Hi Friend!

Approval was in short supply in the home I grew up in.

I was far more likely to receive criticism for what I didn’t do well than acknowledgment for what I did.

As a result, I spent decades of my life quietly hungering for approval—from teachers, mentors, friends, even strangers.

And the wound ran so deep, that even well-meaning insights or feedback from others felt like confirmation of what I already feared:

That I wasn’t enough. That something was wrong with me.

What made it all worse was this strange catch:

Even when I did receive a compliment or a kind word, I couldn’t fully take it in.

It was like I didn’t know how to absorb it—like my soul had built walls where it should have had open arms.