I think trauma gets a reductive treatment. We tend to think only violence or molestation or total abandonment qualify as "childhood trauma," but there are so many ruptures and disturbances in childhood that imprint themselves on us. Attachment begets trauma,… — Melissa Febos Copy Share Image
Letting go of the cozy stories you've been carrying around is devastating. But there's more room for new stuff after you do it. — Melissa Febos Copy Share Image
When you conceal inner reality, this pressure builds. You often don't expose yourself until it reaches extremity, a breaking point, and what emerges is… — Melissa Febos Copy Share Image
I can only see right in front of me when I'm writing, you know? I never think of it as raw or personal or… — Melissa Febos Copy Share Image
“I have always been afraid to have children. I didn't want to give them the parts of me--the hurtling hunger, the shame--but now I… — Melissa Febos Copy Share Image
“There are still times when he and I fall into our respective labyrinths. I no longer believe that anyone but ourselves can lead us out. The Minotaurs we need to rescue are never our half brothers. They are always those monstrous parts of ourselves. We can never even know for certain that we are free. The best we can offer… — Melissa Febos Copy Share
I think we all are born inside of our parents' narratives. We stay there for a good while. We are taught their narratives about… — Melissa Febos Copy Share Image
“Maybe that's all bravery is: when your hunger is greater than your fear. I resist the implication that bravery is noble. I must face… — Melissa Febos Copy Share Image
“I have always enjoyed watching women dress. The appeal isn't sexual. Most girls' first glimpse of private female life is watching their mothers dress and put makeup on. It makes sense that we'd find it comforting. Childhood fascinations often crystallize this way. Isn't beauty forever defined, in a sense, by the first things we found beautiful? Surely part of my… — Melissa Febos Copy Share
“It was the first time anyone had broken up with me. It was a thing I had successfully avoided for thirty-two years.” — Melissa Febos Copy Share Image
I can still discern people's weaknesses, but it doesn't make me want to exploit them; it makes me want to hug them. — Melissa Febos Copy Share Image
“There is a moment in your 20s when you know what it means to love rightly, but not how to do it, and then… — Melissa Febos Copy Share Image
“The labyrinth, after all, is Sarah's creation. She calls upon the Goblin King. And this is the biggest difference between my brother's afflictions and… — Melissa Febos Copy Share Image
