Most survivors don’t speak the whole truth—not because they’re hiding it, but because the world hasn’t always made space for it. Here are ten truths I carried quietly for years. If you’re a survivor, you might see yourself here too. And if you love one, read this twice.
The List:
I was surviving, not living.
And surviving looks invisible to people who have never had to do it.
Leaving was the bravest and scariest thing I’ve ever done.
I didn’t leave because I stopped loving them. I left because I started remembering I should love myself.
I still doubt myself—because I was trained to.
They didn’t just hurt me. They rewired how I hear my own voice.
Love doesn’t feel safe yet. That’s not your fault.
It takes time to believe that kindness isn’t a setup.
I replay the past to protect myself from it happening again.
I’m not stuck in it—I’m learning how to not repeat it.
I’m healing, but some days still feel like war.
Triggers don’t mean I’m weak. They mean my nervous system still remembers.
Triggers aren’t tantrums—they’re trauma echoes.
I don’t need fixing. I need space to regulate.
I miss them sometimes. That doesn’t mean I want them back.
It’s normal to miss the version I thought they were.
I still mourn the version of me that didn’t make it.
The one who tried so hard to earn love in unsafe places.
I’m not asking you to fix me. Just see me.
Validation isn’t weakness. It’s recovery fuel.
If any part of this resonated with you, you’re not alone. You’re not too much. You’re not crazy. You’re healing—and that’s sacred work.
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