re more easily consumed by fear, by perfectionism, by self-criticism.

Mindfulness is when our brains focus on the present… in other words, mindfulness is what keeps the witch at bay.

When Gretel tricks the witch and frees herself and her brother, it isn’t brute strength that saves them, it’s awareness. Presence. Quick thinking. Courage. Gretel's shift from fear to empowered action mirrors what I see in clients when they begin to practice mindfulness, noticing their emotions without judgment, pausing instead of reacting, making choices from a grounded place.

Let me share an example of a client who was deep in her own forest after retiring from her career which she’d been in for her entire working life. Now with so much free time on her hands, she kept trying to leave breadcrumb trails through to-do lists and  plans, but nothing helped her feel less lost. One day in session, we simply sat with her sadness. No solving. Just breath. Just presence. Tears came. Then silence. Then, her own voice: “I think I’ve been trying to outrun the grief.”

That was her Gretel moment. She turned toward the thing she feared instead of away from it. That’s mindfulness.

Mindfulness Exercise 

Words are nothing without action so here is a mindfulness exercise I like to call, the Breadcrumb Pause. This practice is inspired by Hansel’s breadcrumbs, except instead of trying to get back to a past version of yourself, you're learning to arrive more fully in the moment.

The Breadcrumb Pause (5 minutes):

1. Stop and Breathe: 
   Wherever you are, on a walk, at your desk, folding laundry, pause. Close your eyes if it’s safe. Take three slow breaths.

2. Notice the Trail:
   Ask yourself: Where have I been today - mentally, emotionally? Like Hansel dropping breadcrumbs, look at the moments you've left behind. What thoughts or feelings have you scattered?

3. Name Without Blame:
   Pick one feeling or thought and name it gently.
   “I notice I felt overwhelmed after that meeting.”
   “I’m carrying some loneliness today.”

4. Come Back to the Here and Now
   Anchor yourself in your senses.
   What do you hear? Smell? Feel in your body?
   This is your moment. You're safe here.

5. Leave a Conscious Breadcrumb:
   End the pause by asking: What’s one small act I can do right now to stay present?
   It could be sipping water with awareness, writing a quick journal line, or just placing a hand on your chest and taking one more breath.

Hansel and Gretel teaches us what happens when we’re thrown into survival—and what’s possible when we return to presence. Life will always have its dark woods, its distractions, its witches in disguise. But mindfulness is our compass. And every breath we take in awareness is a breadcrumb back to ourselves.

Don’t forget to read the fourth and final installment of my mindfulness through fairytales series, coming to The Therapist Diaries, October 19th! 

Until next time- be kind to your mind.

—The Therapist Diaries

 

For professional inquiries please reach out to georgina.m.lloyd@outlook.com 

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