Hi, Sam here.
Welcome to Radio Headspace.
So I recently began seeing a therapist.
And I was thinking about how strange it can feel to reveal so much of yourself to them.
I thought about my experiences in therapy and what's helped me to feel safe and trusting enough to open up about the most intimate details of my life.
And something my husband said really stood out to me.
He said, I think of therapists as libraries of human experience.
And I immediately love this idea.
Therapists collect human stories and then draw upon them to help each new person that they're working with.
But in order for us to share freely with a therapist,
or anyone for that matter, there's a certain amount of trust that's needed.
So today, let's talk about what it takes to be able to share in this way.
So take a moment to think about what helps you to feel safe enough to share the most intimate parts of your life with someone.
Being able to confide in others is important because we all need to feel supported and heard.
Author and Speaker Brene Brown has a helpful acronym that we can use when cultivating our own capacity to be trustworthy in relationships and when we're confused about what we're needing from others,
especially when we share.
The acronym she uses is Braving.
B-R-A-V-I-N-G.
And it stands for boundaries, reliability, accountability,
vault, integrity, non-judgment, and generosity.