When your identity gets built inside relationships 💔➡️🧠 Something I’ve been thinking about: If you have fear of abandonment or attachment trauma, your sense of self can end up forming around other people instead of within you. You track their moods. You adjust yourself to keep the connection. You lose track of what you actually like, want, or need. And over time, it can feel like… Who am I when I’m not attached to someone? Rebuilding a sense of self (slowly, realistically): 🌱 Try things that are just for you — even if you feel awkward doing them alone 🎨 Follow small sparks of curiosity (music, art, topics, random interests) 📝 Journal simple questions: What do I enjoy? What drains me? 🕯 Spend intentional time alone without filling it with distraction 🚶‍♀️ Go places solo — coffee, walks, bookstores — and notice how it feels 💬 Practice having your own opinions, even small ones 🧠 Notice when you’re shape-shifting to avoid disconnection This isn’t about becoming hyper-independent or shutting people out. It’s about building a foundation where: 👉 connection is added to your life not the thing holding you together Because the most important relationship you’ll ever have is the one you’re building with yourself. The Purple Phoenix Collective 🔥