One year can change everything.
Over the past twelve months, I’ve learned more about myself than in a lifetime. I’ve discovered strength I didn’t know I had — not the kind that hides behind a smile, but the quiet resilience that grows from truth, healing, and self-compassion.
For years, I was the crutch for others, holding up their emotions while ignoring my own. The brain’s empathy circuits — especially the mirror neuron system — can make us overextend ourselves when we care deeply. But neuroscience also shows that constant self-suppression activates the brain’s stress network (amygdala, hypothalamus, cortisol pathways), leading to emotional exhaustion.
This year, I turned that energy inward. With professional support, love, and understanding, I began to observe myself “from the outside in” — activating the prefrontal cortex, the seat of reflection and self-awareness. I started to understand my patterns, my emotions, and my triggers.
I learned to give myself TLC — Tender Loving Care — which, in neuroscience terms, soothes the nervous system and boosts oxytocin and serotonin, our natural “connection” and “happiness” chemicals.
I stopped pretending to be strong when I was hurting. I stopped excusing other people’s behavior and began to focus on my own. That shift rewired my brain toward self-agency — the neural network that tells us “I can choose.”
Now, I choose peace.
I choose friends who lift me, not drain me.
I avoid toxicity and surround myself with love, authenticity, and gratitude.
Gratitude itself has a measurable effect on the brain — it increases dopamine in the reward centers and strengthens the anterior cingulate cortex, the area involved in empathy and emotional regulation. In simple terms: the more grateful we are, the more resilient and compassionate our brains become.
I am no longer who I was a year ago — and I am deeply thankful for that.
Thank you to those who supported me through the storm.
I am standing again, stronger, clearer, and ready to help others find their way back to themselves too. đź’«
