Silence or Silenced?

Did you ever watch the Meghan and Harry interview with Oprah?

Bruh, the picture she paints sounds  horrific.

Unbearable  emotional pain, and not being able to do anything about it.

To be stuck.

Trapped.

With no  good  options.

——

But  any  woman that has been in a longterm relationship  can relate.

You have felt this way.

Hell, you might feel this way  right now.

Stuck.

Hurting.

——

And, man, seeing those  photos! 

Photos of her at events during that  exact  time.

Experiencing pain she called “almost unsurvivable.”

Smiling...

Laughing...

Putting on the show.

You know…

Like you do.

Like I do.

Like we do.

You just didn’t know everyone else was doing it, too.

Meghan had to leave the situation to “get her voice back.”

We believe that leaving is the only thing that will make the pain stop.

This just flat out isn’t true.

To be more specific, to get your voice back:

…he doesn’t have to change
…you don’t have to leave
…you don’t have to “pick your battles”
…cultural norms don’t have to shift

——

Oprah asked her if she was “silent” or “silenced.”

“The latter,” she quietly replied.

And we are out here  really  believing that is the case in our relationships too.

It's just NOT, sis.

No ma’am, no matter  what  has gone on in your relationship, hear me.

NO ONE HAS TAKEN YOUR VOICE

How do I know this?

Well, because  they can’t.
It isn't in their power. 

It's in  yours. 

You silenced yourself.
And it’s time to get your voice back.

——

I just wanted to take a minute to tell you I see you.

You are not alone.

I used to feel trapped, alone, in nearly  constant  emotional torment  in my marriage.

Honest to God—I did not see any good options:

A) stay and hurt or

B) leave

Those are not your only options.

Now, I am dedicating my life to giving women the tools I used to  unmute  myself.

To live  free.

To live fully.

To live out loud.

…and  HE  has  nothing to do with it.