I genuinely can't believe that I'm made out of meat.

We get to say "no." Even if it's awkward. Even if we think we should soften it with a "maybe." (If it's a "no," we're not doing anyone any favors by calling it a "maybe.")

"No" is not a dirty word. Neither are "not anymore," "not ever again," or "I changed my mind."

Trauma Brain is gonna tell you all about all the potential threats out there-- but nothing about your strengths, or how you've handled hard things in the past, or how you have resources & support now that you didn't then.

Remember the other stuff Trauma Brain is omitting.

Not having the support, resources, or mindset to do a thing is not you having "f*cked up" or failed. You didn't have what you didn't have. That's reality.

Realistic recovery doesn't start w/ calling our past self a "failure" or "f*ck up" for not using resources you didn't have.