From Surviving to Rewilding the Truth of Who We AreA reflection for PrideOnThePage Day 14 Fierce on shedding the mask and reclaiming the untamed self
Episode Description
The shield wasn’t just an idea. It was structural.It lived in my fascia, my jaw, my voice that had gone missing. It lived in the silence I wore like armor and in the bracing that kept me safe—and kept me locked in. In this episode, I speak of the Maginot Line I carried in my body, built not from strength but necessity.
From the age of three, I began to disappear. Rejection taught me to retreat. What followed was decades of survival: a corrupted self performing strength, generosity, perfection. I became what others needed—until I vanished to myself entirely.
This episode is not a performance of healing. It’s a declaration.A return.
I share how meditation, systemic coaching, body scans, neurogenic shaking, and finally the full recognition of my Jay-self—my non-binary truth—opened the possibility of rewilding. Not as an aesthetic. As a life.
In This Episode You’ll Hear
How trauma shaped my body into a fortress
Why dissociation became the only way I could survive
What changed when I met my buried self again
The difference between fierceness that destroys and fierceness that remains
What rewilding means—somatically, politically, spiritually
A personal reflection on Buddhist inner rewilding
An invitation to slow down and return to what is alive
The affirmation I now live by: I am the wholeness I seek
Reflection Prompts for You
What parts of your life feel over-cultivated or constrained?
How might you allow more wildness, flow, or instinct into your daily rhythm?
What parts of yourself do you find hardest to accept—and what would happen if you met them with curiosity instead of judgment?
Affirmation from This Episode
I am the wholeness I seek. I no longer serve the self built to survive silence.
This Is Not the End
Rewilding asks for presence, not performance. It grows when left alone long enough. Just like I did.
Today I no longer walk in old shapes. The blade and shield are at rest. I walk as myself now—unapologetic, canyoned, whole. And while I walk mostly alone offline, I know my kin exist. People who meet me in the canyon, not on the battlefield.
Thank you for walking this path with me.
Wild Lion*esses Pride is a space for honest reflections and conversations that matter. Reflections on trauma healing, authenticity, and personal growth—grounded in mindfulness and self-compassion. If you connect with biographical essays that explore the complexity of identity and the journey toward wholeness, this space is for you. and would like to show your support, please consider becoming a valued patron for only $5 a month. Or a “Buy me a coffee” tip would be very generous. Thank you! 💚
