When I was a little girl, I felt at times alone and not a priority. That feeling of aloneness and not mattering made me very sad.

Maintaining a connection to both our thoughts and emotions is required for optimal wellbeing.

We blame ourselves. We beat ourselves up. We call ourselves names like “loser” and “failure.” And then we wonder why we feel small, alone

All of us use defenses to avoid emotions. In fact, defenses are developed for precisely that reason—to avoid painful feelings.