Toxic Shame

When we view ourselves through the lens of toxic shame, 

we believe that we are inherently flawed, 

bad, worthless, or even rotten.

This toxic shame is corrosive and drives us 

to continually attempt to ‘fix’ ourselves 

so that we can somehow, some way,

be good enough to be loved 

and accepted by others

for who we are. 

When we view life 

through the lens of toxic shame, 

we have tunnel vision, hyper-focusing

on all that we believe is flawed, 

bad, worthless, or rotten in our lives. 

We will take the burden of ‘fixing life’

on our own shoulders,

so that we can somehow, some way,

be good enough to be loved

and accepted by others

for who we are, 

and that maybe, just maybe, 

we can be content in our lives.

In both scenarios, 

we abandon our deeper selves, 

and are therefore unable to give ourselves 

what we truly need to be content in our lives, 

which is our own love, compassion, 

care, and acceptance. 

The only love that will truly heal us

is the love that comes from ourselves.