nothing will change your life more than saying what you actually want to say

My one goal of 2026, which has been my goal every year since 2020, is to be zen at all costs. As a formerly neurotic person I’ve come far on this front. I now have a reputation in my friend group as someone who is comfortable with sharing whatever deranged thought crosses her mind—I will wake up at 8:30 AM and send a loved one a three paragraph text about how I’m feeling paranoid. I can’t tell you how weird that feels to admit, as someone who used to be extremely focused on how everything was received. The reason I was obsessed with how someone received my message was because I cared so much about how I was perceived. I never, ever wanted to be misunderstood; if someone ignored my text it would make my heart sink. Rejection sensitivity is hard to shake. I’ve always been afraid of telling and receiving the truth. I was constantly doing something wrong as a kid and getting yelled at, whether it was for fidgeting too much at my parents’ friend’s house, wearing a tank top, cutting piano pr

My one goal of 2026, which has been my goal every year since 2020, is to be zen at all costs. As a formerly neurotic person I’ve come far on this front. I now have a reputation in my friend group as someone who is comfortable with sharing whatever deranged thought crosses her mind—I will wake up at 8:30 AM and send a loved one a three paragraph text about how I’m feeling paranoid. I can’t tell you how weird that feels to admit, as someone who used to be extremely focused on how everything was received. The reason I was obsessed with how someone received my message was because I cared so much a