From the time you were a little girl you were likely told to quiet or completely shut down your own instincts in order to make other people happy.  “Give Uncle Bob a big hug!” “Wear the pink dress.  That one looks the prettiest on you. And then you watched your mom seek your dad’s approval and permission over and over as if it were required.  Maybe it was. And then you had your own baby and you got really good an ignoring your body as it screamed at you: “I’m hungry!” “I’m tired!” “I need a break.” You couldn’t eat or sleep or take a break because this baby needed you in order to stay alive.  And now you’ve existed for perhaps decades silencing your instincts in order to meet others expectations, make others happy, and keep babies alive. And you’ve completely lost any sense of self-trust.  You wonder why you don’t know what you’re passionate about or why you can’t figure out your purpose or why you don’t even have a favorite food anymore.  It’s because you’ve lost the ability to trust your gut, to listen to your instincts, to trust that you are smart and worthy and qualified and deserving. If you’re reading this and thinking, “SHIT.  She’s talking about me.”, this episode is for you.  This is where you get to start building back your self-trust.  This is where you learn to get quiet and curious and conscientious.  This is where you begin. Thank you to our sponsors: Talkspace: To match with your perfect therapist for a fraction of the price of traditional therapy, go to Talkspace, Make sure to use the code SHAMELESS to get $100 off your first month and show your support for the show. Blue Apron: Check out this week’s menu and get sixty dollars off when you visit http://www.blueapron.com/shameless.