Misused gratitude

Gratitude isn't the problem, but how we're using can be.

Real gratitude - that’s beautiful. I’m talking about the fake kind we throw on top of hard emotions to make them more "acceptable."

You know the drill:

“It’s hard, but I’m lucky…”

“At least it’s not worse.”

“On the bright side…”

We rush to tidy up the emotional mess — not for us, but for whoever is listening. Like our sadness or anger is too much. Like we’re too much.

But every time we do that, we abandon ourselves. We shrink. Again.

In particular, women are raised to do this. Be grateful. Be easygoing. Don’t make a fuss. Don’t make anyone uncomfortable.

But you don’t need to sugarcoat your pain to be worthy of support. You don’t need to wrap your feelings in a bow to be lovable.

Truth is a form of gratitude, too. Feeling it all, without fixing or filtering, that’s honoring your life.

Looking for more support as you learn to be fully and unapologetically yourself? I created a free PDF guide to help you do just that. You can download it here, anytime you're ready.