This Isn’t About Pity. It’s About Permission.

💬 Intro:

Today’s issue is different. No sections. No polls. Just a letter — from me to you. Not because I have it all together, but because I know how it feels when everything comes apart.

💌 A Letter to the Ones Who Are Tired of Pretending

Hey you,

I know you're tired.

Not just physically — though, let’s be real, that never fully goes away — but emotionally, too. Tired of pretending. Tired of explaining. Tired of minimizing your own experience so other people don’t feel uncomfortable.

Tired of smiling when you want to scream.
Tired of saying “I’m fine” when your body is anything but.

Here’s what I need you to hear today:
You don’t have to be inspiring to be worthy.
You don’t have to turn your pain into purpose.
You don’t have to pretend that this doesn’t suck.

It’s okay to be raw. To be real. To be wrecked sometimes.

You are still doing something incredible — you are surviving a body that makes survival harder than most people will ever understand.

There’s no gold medal at the end of this.
There’s no badge for who pushed through the most.

But there is something powerful in choosing to stay.
In choosing to rest when your instincts scream “keep going.”
In choosing honesty over performance.

You are not a project that needs fixing.
You are not behind.
You are not weak.

You’re just here — in this body, in this moment, doing your best with what you’ve got.

And that?
That’s enough.

Take what you need today. Leave the rest.
I’ll see you Monday.

With more understanding than advice,
— J