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Journal

You Are Broken, but You Are Whole

You Are Broken, but You Are Whole

This poem is another take on the concept of healing "from" trauma. Whether it's loss or illness or some other excruciating pain you've endured, the truth is that some kinds of pain don't ever go away. You can't go back to the life you had before. You can't go back to "normal" - but you *can* lay claim to your new life.

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For the Person Who’s Been Battling Chronic Pain for So Long Now.

For the Person Who’s Been Battling Chronic Pain for So Long Now.

This is a message for the person who’s been dealing with chronic pain as just another part of their life. This is to say: of course you’re still an incredible human being. If you have someone in your life who inspires you by how they live and love through their pain, pass this letter on to them. It’s an “I see you” kind of thing.

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10 Affirmations to Help You Set Boundaries With Love

10 Affirmations to Help You Set Boundaries With Love

A large part of healing involves setting boundaries. Boundaries, in my own language, are the intersection at which I can take care of myself and be fully present with you. They’re guidelines for how I want to be treated and how I choose to respond. It’s when I don’t set those guidelines for myself that I lose myself in other people. Your personal boundaries communicate to others -- and to your own self -- what works for you and what doesn’t.

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An Open Letter to My Inner Child

An Open Letter to My Inner Child

Your inner child is that innermost part of you, the "original" you, that still sees and responds to the world as an innocent child does. It doesn't really matter if you're familiar with this term or not, though — this is an open letter to my inner child that might be everything you didn't even know you needed to hear.

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4 Reasons Why I Stopped Drinking Alcohol

4 Reasons Why I Stopped Drinking Alcohol

I never thought I'd say "I don't drink," but this past Sunday marked six months since I've had a sip of alcohol. The most surprising part of it all? I'm happier sober. And I don't say that lightly. I've dealt with depression most of my life. But after my brother committed suicide, I made it a priority to take care of myself.

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9 Years After Loss: My Self-Help Laundry List

9 Years After Loss: My Self-Help Laundry List

It's been 9 years since my brother's suicide. Life since then has been... everything. Heavy and light. Lackluster and full of wisdom. Somehow, still beautiful. I wanted to share some things I've given up and some things I'm still doing to take care of myself. May my self-help laundry list shed some light on your own.

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What Death Taught Me About Living

What Death Taught Me About Living

Death has a way of making you come face-to-face with your life. No words can capture the entirety of how loss shapes us. But until then, here are six truths I’ve learned through my own personal experiences of love and loss, grief and growth, survival and surrender, and 5 years of writing on the topic.

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20 Affirmations for Sobriety and Higher Emotional Intelligence

20 Affirmations for Sobriety and Higher Emotional Intelligence

Whether you want to get sober, stay sober, or take a sabbatical from substances for a while, I hope these positive affirmations for sobriety inspire you to love your decision, and life, even more. This is a reminder that feelings are transient and thoughts are malleable. It’s YOU who's powerful.

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Low on Self-Love? Keep Up Your Self-Care: Some Words of Encouragement

Low on Self-Love? Keep Up Your Self-Care: Some Words of Encouragement

If your self-love is shoddy or shot, keep this in mind: your self-love might waver but your self-care doesn’t have to stop. Tiny acts of care keep you afloat in times of self-loathing. And you don't need to take care of yourself because you love yourself. Do it for no reason at all. The love will come. Eventually.

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