I am not your SuperWoman...

The Superwoman Syndrome for Black Women and Women of Color is alive and well, and it is slowly chipping away at us.

I know we are "Every Woman" as Chaka Khan proclaimed but we need to blend in some Karen White and begin letting folks also know "I'm not your Superwoman".

As Black Women and Women of Color we are often so proud of our tenaciousness and ability to defeat the odds and a system designed to hold us down that we are afraid to let anyone see us crack.

We are the cornerstone of our culture, the backbone of our family, the preservers of our history. We have been the bond that has held all things together...

But who is holding us together?

As we silently carry the burden of weight from work, family, community responsibilities and personal trauma due to grief and loss (not to mention navigating a world rooted in racial and gender discrimination)...we quietly suffer.

Yes, we are extraordinary, bold and unrelenting. However, we must know when to lay down our cape and tend to the garden of our soul and mind.

Today is the day we lay down the cape.

In this video, with the permission of my client, I share honestly how she pretended she was caring for herself but in truth was slowly depleting and breaking herself down physically and mentally as she was busy was rescuing and saving everyone else at the expense of her well being.

Like many who have the Superwoman Syndrome she displayed the classic characteristics

• Manifest strength;

• Suppress emotions;

• Resist being or appearing vulnerable or dependent;

• Determined to succeed despite limited resources; and

• Help others (which is okay until it is becomes detrimental to your physical, emotional, financial, mental health). 

Watch the video and join the conversation.

Aché