You Are Not Too Much: Returning To Your Full Self

This gentle journey is for anyone who has ever been told they are too sensitive, too emotional, too intense, or simply too much. Together we explore where that story lives in your body, and how it has shaped the ways you shrink, edit, or apologize for your natural fullness. Through somatic awareness, inner imagery, and tender dialogue with the parts of you you’ve pushed away, you begin to welcome those exiled versions of yourself home. You’ll be guided to feel your natural radiance, practice taking up honest space, and imagine moving through real-life situations without abandoning your own center. The meditation closes with a simple vow of self-belonging, helping you remember that you are not too much for your own life, and that you are already the right fit for the truth of who you are.
Music by Grand Project via Pixabay.

Transcript

Welcome,

Sweet soul.

Take a moment to let those words land.

You are welcome here,

Exactly as you are.

Settle in,

Finding a comfortable position,

Whether sitting or lying down.

Allow your body to be supported,

Feeling the surface beneath you,

Noticing how it holds you without asking you to be any different.

Let your shoulders soften.

Let your jaw loosen.

Let the space around your eyes relax.

If it feels safe,

You can gently close your eyes or soften your gaze to a point in front of you.

Begin to notice your breath,

Just witnessing the inhale and the exhale,

The air coming in,

The air flowing out.

With each breath,

Allow yourself to arrive a little more fully into this moment,

Arriving in your body,

Arriving in your own company.

Feel the gentle pull of gravity drawing you downward.

Feel the weight of your bones,

The heaviness of your muscles,

And the simple truth that you are here,

Supported,

Held.

And as you begin to breathe more deeply,

Notice that with each exhale,

You can gently let go of any roles you've been holding,

Any expectations,

Any ideas of how you should be in this moment.

This is a space where all of you is welcome.

Every feeling,

Every expression,

Every layer,

Every version of you.

We're going to take a gentle journey to meet the parts of you that have been called too much,

And invite them home.

As you rest here,

Bring your awareness to the center of your chest,

To your heart space,

Placing a hand over your heart if that feels supportive.

And let these words begin to float through your awareness.

You are not too much.

You are not too much.

You are not too much.

Notice how your body responds to hearing this.

Maybe there's a softening.

Maybe there's a resistance.

Maybe there's nothing at all,

Just a quiet curiosity.

All of it is welcome.

Many of us have heard messages that we are too sensitive,

Too emotional,

Too intense,

Too loud,

Too deep.

These messages can land like little stones in the heart,

And over time we learn to shrink ourselves,

To edit our truth,

To apologize for our joy,

Our tears,

Our passion,

Our needs.

We learn to tuck away the very parts of us that are the most alive.

Take a breath into your heart space.

And as you exhale,

You might imagine some of those old messages gently loosening.

Your depth,

Your passion,

Your sensitivity,

Your intensity.

These are expressions of your design.

They're not flaws.

You have never been too much.

That pain comes from stories you were given.

Stories that say that being fully yourself would cost you love,

Safety,

Or belonging.

Today's journey is not about fixing you.

There's nothing wrong with you.

We're simply here to remember that you are already the right size for your own life and your own path.

That you are perfect as you are,

And safe to be you.

Feel that intention like a soft light in your chest.

I am not too much.

It is safe to be myself.

Now,

Very gently,

I invite you to bring to mind a time when you felt too much.

There is no need to go hunting.

If a memory wants to arise,

Let it come.

It might be a moment from childhood.

A comment from family,

A teacher,

A friend.

It might be from a relationship,

A social setting,

Or a work environment.

Or maybe it's nothing specific,

Just a familiar feeling of being too big,

Too emotional,

Too intense.

Feel the energy of that story.

The story that says,

I am too much.

And let it hover gently in your awareness.

As you hold this,

Bring your attention to your body.

Where does the energy of I am too much live,

If anywhere?

Maybe you notice it in your throat.

A tightening,

A holding back of words or sound.

Maybe it's in your chest.

A heaviness,

A pressure.

A sense of needing to hide your heart.

Maybe it's in your belly.

A knot,

A flutter,

A pulling in.

You might notice your shoulders rounding forward as if to make yourself smaller.

Or you may notice nothing at all.

Just notice what you notice without trying to change it.

Noticing when that old story is active,

How you react.

How do you tend to pull your energy in?

Do you dim your emotions?

Do you filter your opinions?

Do you quiet your laughter?

Do you make your desires very small?

See if you can witness this with tenderness.

This response was an intelligent way your nervous system tried to help you stay safe.

It learned that shrinking might protect you.

And there's no shame in that.

Only compassion,

Love and gratitude for the parts of you that have been doing their very best to keep you safe in the only way they knew how.

You might whisper inwardly to those parts of yourself now,

Thank you for trying to keep me safe.

And take a slow breath in and a cleansing breath out,

Allowing softness around those places that have held this story for so long.

As you continue to sink deeper into this experience,

Allow yourself to imagine a very safe,

Comfortable space created just for you.

It might be a place you're familiar with,

Or one created by your imagination.

You might see it,

Feel it,

Or simply sense it.

It could be indoors or outdoors,

A place in the world or an inner landscape,

Like a spacious field in the center of your chest or just a feeling of openness behind your sternum.

Whatever it is for you,

Let it be simple and let it be yours.

In this safe space,

Begin to invite in the versions of you that you've tried to shrink.

The one who laughs loudly,

Or the one who feels deeply.

The one who cares so much.

The passionate,

Creative one.

The intense,

Truth-telling one.

The tender,

Easily moved one.

They might appear as younger versions of you,

As colors,

Shapes,

Sensations,

Or emotions.

There is no wrong way for them to arrive.

Just notice who or what appears in this safe space.

Now,

One by one,

Let your attention rest on each version of you.

And as you meet them,

Ask them gently what it is that they bring to you.

Maybe one brings joy.

Maybe one brings creativity.

Maybe one brings honesty.

Maybe one brings intuition.

Just notice what you notice.

As you recognize each gift,

Also notice the people in your life that may have been uncomfortable with this energy.

And that's okay.

That discomfort never meant that these versions of you were wrong.

It only meant that others didn't yet know how to receive them.

You might imagine saying to one of these too-much selves,

You are not too much for me.

You are allowed to be here.

And if it feels right,

Offer a gesture of welcome.

A hand reaching out.

A hug.

A nod of recognition.

Or simply a warm wave of energy from your heart to theirs.

Let each version of you know you are not a problem to solve.

You are not a liability.

You are where my magic lives.

You are where my medicine lives.

You are valuable to me,

And I am grateful for you.

Take your time here welcoming these exiled versions of you back into your inner circle of belonging.

Breathing softly.

Welcoming gently.

From this reunited place,

Bring your awareness to the space all around your body.

Sensing the subtle outline of your form from your head down to your feet.

Now imagine that your natural radiance extends beyond the skin.

You might sense it as light.

As color.

As a gentle warmth.

Or as a quiet hum of presence.

Now allow this field to become just a bit more noticeable.

Just a bit more vivid.

Without pushing.

Without force.

Just letting your energy expand to its honest size.

The size it naturally wants to be when it is not being squeezed by old stories.

Or shrinking to make others more comfortable.

And as you allow this,

Notice if there are places where you habitually pull back.

Maybe around the chest.

Maybe at the back of the heart.

Maybe in your throat.

See if you can gently experiment with softening those habitual contractions just by a few degrees.

Just for now.

Breathe into them.

Letting them know it is safe in this moment to feel more of your full self.

You might repeat inwardly,

It is safe in this moment to feel the fullness of who I am.

My emotions,

My sensitivity,

My passion are not too much for my own heart.

Let those words sink in.

My emotions,

My sensitivity,

My passion are not too much for my own heart.

Repeat to yourself out loud or in your head,

I am not too much.

I am exactly as deep as I am meant to be.

I am not too loud.

My voice belongs in my own life.

I am not too sensitive.

My sensitivity is a gift.

I am not too intense.

My intensity is energy that can be honored and directed with love.

Rest for a few moments in the felt sense of being allowed to exist at full volume,

Even if it's only for now.

You are practicing what it feels like to occupy your true size.

Now,

Keeping this sense of radiance with you,

Imagine yourself walking into a space where you have historically shrunk.

It might be a family gathering,

A workplace,

A social setting,

A community,

A relationship.

Let one scene arise that feels safe enough to visit in your inner world.

See yourself entering this space,

But this time you stay in your body,

Feeling your feet on the ground,

Feeling the length of your spine,

Feeling your heart and your breath,

Noticing your energetic field,

Not exaggerated or inflated,

Just honestly present.

You're not dimming and you're also not performing.

You're simply you.

Imagine yourself talking,

Listening,

Laughing,

Or simply sitting quietly,

But staying connected to your own center.

Notice any temptation that arises to shrink or disappear,

And gently choose in this inner rehearsal to remain with yourself.

You might affirm inwardly,

Even if others don't fully understand me,

I can belong to myself.

My belonging starts inside my own body.

Feel how it would be to let others have their reactions,

Their opinions,

Their comfort or discomfort,

Without taking it as a command to make yourself smaller.

You may notice that some people in this imagined space feel closer when you're real,

And others may feel more distant,

And that's okay.

Let this truth settle,

The world is large enough for your full expression.

You may not be for everyone,

But you are always for you.

Breathe into that,

And exhale,

Anchoring the sense of belonging to yourself.

Now slowly let that scene fade,

Bringing your attention back to the safe space you've been resting in.

From this place,

Ask yourself gently,

What is one quality I want to claim in my fullness?

It might be deep,

Tender,

Loud,

Wild,

Creative,

Sensitive,

Powerful,

Free.

Let one word arise,

And trust the first one that comes.

Feel that word in your body,

Maybe it glows in your chest,

Maybe it vibrates in your belly,

Or maybe it feels like length in your spine.

Now let this simple vow form around it,

Repeating after me silently or out loud,

I am not too much for my own life.

I no longer shrink to fit small spaces.

I belong to myself exactly as I am.

And now bring your chosen word back into your awareness.

Say the following sentence silently to yourself,

Adding your own word at the end.

I allow myself to be fully.

Feel this vow not as pressure,

But as a gentle permission slip.

Take a few deeper breaths now,

Inhaling through the nose,

And exhaling through the mouth.

Begin to notice the weight of your body again,

The support beneath you,

The sounds in the room,

And the temperature of the air on your skin.

You might wiggle your fingers or your toes,

Gently roll your shoulders or sway your body a little.

And whenever you're ready,

You can slowly open your eyes or lift your gaze,

Bringing this sense of belonging to yourself back into the space around you.

Know that the versions of you you met today can stay close.

You can return to them whenever you need to remember that you're not too much.

Thank you,

Sweet soul,

For your courage in meeting yourself more fully.

Thank you for allowing more of who you are to be seen and felt.

The world is enriched and more alive with you in your fullness.