For years, strength has been framed as the defining trait of womanhood. Women are praised for how much we can endure, how gracefully we carry pressure and how consistently we show up without complaint. Strength has become less of a quality and more of a requirement. But strength, when demanded rather than chosen, stops being […]
Somewhere between being a good daughter, a supportive partner, a devoted mother, a high performer at work and a “together” woman in public, many women quietly lose themselves. We learn early that love is something we earn by being useful, attractive, agreeable or accomplished. What we are rarely taught is how to love ourselves without […]
The holiday season often is painted as a picture of joy, twinkling lights, beautifully wrapped gifts and family gathered around the table. But for many women, this time of year brings something much heavier: stress, anxiety and even depression. I think of a client I once worked with who shared that every December, she felt […]
October brings haunted houses, fun costumes and pumpkin spice everything. But for many, the scariest thing about this time of year isn’t the ghouls and goblins; it’s asking for help. Reaching out for mental health support can feel downright scary, especially in communities where stigma still casts a long shadow. Whether it’s fear of judgment, […]
By Michelle Garrett Parenting has its challenges, am I right? When I think about my own childhood, I can’t help but think about those Gen X memes reminiscing about how kids would roam free from dusk to dawn, stopping only to drink water from the hose in the neighbor’s yard, and come home at suppertime […]
There are days I must force myself out of bed to go take care of my parents — not because I’m as exhausted as I was before I retired from working full time, but because the journey is overwhelming. Watching the mental and physical decline of the two strongest people I have ever known, and who […]
She was the one who got it done. The dependable one. The go-to. The woman who juggled work, family, friendships, deadlines and everyone else’s needs except her own. And then one day, she was gone. The words people whisper always are the same: “But she seemed so strong ….” September is Suicide Prevention Month, and […]
