You’re Not Too Much—They Were Just Too Small

There’s a lie that so many of us, especially women, have been fed since the beginning:

That we have to shrink in order to be loved.

That our softness is a burden.

That our strength makes us intimidating.

That our emotions are too much.

And what happens when you hear that lie enough times?

You start trying to edit yourself.

You overthink every word, every feeling, every truth your body wants to speak.

You start shrinking in places where you were born to rise.

But let me tell you something—and I want you to read this slow:

You were never too much.

You were never too sensitive.

You were never too emotional, too bold, too loud, too honest.

They were just too small to hold the fullness of you.

You weren’t asking for too much—you were just asking the wrong people.

The truth is, being deeply connected to yourself and your truth is a gift. Not everyone will know what to do with that. And that’s not your burden to carry. That’s their limitation. Their emotional immaturity. Their discomfort with intimacy. Their unhealed parts reacting to your wholeness. And you do not have to apologize for that.

In fact, one of the softest, most feminine things you can do is release the need to be understood by everyone.

Let them misunderstand you. Let them label you. Let them make assumptions.

You’re not here to be digestible.

You’re here to be true.

You don’t have to justify your tears.

You don’t have to explain why you care so deeply.

You don’t need to prove your softness isn’t weakness.

The ones who are meant to see you—will.

The ones who can hold space for all of you won’t flinch when you bring your full self to the table.

You don’t need to shrink. You need to stretch.

You don’t need to quiet down. You need to get louder.

And not in volume—but in presence. In truth. In power.

This post isn’t about clapping back.

It’s about calling yourself forward.

So let me ask you:

Where are you still shrinking to fit?

Who are you editing yourself for?

What version of you are you finally ready to reclaim?

This is your permission slip.

To take up space.

To show up fully.

To be both gentle and powerful.

To be seen, felt, heard—and deeply respected.

And if someone calls that “too much”?

Tell them this: “I’m not too much. You’re just not enough for me.”

Let that be your standard. Let that be your liberation.

✨ Let this post be your reminder: softness is not weakness, and your truth deserves room. Continue your journey through power, presence, and radical softness at The Soft Power Journal.