Hello and welcome to ABGW. Amazing, brilliant, gorgeous, wonderful. I'm Cheryl. Here's a small steady space for people who are carrying a lot. Thinking a lot. Thinking deeply, maybe, and don't always give themselves five quiet minutes a day. Okay. So, yes, five minutes, one idea, one small shift you can actually use. Nothing to fix, nothing to force, just a different way of seeing what might already be weighing you down. So have you ever noticed how some people seem trapped by their own titles? Prince This, uh, Duke that, Doctor This, or something else. But somewhere along the way, they've forgotten something. They've already just forgotten their people. I mean, I've been thinking about it a lot lately, about titles and shame and the tiny lies we tell ourselves to feel a bit more, well, comfortable. You know, the other day I was listening to the radio, and they were talking about the person formerly known as Prince Andrew, and they were also talking about Prince Harry a little bit, and at one point they linked to the former Duke of York. Uh, one had it, one probably never will. And um, as I listened, I thought how strange it must be to live a life defined by something you didn't choose and then lose it because of choices you did. Now, don't get me wrong, the whole scandal around uh the person formerly known as Prince Andrew makes my stomach turn actually. The idea of underage exploitation, power abused, I can barely think about it without feeling sick. But what caused me what what caught me wasn't the scandal in itself and the whole Epstein thing. It was the human bit underneath. Because here's one of the most uncomfortable truths. When we strip away the castles and the PR spin, what's left are just people deeply flawed, probably ashamed, maybe even lost. And shame, I think, is one of the most underestimated emotions we've got. Now, don't get me wrong, shame is often misused, um, but it can be useful in certain contexts. Shame is like mold, it thrives in the darkness, quietly feeds on lies. You try to ignore it, but it seeps through the walls. Yeah. The real problem isn't the mold itself, it's that we refuse to open the windows. That's when it kind of hit me. Most of us are living with our own versions of that. Smaller, less tabloidy worthy stuff, but still just as toxic. We lie to ourselves every day. I'm fine, I'll over I'm over it, I don't need help, I can handle it. Leave me alone, stop fussing, woman. And the more we lie, the heavier we feel, like we're walking around with invisible chains made of denial. A few weeks ago, my friend Paddock gave me a gentle nudge, the kind you hate in the moment, but thank them for later. I was struggling, but instead of asking for help, I did what most of us do and pretended I was okay. Pride is such a funny thing, isn't it? It convinces it convinces you you're drowning gracefully. But the moment I stopped lying to myself, to her, to life, I felt so much lighter, happier even. Oh my goodness, the the joy that just filled my body, it was just truly amazing. Because truth, no matter how messy, is oddly liberating. It's like stand in bed feet on cold tiles after a hot shower. It's sharp, it's shocking, but it's so real. And yeah, we all do this. We curate our lives like PR officers for our own ego. We edit out the cracks, hide the bruises, photoshop our emotional mess. But the problem is lies, even the small ones, disconnect us from the one person we actually need to trust. Ourselves. And when that connection breaks, everything else starts to wobble. I think our relationships, our confidence, our peace of mind. So here's my dead for you today. Maybe you can do it this week. Maybe put it in your diary as an appointment. Tell yourself one uncomfortable truth. Just one. Maybe it's that you're tired of pretending to cope, or that you miss someone you've been pretending you don't, or that you you need help, but not because you're weak, but because you finally honestly have had enough. And you want to admit that you're human. Because once you stop lying to yourself, you'll notice the world stops feeling quite so heavy. Truth doesn't hurt as much as pretending it does. And for me, what's more important is integrity, real lived-in integrity. And that isn't about perfection, it's about being brave enough to face the truth, even when your pride wants to look away. So, I don't know, if you've been carrying around a lie just to say, just to stay comfortable, maybe it's time to open a window and let some light in. You might be surprised just how much easier it is to start breathing more deeply and fulfillingly again. Now, if something in today's episode landed with you, even quietly, that matters. You don't need to do anything dramatic with it. Just notice it. Take this pause with you. Because remember, every step you take, no matter how small, is a step towards a brighter, more balanced future. Trust in your journey and remember, progress is progress no matter the pace. Take care. Bye for now.