Dr. Thema Bryant

Or we assume, you know, if you're in a faith community, everyone is going to be caring and loving. And so that was like a disruption. I'll say before that, I was a straight A student. And for the first time, like I couldn't focus. I couldn't concentrate. I had to go speak to a dean. And there was one black dean at Duke University who had the same last name, Dean Bryant.

And I just came to her in all of my despair and had to heal my heart. So that this has been a long journey up until this year, this past year, the passing of my mother. Right. Which is another heartbreak. But I love what you shared in a prior episode of They Never Leave Us. And I definitely feel her presence today, every day.

And I just came to her in all of my despair and had to heal my heart. So that this has been a long journey up until this year, this past year, the passing of my mother. Right. Which is another heartbreak. But I love what you shared in a prior episode of They Never Leave Us. And I definitely feel her presence today, every day.

And I just came to her in all of my despair and had to heal my heart. So that this has been a long journey up until this year, this past year, the passing of my mother. Right. Which is another heartbreak. But I love what you shared in a prior episode of They Never Leave Us. And I definitely feel her presence today, every day.

Yes. Yes. We have so many layers and parts of ourselves that we discard or that we hide because we desire to be acceptable. Yes. So it's like, what part of me did I tuck away in order for other people to give validation or approval? And so gathering those broken pieces so I can be wholly me.

Yes. Yes. We have so many layers and parts of ourselves that we discard or that we hide because we desire to be acceptable. Yes. So it's like, what part of me did I tuck away in order for other people to give validation or approval? And so gathering those broken pieces so I can be wholly me.

Yes. Yes. We have so many layers and parts of ourselves that we discard or that we hide because we desire to be acceptable. Yes. So it's like, what part of me did I tuck away in order for other people to give validation or approval? And so gathering those broken pieces so I can be wholly me.

Yeah. A big part of it is self-acceptance and recognizing you can feel more than one thing at the same time and you can be more than one thing at the same time. Sometimes we don't give ourselves grace because we have this idea of perfection that doesn't leave room for our humanity. So I can have compassion on myself. I say, if you look far enough back at your story

Yeah. A big part of it is self-acceptance and recognizing you can feel more than one thing at the same time and you can be more than one thing at the same time. Sometimes we don't give ourselves grace because we have this idea of perfection that doesn't leave room for our humanity. So I can have compassion on myself. I say, if you look far enough back at your story

Yeah. A big part of it is self-acceptance and recognizing you can feel more than one thing at the same time and you can be more than one thing at the same time. Sometimes we don't give ourselves grace because we have this idea of perfection that doesn't leave room for our humanity. So I can have compassion on myself. I say, if you look far enough back at your story

Your dips and dives and falls make sense. Sometimes we don't look at ourselves in context. So we're like, why did I do that? Or I'm so stupid. Or what's wrong with me? But if you tell me the fullness of your story, where you landed made sense.

Your dips and dives and falls make sense. Sometimes we don't look at ourselves in context. So we're like, why did I do that? Or I'm so stupid. Or what's wrong with me? But if you tell me the fullness of your story, where you landed made sense.

Your dips and dives and falls make sense. Sometimes we don't look at ourselves in context. So we're like, why did I do that? Or I'm so stupid. Or what's wrong with me? But if you tell me the fullness of your story, where you landed made sense.

What I say to that is your current way of living is unsustainable. And so we self-destruct. And even when we say, I don't have time to heal, even we'll say, I'm too busy to be depressed. Well, depression will catch you no matter how busy you are. And so what it becomes is it's necessary for us to train our eyes to see the ways that it's showing up. So it might not look like.

What I say to that is your current way of living is unsustainable. And so we self-destruct. And even when we say, I don't have time to heal, even we'll say, I'm too busy to be depressed. Well, depression will catch you no matter how busy you are. And so what it becomes is it's necessary for us to train our eyes to see the ways that it's showing up. So it might not look like.

What I say to that is your current way of living is unsustainable. And so we self-destruct. And even when we say, I don't have time to heal, even we'll say, I'm too busy to be depressed. Well, depression will catch you no matter how busy you are. And so what it becomes is it's necessary for us to train our eyes to see the ways that it's showing up. So it might not look like.

So, for example, with black women, sometimes our despair shows up as irritability. So then people say, you have a bad attitude. No, she's in despair. But if I am harsh, if I am hardworking, if I'm a workaholic, if I'm a perfectionist, if I'm busy all the time, other people will celebrate that. But I'm empty on the inside. Nice.

So, for example, with black women, sometimes our despair shows up as irritability. So then people say, you have a bad attitude. No, she's in despair. But if I am harsh, if I am hardworking, if I'm a workaholic, if I'm a perfectionist, if I'm busy all the time, other people will celebrate that. But I'm empty on the inside. Nice.

So, for example, with black women, sometimes our despair shows up as irritability. So then people say, you have a bad attitude. No, she's in despair. But if I am harsh, if I am hardworking, if I'm a workaholic, if I'm a perfectionist, if I'm busy all the time, other people will celebrate that. But I'm empty on the inside. Nice.

So it becomes not valuing myself because everybody else is saying good job. But when I lay myself down at night, then what do I say and what do I feel? And I choose to pour into myself so that it can actually be well.