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  • Speak

    Dear World,

    It’s hard to choose my most impactful life lesson, as I’ve had plenty thus far. Sometimes, I feel as if my lessons up until this point could fit into an entire lifetime for someone else. I know they’ve all been necessary for my evolution because I believe a significant reason our souls are here is to learn, grow, and evolve into a wiser version of ourselves.

    Adversity in life can diminish us to ashes, but we can choose to rise into a more empowered state. Multiple moments in my life have felt like the death of my old self and the rebirth of a new version of me.

    I’ve learned the importance of compassion, kindness, respect, consent, and the necessity for authenticity, even if people around you disapprove. To be true to yourself is to respect yourself.

    Anxiety, rumination, and incessant negative words to myself have taught me to give myself compassion, even when it’s challenging. I must habitually interrupt negative thoughts and redirect my mind toward the door of kindness. Being my own best friend has been vital.

    Learning to hold space for my pain has been pertinent as I’ve navigated people telling me that my pain is unimportant and minuscule, even though it isn’t. Mine isn’t, and yours isn’t. Our pain matters, and we must create a safe emotional space. I must honor my pain even if the world doesn’t care. You also must honor yours.

    I’ve learned it’s okay to feel uncomfortable and state if I don’t consent. Whether or not it matters to anyone else, it matters to me.

    I’ve learned that it’s okay to feel how I feel, even if others wish I felt differently. It’s alright to be sensitive; the world needs more sensitivity because compassion comes with it.

    I’ve learned the importance of self-forgiveness. I have made mistakes throughout my life, and I imagine I’ll continue to. Giving ourselves grace and recognizing the lessons that come with our errors is essential. Most importantly, we must wake up the next day and try again.

    I’ve learned that if people disrespect me, I must counteract that disrespect with kindness toward another while keeping a boundary with the person who disrespected me.

    All of these have been vital lessons for me thus far, and I imagine I’ll learn many more, but one lesson has reared its beautiful head amongst all the rest:

    SPEAK

    In a world that wants me to be quiet, I must speak.
    In a world that wants me to follow the status quo, I must speak.
    In a world that wants me to keep its secrets, I must speak.
    In a world that wants me to hide myself to keep someone else content, I must speak.

    Maybe this isn’t your most significant life lesson, but it’s mine, and I ask you to consider it. The world wants us to pretend we’re fine while crumbling inside. In my experience, the world wants us to remain quiet while people disrespect us. People expect us to allow this disrespect because God forbid we tell someone we don’t like their behavior. They’d have to look at themselves if we spoke up.

    Too bad, I say. It’s time to look.

    I learned to accept and use my voice by allowing people to disrespect me, tell me my feelings don’t matter, tell me I’m not allowed to feel them, and tell me I should be quiet.

    I learned this as I lost sleep at night, wondering why the world wanted me to hide my feelings and myself.

    I learned it when I said yes to things I wanted to say no to and when I said nothing when I wished to object.

    I learned it when I was looked in the eye and told my feelings and pain don’t matter.

    I learned it when I finally asked myself who was holding me back: the world or my own fears.

    I will no longer cater to the world, protect people from what they don’t want to hear, or play politics in a world that desperately needs humility and authenticity.

    I will learn from my mistakes, as I have in the past.

    As I do so, I will speak.

    Will you speak?

    I want to hear you,
    Rachael

    Rachael Parmelee

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    • Rachael, so much of what you write about resonates with me. Sometimes we are forced to let go of old versions of ourselves in order to be “reborn” into something better. I love what you say about the importance of speaking our truth. Even when it makes others uncomfortable, it is imperative that we remain true to ourselves. Thank you for sharing!

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  • Dear World, Our Anger Won't Save Us

    Dear World,

    I see now that my anger which once was my great protector, now is my captor. Here’s my story:

    Anger wraps her roots around me.

    Always looming
    Threatening to pull me down if I don’t feed her.
    Always suffocating

    She pretends she’s my fan, as she picks my pocket.
    If she were a drink, she would be Dark & Stormy.
    If she were a lover, she would be Delilah.
    If she were a plant, she would be a Venus Flytrap.

    She has barricaded herself in the deep recesses of my heart.
    Lying, telling me I am safer with all these locks on the door.
    Reminding me that no one can get in.

    But I can’t get out either.
    Like my computer passwords, the only one I am safe from is myself.

    She’s been here so long; she feels like she has squatter’s rights.
    We are married by common law.

    She reminds me I can’t make it without her.
    She tells me you tried that remember and your heart was broken.
    She says you’re better angry – trust me.
    She feasts on my peace of mind.
    She robs me of my creativity.
    She tells me I need no one besides her.
    She has a stronghold on my mind and my heart.
    She cuts me off from my magic and synchronicity.

    With me, you never have to grieve.
    You can avoid your thoughts & fears.
    I sustain you; I built you, without me your success will fade.

    She burns my house down, with me locked inside.
    It’s time for her to go.
    She cannot be defeated with fire, only love.

    It’s time to let her go. I realize that all the locks on the door to my heart are on the inside. Only I can unlock them, one at a time. Here’s my releasing anger meditation:

    Slowly…
    Patiently…
    Breathing deeply…
    I unlock each of my anger locks.
    Anger, I love you – I set you free from my mind.
    Anger, I love you – I set you free from my body.
    Anger, I love you – I set you free from my heart.
    Anger, I love you – I set you free from my grounding.
    Anger, I love you – I set you free from my healing and creativity.

    It was she who was afraid, not me.

    Finally, we are free.

    Michelle D. Young

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    • Michelle, this is beautifully written. Anger can protect us from feeling vulnerable or hurt, but the hold it has can also damage our lives irrevocably. Letting our anger guide us can help in the short term, but it prevents us from ever feeling true joy. I love how you inspire others to set their anger free in order to find a happier tomorrow.…read more

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  • Stay open

    I pity those who haven’t stumbled upon that everything has a reason
    And most of your lows are for building
    You must always trust your intuition
    Everyone has some hate passed down like a lesion
    If you stay open and honest you’ll find your vision

    Sarah Samson

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    • Sarah, you are so right that everything that happens to us is for a reason and can potentially lead to personal growth. When we encounter struggles in our lives, it is important to learn from them as we work through them. I like how you say that “everyone has some hate passed down like a lesion.” We have to be open enough to keep that hate from…read more

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  • Caring: Better Watch Me Now

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  • quelala submitted a contest entry to Group logo of If you could send 1 message you’ve learned to every person in the world, what would it be?If you could send 1 message you’ve learned to every person in the world, what would it be? 9 months, 2 weeks ago

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    Courage

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  • Fight or Write

    Write it down. Leave nothing out of the paper. No spaces. You don’t have to buy a fancy notebook that makes it feel like a task or an obligation. It’s just you and your pen. If you use a pencil, you’ll correct yourself. There’s nothing that needs to be fixed or edited. It already happened. Don’t use your screens and fingertips. Take yourself back to a time when you didn’t stop until writing hurt your knuckles. When you were so into it, the writing stopped making sense to anyone but you. Talking to yourself won’t cut it. Let your thoughts watch you ink them out loud. Let your pain jump from you into the white surface. Let your scars open up and ooze onto the parchment. Write about when you’re delighted. When you dropped your first pencil in class. It was so quiet, and everyone was looking.
    Did it hurt to be watched? You take these times with you wherever you go. Put them down so you can make space for every day. What now? Read them. You were there. You felt it happen. Being honest with yourself is more challenging when you’re distracted by everything around you. When you’re worried about someone else peeking in. Just make it all stop. Write it down. You don’t have to be a Scrabble champion to scribble. Doodle, turn it into life. Don’t throw it away. Look back at it to see how far your cow jumped over the moon. When it’s over, turn to the next page, get up, and live in the now.

    Kenia xoxo

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    • Kenia, writing is one of the most freeing experiences we can have as humans. We can write without worrying about others judging us. We can also write in order to get our thoughts and opinions out there for the world to see. The line “you don’t have to be a Scrabble champion to scribble” inspires me. Writing can be therapeutic if we let it. Thank…read more

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      • Yes! I couldn’t agree more. I think people put too much pressure on themselves when they think about writing. Especially in a time where everything is done on a computer. So many editing devices that we forgot what it’s like to have your fingers hurt from writing. I miss that feeling all the time.

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    • I could not agree more. There is something so freeing about writing, and it is a bit magical to use a pen and paper and sit somewhere beautiful and just write. Thank you for sharing. <3 Lauren

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  • Mirror Mirror On The Wall...

    It took me all of a nanosecond to know the most important thing I learned in my life and it was definitely a lesson. There was no thinking about it..no contemplating about all the lessons that have been taught to me. I have lived over six decades and when I say there have been dozens of lessons I have learned that would probably be an understatement. Of course going through the daily life that each of us does we certainly never think what is happening will teach us something down the road. We just go about our living either enjoying it or not. It’s not until we move on that we realize what we were taught from our circumstances.
    I started by saying this took me no time at all to know my greatest life lesson but then I panicked. I thought if I write about this it makes me look like the unhappiest person in the world. So I stopped in my tracks and figured out I had to come up with something different. There had to be a lesson I learned that was positive or happy or hopeful! For days I started to write only to delete and start all over again. Why was I having so much trouble trying to come up with something…I instantly had what my true life lesson was so why was I taking so long trying to come up with another one?
    I thought back through my life and realized I was trying to make something up that just didn’t exist. If I was to be truthful I would have to go back. I spent so much of my childhood and adult life trying to not believe the things my mom had told me because lets face it, she was my mom and how could she know anything? Luckily we all grow out of that and realize our moms are always there for us.
    Sadly and unfortunately she was right and the greatest life lesson came from her. She told me early on that there is only one person to trust in life and that is the person staring back at you in the mirror. Of course I thought she was crazy. I had friends, family, coworkers and numerous other people I could trust in my life and apparently my mom was just a bitter woman who wasn’t happy.
    Then life hit…In the last 15 years I found out exactly what she meant. Just because someone is blood does not mean they are loyal or family for that matter. We just share a lot of the same DNA. Just because someone pretends to be your friend does not mean they can be trusted because sometimes they truly aren’t happy for your happiness. The people in my life that I NEVER thought would hurt me have gone above and beyond trying to destroy me. I have found the true meaning of abuse and again shocked that the abuse was from people I gave my life for.
    This is not because I am old and bitter but because other people have shown me who they are by their own actions. My mom was right and I only wish she was here to see that. When something bad happens in my life now I look in the mirror and say “you got this, you can get through anything” and when something good happens I never forget to say to myself “Good job you did it”.
    This is about the best lesson I learned and although I would have liked it to be a more positive lesson, THIS was and is my greatest lesson. The person you want in your life is someone who is loyal, trustworthy and willing to help you from their heart and to never intentionally hurt you. It should be someone who is willing to give their life for you if needed. I still have hope for people and maybe even a little tiny bit of faith but when it comes down to my life these days I realize there is absolutely nothing wrong with looking in that mirror and knowing you found that person looking back at you.

    Johanna McConnell

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    • Johanna, I love what your mother told you. The only people we can truly trust are ourselves. This is hard to swallow, but understanding it makes us stronger. When we find those rare people who care enough to avoid hurting us, we must hold on to them tightly. They are few and far between. Usually, the person we see in the mirror is our saving…read more

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      • Thank you so much for that. I have gone through a rough time these past couple of years with people I truly thought I could trust. Extremely hard admitting those were not the people I thought they were. Hard to get trust back with anyone these days…

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  • Being your own advocate

    Six years. That’s how long it took to be properly diagnosed and taken seriously. Six years of unexplainable pain and feeling like I’ve gone insane. Women are often dismissed and ignored by medical professionals, and as a woman whose health wasn’t taken seriously for many years, the most important message I could share is to advocate for yourself no matter how exhausted you are and how long it takes. It’s 2013, and I have extreme symptoms when it’s time for my cycle to come around; other women in my life don’t seem to feel this way. Am I just weak? I go to get seen and they assume I’m being intimate. I’m only sixteen and sex is the last thing I want. I’m saving myself for marriage. I’m put on the pill for pain.
    2014, they suggested more exercise, dieting, and flossing more. I’m healthy and have good dental hygiene this doesn’t make sense. 2015, a new form of contraception and the diagnosis of a thyroid condition called Hashimoto’s disease finally explained what I’ve been feeling. I start to let out a breath of relief but it’s not complete. My virginity is stolen from me, and I’m now at an all-time low, and I give up on finding out what’s wrong. In 2019, I experienced a chemical pregnancy, and my symptoms and pain have increased tremendously. The pain is constant and debilitating. I enter a fight or flight mode. After several years of pain and feeling like I’m being listened to but not heard I’m ready to give up and take my own life when I discover my last glimmer of hope.
    My aunt. My hero. The one I owe so much to had taken me out to dinner and listened to me vent. I was finally being heard and given the courage to try just one final time before I let any negativity win. I make an appointment with someone new. I explain how I haven’t felt seen, what I was experiencing, how it makes me feel, and what I thought it was. I was practically diagnosed on the spot, but this is something that can only be diagnosed through exploratory surgery. December 16th, 2019, the day my life was changed, and I was finally heard. I was diagnosed with one of the most painful diseases most commonly found in women. Endometriosis is an often misunderstood chronic inflammatory disease where scar tissue grows on your organs. There is no cure and few treatment options but I found hope knowing I wasn’t weak and my pain wasn’t made up. It was real. I was finally able to let out that breath I was holding in for so long. I often wonder how much longer it would have taken to discover I was dealing with such an awful disease if I had given up and listened to the medical professionals who told me the pain was in my head. I have known of a few women who weren’t taken seriously and died of this disease. I hope sharing my journey encourages people to listen to their bodies and fight for themselves when they know something is wrong. If we don’t advocate for ourselves who will?

    Courtney Beksel

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    • I can’t imagine the struggle you have been through. Having pain that can’t be seen physically is frustrating as most people won’t take you seriously and would be quick to dismiss it as something else. I’m glad you stuck through the years of pain and that you finally found the real cause. I wish you the best in managing the disease and hope you can…read more

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    • Courtney, your story is a heartbreaking reality that far too many face. Being dismissed when you are in pain is a kind of torture that no one should ever have to deal with. I am so sorry you experienced this. You are right that self-advocating is something we should all learn to do. If we can’t advocate for ourselves, we can’t expect others to. I…read more

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    • Aww Courtney, I am so sorry you went through this. Endometriosis is so painful and I have read that it often takes years and years for someone to get a diagnosis. It should not be that way. Sending hugs. Thank you for sharing. <3 Lauren

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  • poewrote submitted a contest entry to Group logo of If you could send 1 message you’ve learned to every person in the world, what would it be?If you could send one message you learned about life to every person in the world, what would it be? 9 months, 3 weeks ago

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    My Void From You

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  • kainduk submitted a contest entry to Group logo of If you could send 1 message you’ve learned to every person in the world, what would it be?If you could send one message you learned about life to every person in the world, what would it be? 9 months, 3 weeks ago

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    Life in our world

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  • A nurse's day off...

    To my daughter: You asked to know more about me.

    Thursday morning:

    This 6 a.m. August daylight of the Arizona desert still carries the coolness of the storm from two days ago. I can see the dim sunlight filtering in through the cheap wood blinds, just enough to illuminate the beautiful plants by the window. The house is quiet. The dogs are outside, the cats are roaming the counters helping dad get ready for his short overnight trip, waiting for a treat.

    Today, I have no responsibilities—except making art, sleeping, and getting high. I rarely get the house all to myself. Your brother left for work around 1 a.m., right at the peak of my trip. I handled it well, but he still questioned something I said, with that familiar “what the hell are you even saying, Mom?” look on his face. Then he softened it, to be kind, as a courtesy to me. He tries so hard to love me and be polite. What used to be painful, and insulting is now kind of charming, and I’m grateful to him for that.

    I think today makes it a couple of days since I last slept. Today is Thursday 6 a.m. and I think the last time I slept was Tuesday morning before my shift. But that sleep was good, and it’s held me over just fine.

    So, I have the house all to myself. Heaven!

    This morning’s trip has been all about love. Everything is love and gratitude. Everything. I used to be scared to say that out loud. Growing up Mexican, you learn that you can’t be too happy – God will remind you He exists, and so do problems and misery. You can’t be too grateful or too content, or God might strike you or one of your loved ones, just to make sure you remember how life really is, and so that you’re grateful for Him, not your life.

    But it isn’t just God. Even now, I feel a sense of guilt, as if acknowledging and sharing my good fortune is somehow portentousness. Society suggests that I haven’t truly paid my dues – that all the strides and hard work I’ve put in become irrelevant the moment there’s comfort and financial security. Who am I to tell anyone that their perspective shapes their life, their present, and their future? Who am I to suggest that pain can be transformed into gratitude and love, just as it’s been happening to me?

    Me. Indeed, that’s my perspective. But I know other perspectives are just as valid, and I respect that. The more I embrace that understanding, the more grace I have for my own journey, the more love I feel. And with that love comes the realization that it is possible to shift perspective, to shift toward love. The more I understand that we are both the same and different, the more everything shifts to love.

    But with this growing love, my need to share expands alongside it, and that’s scary. I find myself talking too much, sharing my real opinions a little too loosely, using words like love, alignment, acceptance, and curiosity. My PTSD and insecurity creep in, trying to protect me from all this vulnerability, reminding me that being real hasn’t always worked out for me. Being real got me fired within two weeks of a new manager, after eight years at my job.

    But the love, acceptance and curiosity keep flowing out of me, beyond my control. If someone wants to play the chronic patient, I’ll support them in their story. If they see themselves as the suffering family member bearing the burden of the world, I’ll validate that too. I’m with them. I’ll agree, feel, and truly taste it with them. I believe them. I know it’s their truth in that moment, in that space and time.

    I have a patient who is the exact replica of Jabba the Hut – a barely mobile triangular puddle of skin and bones. The first time I received her report, it was full of examples of her neediness, labeling her as a frequent flyer who just seeks attention and medication. I was ready to do the bare minimum – keep her clean and drugged to her liking. But then I also chose to be curious, and she surprised me. She was aware, painfully aware, that she had chosen this role and was playing it to the best of her ability, even though she hated it.

    She had a family, grandkids, a life beyond this hospital bed. When I asked her what first led to her decline, she started telling her story. But the deeper she went, the more detached she became, as if she no longer owned it. It’s fascinating to see someone dip in and out of their narrative, aware and then unaware, perhaps to avoid destroying the world they’ve built. What would she have left if she took responsibility for creating her life? Devastation, maybe.

    Either way, I did my best. I repositioned her, making her more comfortable, brushed her hair, and tied it in a ponytail. I surprised her too, by offering to set her up to brush her teeth and wash her face in bed. I’ll take credit for the very basic needs of human dignity I provided; I will take credit without guilt or a sense grandiosity.

    I, too, could easily slip in and out of my own soggy story – the one where I’m the saintly nurse who sees and cares for people on their worst days, a blend of Nightingale and Mother Theresa. It’s a good story, and it’s valid. Yes, being a nurse feels like carrying a crucifix every day. How did I end up here? Why didn’t I take the easy way out, some job with less emotional weight? One with a less intense kind of customer service. But here I am, and it’s teaching me so much about what I’m missing as a person, about who I am and who I’m not. And most importantly, it’s teaching me who I want to be. I am grateful every day that my experiences at bedside help me polish my humanness. It is a humble honor to remain curious.

    That is one thing you all have in common, especially you, my strong, determined daughter. None of you take the easy way out, or in.

    As I write this, I am less high, more grounded. Things are starting to get denser. The liberating feeling of doing whatever I want is dissipating with my high. But I know I will enjoy my day, regardless. The plan is still the same: do nothing.
    I love you baby girl

    Alex Grey

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    • Alex, this letter to your daughter is a beautifully humble and honest look into your questions, fears, and strengths. I love how unapologetic you are about your day-to-day life. It is so easy for us to slip into our own stories and forget who we truly are. Thank you for sharing your experience, and I hope you had a wonderful day of nothing!

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  • Alex Grey shared a letter in the Group logo of Mental HealthMental Health group 9 months, 3 weeks ago

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    The Suitcase

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  • YOU NEVER KNOW

    Never ignore a person who cares for you.
    Because someday you’ll realize
    You’ve lost a diamond, while you were busy collecting stones.
    You see…I’ll do a lot for a man I love…
    But I’ll do even more for a man I know that loves me…or so I thought.
    You’ve got to build with somebody who wants it as bad as you do.
    I thought he did but I was fed something until I didn’t want to be fed anymore.
    I never wanted to control him.
    I wanted to let him do what he wanted so I can see what he would rather do.
    I let him lead.
    There is something sexy about letting a man lead in the relationship, just as long as he’s not controlling it or controlling me.
    His actions will show how much he respects you and how much he loves you.
    Just because you’ve brought something up, it doesn’t mean you want to argue.
    It means communication.
    It means you want to resolve things, get some clarity, learn, and grow together.
    You both are adults and should be able to communicate.
    I did so much for a man and was left because he couldn’t communicate and I believe he grew bored and that it broke my self esteem.
    Maybe the 6, almost 7 years was too much for him.
    But he told me this:

    “You care and worry about the wrong things and let them eat you up to the point you turn and lash out so how about you know something. If it wasn’t for you half of my ships wouldn’t have sailed, you saved my ass on numerous occasions. You are worth more than money can buy and know that you yourself just in care alone… your currency is priceless, you’re more than dreams can buy. Like stop letting the little things you think and feel deter you from being in a happier place. Yeah things suck and aren’t what you want but that doesn’t make it worthless.”

    He lost his diamond.
    Funny because I was born in April.
    He knows what I am worth now after everything he’s done to me but yet I still ask myself this question…
    Why didn’t he fight for me?
    Why wasn’t I enough for him to stay around for?
    Why has he stayed with who he’s with now but has let me go so fast?
    Oh wait, I’m sorry, he repeatedly tells me he’s not with her.
    Things aren’t what they seem.
    He’s not happy.
    He wants to get away from all of that.
    I am the mother of his youngest daughter.
    The woman his other children love and who I love so much like I was the one who carried them inside of me and gave them life.
    His best friend of over 20 years.
    We planned a forever together, chose the colors, the theme, songs, and now look.
    Nothing…
    All due to his infidelity and I can’t seem to shake it off that maybe it was also due to me growing half of him inside of me.
    He and I weren’t ready to be parents again.
    But I accepted this beautiful little blessing that came to be another girl.

    Helen-Marie Rivera

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    • Helen, I can relate to a lot of what you wrote. It is so hard to accept that the person you started building a life with does not want the same thing. I have been there before. I am so happy that you have the blessing of your baby girl! Somehow, our children make even the darkest days bright. Thank you for sharing your experience.

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  • mina-g submitted a contest entry to Group logo of If you could send 1 message you’ve learned to every person in the world, what would it be?If you could send one message you learned about life to every person in the world, what would it be? 9 months, 3 weeks ago

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    Life, Interrupted

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  • It Wasn't the Problem

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  • Paige Walden shared a letter in the Group logo of Mental HealthMental Health group 9 months, 3 weeks ago

    Midnight Solace

    In the darkness, I’m alone, floating on a cloud of dreams,
    where reality blurs and paints a picture of my mind dancing freely,
    taking solace in the emptiness,
    escaping the inevitable
    to a void where struggles on all fronts
    dissolve.

    To a single adult like me,
    name any struggle you’re facing
    and I can likely tell you
    that I was there before coming here.
    Still gonna be waiting for me
    for when I get back though.

    God, it was serene, the feeling,
    like being wrapped in a cozy blanket
    on a cool night in your bed;
    while your worries melted like butter
    into a fleeting absence.

    And when there’s night,
    there’s day,
    and like the sun in the world,
    yours will rise again in your mind,
    which reminds me of
    the one thing I always loved about
    the darkness,
    because in it there’s nothing there,
    no light to illuminate
    any harsh reality
    or truth
    waiting to cause havoc in
    your heart and mind.

    And if it were up to me,
    I’d manifest my thoughts into a person,
    and kill it
    so my mind can finally have peace.

    I’d stay in the darkness forever,
    if that meant being free.

    Paige Walden

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    • Paige, this is a beautiful poem about finding solace and peace in our lives. We all share so many struggles, but somehow still feel alone at times. I love the lines “And if it were up to me, I’d manifest my thoughts into a person, and kill it so my mind can finally have peace.” Wouldn’t it be nice if we all had the power to do just that! Thank y…read more

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  • I'm in Love with My Psychiatrist

    Dear World,

    It started when I was in the psych hospital in August 2020 for a severe mixed manic-depressive episode.

    I was sitting at the table, coloring pictures with the friends I had made at the hospital.

    I looked up and saw the psychiatrist who was seeing me during my two-week stay. Except this time, I was looking at him… differently. He stood across the day room at the nurses’ station, his back to me.

    I actually checked him out.

    Checked. Him. Out.

    “This is crazy!” I thought.

    “What’s crazy?” my friend to my right said.

    “Did I say that out loud?” I asked.

    “You sure did.”

    “I think I’m… in love with my psychiatrist.”

    There was pandemonium at the table. My friends asked me so many questions. Nobody had ever talked about having romantic feelings for their psychiatrist. The interest was high.

    The problem was that I had no idea how to answer any of their questions. This concept was new to me, too.

    After I was discharged from the hospital, I spent months battling my romantic interest in my psychiatrist. I felt confused. Ashamed.

    I was seeing my psychiatrist in intensive outpatient therapy as well. I never once mentioned my love for him. I was afraid that if I told him, he would reassign me to another psychiatrist, and I would never see him again.

    One day in January 2021, five months after I… you know, I was curious and typed “I’m in love with my psychiatrist” into the Google search bar.

    The results were amazing. I was not alone. There were articles about people falling in love with their therapists. Psychiatrists were less common.

    I was experiencing a phenomenon called transference. Simply put, it happens when a client transfers feelings about an attachment figure in their lives, usually their parent or guardian, onto their therapist or psychiatrist.

    Usually, those feelings of transference are familial, but sometimes those feelings are romantic. So while I am not a common occurrence, I am certainly not alone in my romantic feelings.

    I digested this information on my own for two weeks. Then, I summoned the courage to tell my psychiatrist that I had been having romantic feelings toward him for the past five months.

    My psychiatrist was compassionate. He said that while he will never pressure me to reveal anything else, the invitation to discuss my love for him will always be there.

    I poured out my feelings to him slowly over the next four months as I kept switching between inpatient and intensive outpatient treatment. However, I still felt anxious to tell him yet more.

    I had told very few people about being in love with my psychiatrist. I still felt uncomfortable sharing my feelings about him with others.

    One day, I finally told my therapy group at intensive outpatient treatment that I have feelings of love for my psychiatrist. Then, I told them a little about transference.

    I was not completely alone. Two other clients in the group said they had loving feelings toward their therapists, but it was parental for them, not romantic.

    The group therapist said that transference is “the goal” in therapy – that if a client wants to make any progress in resolving their attachment issues, then they need to experience those feelings with someone compassionate – a therapist or psychiatrist – who will help them process and heal their attachment trauma.

    I don’t think I’m a typical case of transference. I don’t see my psychiatrist regularly, only when I am in crisis at the psych hospital.

    I have a therapist I see weekly, with whom I process my feelings toward my psychiatrist. I wish I could see my psychiatrist at least twice a month, but that, unfortunately, isn’t possible.

    It has been four years since I fell in love with my psychiatrist. I have not resolved those feelings yet. I have processed so much, yet something feels stuck. However, I still believe it is possible to heal, so I am honest and open during every session with my therapist.

    Here’s my message for you: If you develop strong feelings for your therapist or psychiatrist, whether your feelings for them are familial or romantic, you are not experiencing a setback.

    You are making incredible progress.

    Keep going. Explore your feelings for your therapist or psychiatrist. Talk to them about how you feel. A good one will be receptive, warm, and friendly.

    You will peel back many layers of emotional pain and trauma, and you will eventually heal. I believe in you.

    Blue Sky

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    • I love how open and honest you are about the way you feel, and I’m so glad that your psychiatrist continues to be there for you despite it. Before reading this, I didn’t know much about transference. Thank you for shedding some light into what is probably much more common than any of us realize. Thank you for sharing so that others can understand…read more

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  • Life's Challenges

    Dear World
    If I’ve learned nothing from my days on this earth thus far, it is that I control very little in my life. Whether you believe in God or some other higher power, it is evident that someone else is in control.
    I believe that God has our lives planned out for us before we gasp our first breath after leaving the womb. And to take it a step further, I believe that his original plan for us is one that is much easier than the path that we actually take.
    Often times I have heard people say, “Why would God let this happen?” My response is always the same, “Why not?” Why wouldn’t He challenge us?
    I’ll give you an example. My first marriage was a challenge. From the start, there were signs that it never should have happened. But, as a young girl with starry eyes and visions of a Cinderella story in my head, I ignored the signs (most likely hints from God that it wasn’t what he wanted for me) and walked down the aisle. Even my father questioned my decision right before he took my arm.
    I spent the next twenty years trying to make my fantasy become a reality. The man I married was not a man of faith, which made things even harder. And there were signs along the way, opportunities for me to deviate from the path I had chosen, but I didn’t. I believed that if I broke the vows I had committed to that I would fall from grace.
    Once again, instead of listening to Him, I continued to keep my marriage glued together in whatever way I could. I do that a lot. I’ve done it with my family for years. But if I’ve learned one thing, it’s that God is far stronger than I am and I need to step out of the way.
    When my marriage was ending, I continued to glue it together, thinking there was no way I could survive without it. My children would suffer, I would suffer, and it would be a mess. But the truth is, once I let go and let it happen, things got easier. That’s not to say that divorcing someone after 20 years of marriage and two children is easy, it’s not. But I can tell you that with time, things got easier. I got stronger and happier. But it wasn’t on my own; God was beside me every step of the way.
    There have been many other challenges in my life. I have learned not to be afraid of what life deals me. I have learned that there is lesson in everything that happens, even if I don’t know the reason.
    I have also learned to cherish the quiet times. Those times when life seems easier, and more peaceful. Those are the times when I contemplate the moments that weren’t so quiet and what there is to learn from them.
    Philippians 4:12-13 “I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength.”

    Barb Lorello

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    • Barb

      I felt you were speaking to me. Thank you for writing this!

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    • Barb, your words inspire me to admit when things are less than ideal and work towards making the future better. When we feel like we have to stay in relationships because it is too hard to leave them, we end up living half a life. By letting go of people that don’t build us up, we make more room for God’s wisdom in our lives. Thank you for sharing!

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  • In Your Shoes With Love

    I’ve learned to not walk in your shoes
    The ones where you took them off in the club
    The ones where you didn’t get your feet rubbed by a lover

    The ones where you ran away from all that loved you
    The ones where you stepped on glass and didn’t understand you were protected

    I’ve learned to not walk in shoes
    That didn’t belong to me anyway
    I learned to not walk in shoes because they didn’t get me closer to you

    I learned that your shoes held memories
    I never wanted to have
    But needed.

    I learned from your shoes how much you love yourself
    How much you punish yourself for loving others
    I learned how much you’re willing to give and give
    Until you’re depleted

    I have learned from your shoes
    With love:that this world has mistreated your heart
    Held it in their hands and called you
    “BABY. You know nothing.”

    And yet you’ve walked in so many hoe’s
    And yet I’ve walked in yours
    And I still see that I love you

    I love your scars
    I love your sadness
    I love your happiness
    I love how you love
    Even when the love hasn’t been returned to you

    So, my love.
    I want you to know that I would walk in your shoes again
    And again
    And again

    Until we meet at a crossroads
    Between time and space
    And I would trade shoes with you

    Just so we can be close again
    I love you
    And I want to rub your feet
    The ones that are tired of running from the love you give

    So. You too can feel like love
    Because you always have been
    Running from yourself.

    Rest your heart, your mind.
    Your Soul
    Your shoes

    Your spirit

    With me.

    Allow me to be with you
    You beautiful soul
    With feet made to fit the palms of my hands

    I will always walk in your shoes.
    Til the end of time.

    My love.

    Zakia Wells

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    • This piece beautifully expresses a deep, empathetic love, acknowledging the pain and journey of another while offering unwavering support and connection.

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    • Zakia, this is a beautiful poem about understanding the “shoes” of others without trying to walk in them. I love how you see the struggles and battles that others face and choose to love them despite it. Having empathy for the ones we love is so important. Thank you for sharing!

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  • what is life

    what is life? life that’s heavily filled with mistakes and blessings but most of all intelligible lessons

    you choose a certain route that you believe is the right way to go but deep, intensely down inside you know there’s a dead zone

    approaching really and mighty slow you still take your time to believe to do what’s right but what’s right when two wrongs can’t make a right, up there look! at the left light you finally realized there was a yellow light all of this time but you still decided to speed on up right?

    through and bright like the red light see this is why we have to accept things we cannot change the stop sign is only there for it’s own specific gain

    which is for you to abide by and not potentially meant to be changed but change we expect to always fluctuate but are you ready?

    to build up and mouton because you expect for things to always go your way but when human beings aren’t meant for you trust me you won’t have to over think double checking if you’re actually coherent in your own brain

    the brain that allows for you to grow and change within all the impossible says and impossible many ways

    another thing this isn’t a Marco Polo game stop choosing what chooses you listen don’t get offended

    I’m talking about the venomous snake that’s in the grass that you live in, that you walked in with your own two feet without looking down to find yourself nothing to see

    see the tricks that many sour candies can cause that you eat which is always sour than sweet but this life is created for everyone including you and me

    but i can only talk not preach
    this is your lesson, your mistakes, your testimony, your personal journey made just for you to experience and even see

    Tionna Hilliard

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    • Tionna, the question you ask is one that many of us ask daily. What is life? I love how you explain that each and every person has a different answer to that question. Our experiences create and shape the life we live. Thank you for sharing your thoughts!

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