Hi friend,
You are not hard to love, even if at times it has felt that way.
Some people will never be able to hold the fullness of who you are, and that doesn’t mean you’re too much…it means they weren’t meant to. Some souls arrive in our lives only to awaken the old wounds, to mirror back the places we’re invited to heal. Others show up as allies—steady, willing to walk beside us as we grow into more of ourselves.
What if, instead of carrying the story that you’re broken or unlovable, you began to see it more simply? Every relationship, even the painful ones, has been a teacher guiding you here. Every version of you: messy, chaotic, tender, resilient, has carried you to this moment.
Love is not always calm waters. Sometimes it asks us to ride the waves with presence and intention, to fall off and climb back on, to keep showing up.
Enduring love isn’t about perfection. It’s about being with someone who’s willing to ride the waves with you. Someone who chooses to see you and be seen. Someone who grows alongside you, allowing the relationship to be a healing ground where both hearts expand.
Inside this week’s newsletter, you’ll find:
🎙️ Podcast: How to Self-Soothe Your Anxiety
In case you missed it, my conversation with Jillian Turecki on her Jillian On Love podcast is live. We explore conscious relationships, healing attachment wounds, and nervous system regulation.
🧘♀️ Embodiment Practice: Loving the Parts That Feel Hard to Love
A guided practice to turn toward the parts of yourself you’ve judged or hidden, to listen to what they need, and to offer them compassion. This is an invitation to remember that even the messy, chaotic, or tender places within you are worthy of love.
🎙️Podcast Interview on Build with Jillian Turecki:
🌿 This Weeks Reflection:
For the right person, you will not be hard to love. But with the person who's meant to awaken all of your past wounds, it will seem that you are. Learn to recognize that some people are just our mirrors along the way and others are our allies in healing. You deserve to know enduring love.
✨ Practice for the Week: Loving the Parts That Feel Hard to Love
Intention: To meet and soften toward the parts of yourself that you’ve judged, hidden, or believed were unlovable.
Step 1: Settle Into Presence
Find a quiet space where you feel safe.
Sit or lie down comfortably. Place one hand on your heart, one on your belly.
Take three slow breaths, allowing your body to settle.
Step 2: Invite the Part In
Ask gently: “What part of me feels hard to love right now?”
Notice what arises. It could be an image, a memory, an emotion, or a sensation in your body. Don’t overthink it—just notice.
Step 3: Locate It in Your Body
Where do you feel this part most strongly? Your chest, stomach, throat, or somewhere else?
Place your hand there and breathe with it. Imagine creating space around this part with each inhale.
Step 4: Offer Compassion
Whisper softly: “You are welcome here.”
If it feels right, imagine wrapping this part of you in a gentle embrace, as if you’re holding a younger version of yourself.
Allow whatever emotion comes—tears, warmth, resistance. Simply stay present.
Step 5: Give It a Voice
Ask this part: “What do you need from me right now?”
Listen for a response. It may come as words, images, or a felt sense.
Write down what you hear after the practice, so you can honor it.
Step 6: Close With Love
Place both hands on your heart.
Say to yourself: “All parts of me are worthy of love. Even the ones that feel messy, chaotic, or too much. Especially those.”
Take three grounding breaths and open your eyes when you feel ready.
Additional Journaling Prompts
What part of me feels the hardest to love right now, and why?
If that part had a voice, what would it say to me? What does it need from me?
When did I first learn that this part of me was “too much” or “not enough”?
How does my body feel when I turn toward this part with compassion instead of rejection?
What would it look like to honor this part of me in my daily life, even in small ways?
If I could speak to this part as if it were a younger version of me, what words of love and reassurance would I offer?
What might become possible in my relationships if I believed all of my parts are worthy of love?
No matter how many times you’ve felt too much or not enough, love is still your birthright. Every part of you…especially the ones that feel messy, chaotic, or hard to love belongs here.
As you move through this week, notice when those parts arise. Pause, place a hand on your heart, and remind yourself: I am not hard to love. I am learning to meet myself with compassion, wave by wave.
May you continue to find allies who can ride the waves with you, and may you remember that the deepest ally you will ever have is yourself.
Love,
Shay
P.S. If anything in this letter resonated, I’d love to hear from you. Feel free to hit reply and share what’s on your heart.