If you survived high school, chances are you know about mean girl behavior. You may have had your own mean girl, or you may have been one yourself. These women are difficult, to say the least – manipulative, cold, cruel. And they aren’t only found in high‑school hallways; the mean girl can also show up in adulthood. Unfortunately, people don’t always “grow out” of it. We all know that one woman who can dole out a solid back‑handed compliment or shower you with micro‑aggressions. But what actually is a mean girl? What makes her so mean, and how do we handle being around her without losing our peace? What Is…
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It’s almost like before we begin healing, we’re one person, and after healing, we become someone entirely new. Not in personality or essence, but in how we see. This is a shift that is both natural and necessary. When you’re still hurting, it’s easy to move through life wearing a filter that distorts reality just enough to protect your heart. However, healing sparks clarity; it removes that filter; and what you begin to see might surprise you. You start to feel a new kind of peace – one that doesn’t depend on how others behave. That freedom allows you to notice things you hadn’t before: the subtle ways people take,…
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We talk a lot about using compassion, patience, and understanding as tools for growth – and rightfully so. They’re essential. But one powerful tool that often gets overlooked is curiosity. Approaching situations with curiosity and the intent to learn more can change your whole experience. Asking deeper questions helps you understand the world and yourself. Being open allows you to find the answers you’re looking for, and having curiosity leads to clarity. Use curiosity in place of judgement – judgment closes your mind, while curiosity does the opposite. In fact, curiosity allows you to see everything from a different perspective; it can even be fun if you want it to…
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When we imagine healing, many of us picture something soft. We might expect lightness, peace, or a specific kind of clarity. Eventually, yes, those things do come. However, in the beginning – and often right in the thick of it – healing can feel like a flood of emotions. It can feel overwhelming and we can sense it in places we didn’t even know we were holding pain. Something that doesn’t get talked about quite as much, is that healing sometimes hurts, too. Sometimes, healing can feel a little confusing. You might find yourself thinking, “Why does this hurt more now? Shouldn’t I feel better? Isn’t healing supposed to help…
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Communication is one of the most important skills you can build. It’s worth improving every single day. Healthy, effective communication promotes self-advocacy, helps you create healthier relationships, avoid miscommunications, and move through life with more clarity and ease. If you are working towards growth and healing, it’s important to be able to name your feelings, so that you can sit with them and learn more about what they are trying to tell you. Of course, this isn’t the only thing that we do, after we know how we feel, how do we as for what we want? Communication isn’t just something that happens with other people, it also happens within…
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Difficulties and challenges are inevitable parts of life. Your response to them, however; a secure, resilience mindset – can have a direct impact on your outcome. People who develop emotional resilience are better able to navigate life’s setbacks, and often come out on the other side stronger, wiser, and more empowered. You might not even be fully aware of how resilient you already are. Resilience often shows up as subtle determination – the ability to keep going when everything around you feels uncertain. It’s not about being untouched by hardship; it’s about how you respond, adapt, and grow because of it. That’s personal growth. That’s the heart of emotional resilience.…
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When it comes to relationships, humans idealize each other in more ways than one. Idealizing others and setting unrealistic expectations is practically a built-in tendency – especially in relationships, friendships, workplaces, and with public figures. It’s fueled by cognitive biases, emotional needs, and sometimes it’s just good old-fashioned wishful thinking. However, it’s not always healthy – read on for more perspective on how to stop idealizing people. Sometimes, idealizing is a survival strategy we learned in childhood. If you had caregivers who were inconsistent or unsafe, you may have idealized them to cope. Seeing them as “all good” felt safer than facing the truth. However, what helped us survive back…
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Falling in love with yourself is not one-time event. It’s not a grand, cinematic moment where you look in the mirror and suddenly feel like you’re enough. Real self-love is based on the ongoing relationship you have with yourself. Like any relationship, the one you have with yourself also requires time, patience, and a whole lot of emotional healing and learning. It’s messy, raw, and sometimes it feels like everything is in the way of you and the love you could have for yourself. Read more for some perspective on how to fall in love with yourself. What It Really Means to Love Yourself If you don’t already, getting to…
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I never allowed myself to feel anger until I was about twenty-five. Of course, I got angry, I felt full of rage at times – but I never allowed myself to be consciously aware of my anger. If I happened to get angry, I would just wait for that emotion to fade and distract myself with something else. I repressed my anger for a very long time, until I eventually realized what I was doing. I had no idea that understanding and healing anger was so important. I acted this way as a result of my conditioning; it was easier for certain caregivers and authority figures in my life to…
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Gratitude isn’t just something you practice when you’re reminded, or when something good happens. It’s more than a fleeting moment of appreciation – it’s a way of life. Gratitude shapes your life when it is the lens through which you see the world. It becomes the energy you bring to every conversation, challenge, and interaction. When you practice gratitude consistently, everything you look at changes. How Practicing Gratitude Changes You The beauty of gratitude is that it rewires your brain, shifting you from a mindset of lack, to one of abundance. Instead of waiting for things to make you happy, you realize that you already have everything you need to…
