You know that you have joy when you fall down your home stairs after a 12.5-hour shift and can't do anything but laugh at yourself. No anger. No frustration. Just embarrassment and pure joy. That moment revealed something I had spent years praying for. Five years ago, I intentionally chose healing over survival. I stopped expecting other people to make me happy, surrendered my pain to God, and began the difficult work of becoming whole.

I’ve spent my life surviving, performing, and proving my worth—never fully soft, never fully loved. From Survival to Softness is my journey toward courage, self-compassion, and the love I’ve always longed for. Read more on dedrialouise.com.

And if I’m honest, I still wanted to be chosen. But God asked me the hardest question of all: Why am I not enough for you? What began as twenty-one days of intentionality became a lifelong journey of self-love. I discovered what it meant to choose myself—not for validation, not to be seen, but simply because I am already loved beyond measure. Choose yourself. Every single day.