Have you ever looked at your life and thought, when did I stop feeling like me?

I hear this in different ways all the time.

"I don't really know who I am anymore."

"I feel like I've lost myself."

"I miss the old me."

It's often said with a mixture of sadness and confusion because it's difficult to pinpoint exactly when it happened.

There wasn't necessarily one big moment. Life simply became full.

There was work, family, responsibilities and people who needed you. There were things to organise, people to support and countless small decisions to make every day. Little by little, your attention moved further and further away from yourself.

You became very good at getting through the day. Very good at being responsible. Very good at making sure everyone else was okay.

And somewhere in all of that, you stopped checking in with yourself.

I don't think most women wake up one day and suddenly lose themselves. I think it usually happens gradually.

Perhaps you've stopped making time for things you once enjoyed. Perhaps you've become so used to putting yourself last that your own needs feel unfamiliar. Or perhaps you've been so busy managing life that you've not had much opportunity to think about yourself at all.

After a while, something starts to feel different.

Not wrong.

Not broken.

Just... different.

You find yourself feeling disconnected, but you can't quite explain why. You look at your life and wonder when everything started feeling so heavy and when you stopped feeling quite like yourself.

And I think this is something many women carry quietly.

Because when you're the person who keeps everything moving, it can feel difficult to admit that you've lost touch with yourself a little.

I don't think most women are longing for a completely different life.

I think they're longing for something much simpler.

A little more calm.

A little more headspace.

A little more presence.

A little less pressure.

A sense of feeling connected to themselves again.

And if you're recognising yourself in this, I want you to know something.

Feeling disconnected from yourself doesn't mean you've disappeared.

It doesn't mean you've failed.

And it certainly doesn't mean there's something wrong with you.

Perhaps you've simply spent so long looking after everything and everyone else that you've lost sight of yourself a little along the way.

And perhaps the version of you that you're missing isn't gone at all.

Perhaps she's still there.

Waiting for a little more space.

A little more care.

A little more attention.

A reminder that she matters too.

So maybe today isn't about becoming somebody new.

Perhaps it's simply about pausing for a few moments and asking yourself:

• What have I been missing recently?

• What helps me feel most like myself?

• And what might help me feel a little more like me again?

You don't need to have all the answers.

Perhaps simply asking the question is a gentle place to begin.

And if this felt familiar, please know you're not the only one. Many women feel this way at different points in their lives, even if they don't always talk about it.

Jx