I — Feel Myself Ifm

I felt fragments. I felt anxiety. I felt exhaustion. I felt a desperate need to be liked. But I did not feel myself . That specific, grounded sense of "oh, right, this is me" was missing. In its place was a collage of other people’s expectations, preferences, and emotional weather patterns. Finding yourself isn’t a treasure hunt. It’s an archaeological dig. You have to brush away the dirt of “shoulds”—you should be happier, thinner, more productive, more outgoing, more settled. You have to trowel past the layers of old hurt and other people’s opinions.

*— j.

There is a phrase that has been echoing in my chest lately. It’s not loud. It’s not a victory chant or a social media caption. It’s softer than that. It’s a whisper of relief. i feel myself ifm