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Candide in Ohio's avatar

Thank you so much for writing this. It is exactly what I needed to hear. I‘ve just fallen madly in love, for the first time in years, and it’s brought up parts of me that I thought I’d healed. Turns out they were just napping in the shadow 😉 and I’ve been spending allll this energy and work trying to contain myself so I don’t spill over and ruin it all: reading books about anxious attachment, listening to podcasts, doing somatic exercises, writing emails to friends, requesting emergency therapy…. When we separate after a date and I feel a drop like I’m dying for two days, I do everything I can to not feel like that. I’m trying to heal at the greatest speed. I’m so scared I will lose everything- this love but also my hard earned balance previously attained, so painstakingly- if I let myself pour over- but really I *am* overflowing, really I *am* storming, and maybe that’s ok, maybe that’s developmentally appropriate right now!! Love is not nothing, love is not just a little thing. It’s ok for my boat to be rocked. Right? 😉

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Caroline C Kaufmann's avatar

This is perfection. And mental health works a lot of ways, some very magical. This is important and true. Thank you.

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Sophie Nicholls's avatar

'I realized how absurd it was to try to walk through a rainstorm without getting wet – and how absurd it is that I have been trying to cultivate a version of myself who is not allowed to be or feel like myself.'

I love this so much. Thank you. 🌂

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Owl's avatar

Thank you so much for writing this. I felt every word. Life is something we should be dancing in as it rains down on us, not dodging every drop. A friend of mine encapsulated it in a phrase that's been rewiring my brain lately: "Not less bad, but more good." Let it be. We have to feel our pain to be alive.

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Emmeline Tyler's avatar

Beautiful, thank you xx

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meg's avatar

Irony I just picked up a safe girl to love off my shelf to try and distract myself from an obsessive episode of “limerence” if that’s what it is. Then I opened up your Substack to your newest and was drawn to this one …..

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Double Life Mom's avatar

You are one of the most gifted writers I have ever read. Beautiful, moving, inspired. Please keep sharing. Keep posting. If you haven’t submitted this yet to the NYT or The Cut, please consider it. Many would benefit.

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Kay's avatar

Jagged fire⚡🔥🥺💌✨

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