There are days when everything feels too loud. Too much.
You wake up and wonder why you even bothered.
The texts pile up. The to-dos don’t end. And you can’t remember the last time you felt excited to be alive.
This post is for those days.
The in-between, blurry days where you’re not okay but can’t fall apart either.
I’m writing this post, because I’ve been here – I’ve had these days.
And I wish someone had told me these things. I wish I had these reminders.
I want you to know that you don’t need a 10-step plan right now. You don’t need a motivational speech.
You need soft, honest reminders. Ones that hold you gently without forcing you to move faster than you’re ready.
So here they are — 13 gentle truths to come back to when you feel like giving up. Come back to this anytime you need to breathe, reset, and remember: you’re not alone.
I will link to books that really helped me during my time of grief.
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1. You Don’t Have to Fix Everything Today
Our hustle-culture isn’t anything to be proud of. It’s led to more anxiety and frustration.
You’re allowed to pause. You don’t have to untangle your whole life in one afternoon.
Start with brushing your teeth. Drinking water. Texting one person back.
Sometimes I write down just three things on a sticky note. That’s it.
When the world feels too big, make your to-do list tiny.
If you need help creating structure without pressure, try this gentle daily reflection workbook.
It helped me focus when everything felt chaotic.
2. Not Wanting to Try Doesn’t Mean You’re Weak
There are moments when even getting out of bed feels impossible.
That’s not laziness.
That’s exhaustion.
I have a post on here how to cope when you’re losing hope.
Your mind and body are doing what they can to survive.
That’s strength.
Not failure.
Reading even one page of this book: “It’s OK That You’re Not OK” by Megan Devine shifted my entire mindset about pain and survival.
3. You Are Not a Burden
You are not too much.
You are not a problem to be fixed.
I used to think that my sadness made me hard to love.
But real people, safe people — they don’t run from that. They stay.
And if you haven’t found those people yet?
I have a post here on how to love yourself when you feel nobody loves you.
Keep showing up for yourself the way you wish someone else would.
4. This Feeling Isn’t Forever
I know it feels permanent.
Like you’ll always feel tired, or numb, or stuck in this loop.
But emotions are visitors. They come and go — some just linger longer than others.
Feelings aren’t facts – remember this.
Write it down. Say it out loud.
“This is how I feel right now. It doesn’t mean it’s how I’ll feel forever.”
I keep this particular book by my bed for nights like this.
It’s gentle. Hopeful.
Like someone whispering “you’re going to be okay” without trying to fix you.
5. Your Worth Isn’t Based on What You Do
You are not your productivity.
You are not your income.
You are not your grades or your follower count or your ability to be everything to everyone.
You are enough — even in rest. Even in stillness.
Read this post if you want to understand how you can be enough for you if this is something you struggle with.
6. You Can Start Again — Even at Rock Bottom
You don’t need a perfect plan.
You don’t need to be ready.
You just need to take the next small step.
When I hit my lowest point, I didn’t rebuild with goals or vision boards. I rebuilt by making my bed every morning. That was the win.
Just getting out of bed and making myself breakfast was enough.
Nobody talks about how it feels to be low or depressed. I went through a painful divorce and lost my mom to cancer in the same year. It devastated me.
And I slowed down a lot – I’m glad I did.
I needed that phase.
One of the best books I read during that time? Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl.
It felt like talking to someone who had lived a thousand lives and still believed in light.
7. It’s Okay to Be Angry, Numb, or Tired
You don’t have to be soft and graceful through your suffering.
Sometimes healing looks like rage.
Sometimes it looks like silence.
All your emotions are valid.
You’re allowed to feel them all without explanation.
8. You’re Allowed to Grieve the Life You Thought You’d Have
Letting go of the plan is hard.
Maybe you thought you’d be in love by now. Or in a dream job. Or in a city that felt like home.
It’s okay to feel that loss.
Grieving doesn’t mean you’re ungrateful — it means you had hope. That’s beautiful, even if it hurts now.
Healthy grieving is important – it helps us express ourselves and it helps us move on.
9. Your Softness Is Still a Superpower
Remember this, okay?
The world tries to make you numb. Hard. Unbothered.
But the fact that you still care? That you still feel deeply? That’s powerful.
It’s very rare to find people who accept their feelings and let themselves feel. We need more of you in this world.
Being sensitive doesn’t make you weak.
It makes you human.
10. You’re Not Behind — You’re on Your Own Path
Comparison is a lie. It tricks you into believing you’re late to your own life.
But no one is living your story. No one has your timeline.
Your pace is not too slow. Your path is not too weird. It’s yours — and that’s enough.
This book: “100 Essays That Will Change the Way You Think” cracked open so many realizations for me about timelines, identity, and purpose.
11. You’re Allowed to Just Exist
Not thrive. Not glow up. Not be the “strong one.”
Just… exist.
You’re allowed to sit quietly and be held by the fact that you made it through the day. T
hat counts. That’s brave.
I use this simple check-in journal to track my feelings without pressure. No goals.
Just me showing up.
Now, when I read through those journals, I am able to see how far I’ve come and I can see the low point of my life at a glance. It helps me feel better – that I’ve crossed those obstacles and learned so much.
12. Someone Needs You to Stay — Even If You Don’t Know Who Yet
You don’t know who your story will help.
Who your kindness will reach. Who your future self will comfort one day.
Your presence matters. You being here — right now — ripples farther than you know.
13. You’re Not Alone — Even If It Feels Like It
Loneliness lies.
It tells you no one sees you, no one understands.
But I do.
And I promise there are more of us out here — quiet, messy, healing people — than you think.
You are not the only one walking through the dark.
And you won’t always be here.
Until then, take it one soft step at a time.
Here are a few posts that might help you:
- How to forgive yourself for hurting someone
- 13 ways to feel loved when nobody loves you
- How to let go of the past even though it’s painful
- How to focus on the present moment
- How to be enough for yourself
- 7 Ways to Stop Letting Fear Control Your Life
- 11 Signs You’re Growing (Even If Everything Feels Like It’s Falling Apart)
- How to Stop Putting Pressure on Yourself
