You Shouldn't Have To Apologize For Being Yourself

Being comfortable using your unique voice to speak your truth and standing firm in your power can be uncomfortable, especially for individuals who have experienced trauma that has caused them to hide from genuinely expressing themselves.

At times in our lives, we become afraid and ashamed to be ourselves and lose sight of who we are because we fear the judgment and rejection that might come for others.

We start asking ourselves, “what if I’m not good enough?” or “will I ever feel the love that I deserve?” Eventually leading us to hide in the shadows.

Watching The Greatest Showman, the song “This Is Me” resonates perfectly with accepting ourselves for who we are regardless of the opinions of others. You should never have to apologize to anyone for being yourself. Keala Settle sings:

“Look out ’cause here I come/And I’m marching on to the beat I drum/I’m not scared to be seen/I make no apologies, this is me.”

I have always been a pretty quirky person that is highly sarcastic and loves dark humor. The way I dress and my personality would fall into the eccentric category. When I would hang out with certain people, my unconventional identity made them uncomfortable, embarrassed, and standoffish.

At first, I had absolutely no problem expressing and being myself. I liked to have fun, and I wanted to open others up and help them to feel free to be themselves. Eventually, I internalized what people would say about me as being true, which made me slowly mold myself into someone I wasn’t just to fit in.

I felt like I needed to change to be and feel accepted.

I became nervous about how I presented myself because I no longer wanted to be judged or looked at as “too much” or “weird.” I was so closed off for many years that only a few people could pry me open. The goofy, friendly girl I once was turned into the awkward, dark girl full of anxiety.

I can honestly say that those were some of the darkest years of my life because I didn’t know who I was anymore. When you lose yourself, you start to give your power away.

Hiding oneself isn’t gratifying, and it’s even harder to find your way back to being comfortable with yourself when you tucked your personality deep inside for so long. We often don’t want to show up authentically because the way we genuinely express ourselves doesn’t always align with society’s expectations.

I learned that allowing yourself to turn into someone you’re not will only eat at you throughout the years until you start being honest with yourself. It costs us way more to put others above our own happiness.

Allowing someone to disrespect your character continuously can damage your self-esteem and negatively affect your feelings regarding your self-worth. If you are too much for someone and can’t embrace who you are, they aren’t the person for you.

Most of the time, people who criticize you the most aren’t truly happy or comfortable with themselves, so surround yourself with people who are supportive and accepting of your true being. It will definitely help release the thoughts of feeling alone.

The fear of stepping out of your comfort zone, being vulnerable, and allowing others to see who you truly are takes strength, self-acceptance, self-love, and courage. Never let anyone shame you into dimming your light just because it shines too bright for their eyes to see you.

You are who you are, so embrace it!

AZLyrics — request for access. AZLyrics.com. (n.d.). Retrieved January 7, 2022, from https://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/greatestshowmancast/thisisme.html

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