Hey there ,

Welcome to Unlearning & Remembering — a four-week series created for Minority Mental Health Awareness Month. This journey is an invitation to pause, reflect, and gently challenge the beliefs we’ve inherited about how we "should" feel, show up, or survive.

So many of us have learned to suppress sadness, to fear anger, to distrust joy, and to perform strength. But what if we could unlearn those patterns? What if we could remember our softness, our truth, our right to rest and feel?

Over the next few weeks, you’ll receive reflections, affirmations, and journal prompts to support your healing. Each email is rooted in emotional awareness and culturally mindful care.

Let’s begin with where many of us first learned to disconnect: Sadness.

The Silence Around Sadness

For many of us, sadness was never named out loud—just swallowed or spiritualized. We learned to smile, serve, or keep moving. But sadness isn’t weakness. It’s an internal alarm. A signal that something matters.

This week, give yourself permission to feel. Not fix. Just feel.

Affirmation: My sadness is sacred. It deserves space, not shame.

Prompt: What sadness have I been holding in silence?

Support Options: Feel it to Free It Video

Next in the Series:

• Week 2: Unlearning Hustle. Remembering Restoration.

• Week 3: Unlearning Silence. Remembering Boundaries.

• Week 4: Unlearning Survival Mode. Remembering Joy.

Each message will meet you where you are—no pressure, just presence.

With care,
Galanda
GalandaB, The Elementa Way