It’s Time to Release the “Good Woman”

Somewhere along the way, many of us were handed a script titled “How to Be a Good Woman.”

It told us to smile when we’re uncomfortable. To stay quiet to keep the peace. To work twice as hard for half the recognition. To serve until our bodies ache and still feel guilty for resting.

But that script has become toxic. It’s costing us our joy, our health, and our connection to self. Stress is not just emotional; it’s physical. It sits in our shoulders, in our digestion, in our sleep patterns. It manifests as headaches, anxiety, burnout, and resentment.

We were taught to carry it all, but carrying everything means we can’t carry ourselves.

It’s time to release the “good woman.”

Not because goodness is wrong, but because her definition was never ours to begin with. We are allowed to be assertive and kind, bold and gentle, fierce and soft. We are allowed to rest without apology and succeed without permission.

It is time for women to release the roles that suffocate their spirits. We need to learn and embrace who I am when I’m not performing for approval. What parts of me have been silenced by survival?

The woman who emerges from that release is not “good” in the traditional sense. She is whole. She is free. And she is done sacrificing her sanity for other people’s comfort.

Reflection Prompt:
What would your life look like if you stopped being “good” and started being true?