21/07/2025
WHEN YOU’RE TIRED OF BEING THE STRONG ONE ❤️
You were always the “strong” one.
The calm one.
The wise one.
The kind one.
The one with all the answers.
The one who always said yes.
The one who never seemed
to need anything.
But that wasn’t true strength.
That was survival.
You learned to help others
in order to stay safe yourself.
You became the “healer” of the family
to keep yourself going.
Somewhere along the way,
you were taught
that love had to be earned through usefulness.
That your safety depended on performance.
That to be wanted, to be cared for,
you had to become the caretaker yourself.
The special one.
The good one.
The one who never fell apart.
But, friend…
who holds you now
when you’re the one unraveling?
Because beneath that polished role
there’s often a trembling heart.
A tired soul.
A small, tender child
who never got to just… be.
Who never felt safe unless they were giving.
Who never felt worthy unless they were offering.
Who learned that rest was a luxury for other people.
But here’s the truth:
You don’t have to hold it all anymore.
You don’t have to fix everyone to be worthy.
You don’t have to perform to be loved.
You get to be soft.
You get to be messy.
You get to fall apart.
You get to be real.
Because real love
doesn’t come from being useful.
It comes from being seen
in your vulnerability and truth.
So take off the costume.
Drop the “nice guy” or “good girl” mask.
Tear it off if you have to.
It’s not protecting you anymore.
It’s choking the life out of you.
It may even be making you sick.
Breathe in.
Breathe deep.
And let yourself be known -
not as the fixer.
Not as the strong one.
Not even as the “healer”.
But as… you.
Fully human.
Soft, wild, flawed, and free.
And finally, finally, enough.
- Jeff Foster