Vulnerability is not Weak

 To be honest, vulnerability is not my jam. For so long I have wanted to hide any feelings or events in my life that have not been positive. Keep them deep in my heart and deal with them on my own. Don't show vulnerability or weakness. I believed that by keeping all of this inside, I could protect myself against more hurt, pain, and judgment. So instead, I isolated myself from most of my relationships. I didn't make any efforts to reach out to friends, and only posted my highlight reels on social media.

Just a quick aside; it seems as though the purpose of social media is so that people can stay connected. But it's so easy to "like" and "comment" on a façade. We aren't using these platforms to connect with who people really are. When I scroll through social media and see people's perfect pictures and perfect families (I do it too) it makes it difficult to share our struggles. We only want to share the best, but it isn't real. I do really love seeing all of the pictures of my friends and family, but let's not let that take away from real connections and allowing ourselves to be vulnerable too.

Restarting this blog and writing about the things I've written about has been a huge leap into a very uncomfortable place for me. But the rewards have been tremendous. I have reconnected with multiple friends who I haven't spoken to in years and it is refreshing. People have opened up and left comments, or sent messages of solidarity. Please keep commenting, messaging or reaching out. I want to be there for you as you have stepped up and been there for me.

It's important to invite people into the mess, to share our imperfections, to be real with one another. Let's be badass!

~ Sometimes if you expose your vulnerability, someone else will feel comforted. It's like we're all in this boat together. - Tavi Gevinson