A Softer Life Beyond Trauma Blog Series - HealthyLifeCoach702.com      I used to believe being strong meant pushing through pain without flinching, smiling when I wanted to cry, saying "I'm fine" even when I felt like I was falling apart. For years, I wore strength like armor, never realizing that what I was really doing was surviving… not living.      It wasn’t until I faced my own traumas, three breast cancer diagnoses, the end of a long marriage, single parenting, and navigating the criminal justice system as a supportive family member or friend, that I began to understand the weight I was carrying. Trauma had become my silent companion. It shaped the way I moved through the world: hyper-aware, exhausted, always anticipating the next crisis.      I didn’t know it back then, but what I needed most wasn’t to “toughen up.” I needed to soften .      That’s why this series exists. Because so many of us are running on f...