I ended up getting married in my twenties, ignoring every red flag (and believe me, there were so many!) and every gut feeling telling me not to. The relationship was doomed before we even stood at the altar in Santorini. But I did it anyway. Because I was looking for something, an external love and validation that I thought would give me the seal of approval from everyone, that would mean I was finally on the right track.

Abusive & toxic - I stayed longer than I should have. Because admitting it was a mistake felt like failure.

I lost my confidence, my fire, my spark. Eventually, I found the courage to leave and moved back home to start again at 30.

But instead of healing, I pushed forward, trying to outrun the pain. No reflection. No realignment. Just forcing myself to ‘be fine.’ To crack on with life and put on a brave face.

So I walked straight into another controlling, suffocating relationship. The kind where your phone is never yours, where every move is questioned, where you slowly stop recognizing yourself.

I was burning from the inside out. Rage, sadness, feeling trapped. My body felt it too—high blood pressure, thyroid issues, constant exhaustion. My body was screaming at me to wake the hell up.
And then I did.