The Malnourished Woman
The malnourished woman is a superhero who has forgotten how to fly. She has dreams, goals, and ambition, but she doesn’t feel strong enough to pursue them anymore. This woman has built up everyone around her and hasn’t remembered to build herself up in the process. A woman who thrives on providing structure and stability for others, finds herself trying to stand on a sure foundation that’s built out of the sand. Malnutrition occurs when a person gets too much or too little of certain nutrients. They lack vitamins, minerals, and other essential substances that their body needs to function. This woman is not malnourished because she wants to be, but the effects of what life has presented have caught her off guard.
Some of the symptoms of being malnourished are:
- Fatigue
- Dizziness
- Inability to concentrate
- Slow recovery from wounds and illnesses
When a woman is mentally fatigued from the struggle of not providing herself with what she supplies others with, she can begin to feel as if she’s in the middle of a whirlwind. She’ll see things become chaotic and what she once had the strength to address, she’ll watch it continue in dysfunction. Dizziness will have her thoughts all over the place and she won’t be stable in her decision-making process. She’ll become so exhausted that she’ll feel limited/paralyzed in her journey to create goals, let alone achieve them. This creates the inability to concentrate on what’s next and necessary. Have you ever felt so overwhelmed and knew that you needed one of two things?
1. You needed for someone to see your need and assist you
AND/OR
2. You needed time to stand still so that you could catch your breath
One of the vitamins that a malnourished person lacks is vitamin A – the lack thereof will impair vision. Many can’t see past where they are right now because they have issues with their vision. They can only hone in on their disappointments, loss, and grief. A healthy and focused woman will realize that she has options – options to say “NO”, options to leave, options to not argue, options to change her career, options to go back to school, options to take a break, etc. When you lack, you cave in and go along with the flow, even if the flow of that current is drifting you to the edge of a dangerous waterfall. The waterfall is beautiful and majestic to those watching, it’s torture to the person who’s about to fall and doesn’t know how to swim with no lifejacket on.
I was once malnourished with no vision for my life. A single parent that desperately wanted more for me and my son. I had to go for broke because I realized that I was playing it safe. I would pass upon major opportunities because of fear. I had a convenient with fear. I thought that hiding behind fear was protecting me from the unfamiliar… SMH – it was polar opposite and it was almost too late when I realized it. My verbiage had to change, my thoughts had to change, my mindset had to change, I had to create expectations again and it wasn’t easy. My consistency and bulldog grip pulled me out of a sunken place, restored my name, and enables me to encourage you today. You can become whole again and you deserve it on all levels.
When a woman is emotionally malnourished, people usually point at the man involved, but I suggest looking at the woman. Self-love is more than a bubble bath and shopping, it’s having healthy boundaries for herself and others. She dares to break out of the box and do something that has been on the shelf for years. Tending to others is a natural response for a woman, but learning to tend to ourselves is a phenomenal reward and accomplishment. When you don’t have like-minded women surrounding you in prayer, ideas, creativity, kind words, affirmations, etc. you’ll feel and operate as an island – isolated. Isolation is not always a good thing, yes it has its benefits, but you can get so much further when you partner with people who are selfless and wants to see you succeed. The power of partnership creates a sense of belonging, something all humans need. Community and partnership are vital for growth – this is a time when women are banding together and protecting each other. A time when the woman’s voice is nurturing others that they may never physically meet. This is a time when the superpower of women has an amazing reach because so many are hungry for more in their lives.
The broken little girl within has to be healed, the scared adolescent has to believe that this is not the end, the insecure woman has to gain self-confidence and stop comparing her life to others around her. Get stronger and better because we need you, sis! This is the time to feed yourself so that you can heal, hope will return to your eyes, and the sun is about to shine its love on your face and provide what you need in order to survive and thrive – no apologies given…