As a trauma survivor, I’ve learned that strength doesn’t always look like grace or silence. It doesn’t always fit the mold of what society expects a woman to be. Trauma changes you—not in the way people might expect, but in ways that help you reclaim your power. The soft-spoken, “demure” version of myself faded away because I had to learn how to survive. I had to speak up, to protect myself, to demand respect. Trauma doesn’t take away your femininity, it just reshapes it into something fiercer, something more resilient. What others might see as “assertiveness” is actually survival. It’s a necessary shift, a way of standing tall and saying, “I will not be broken.” My strength doesn’t need to apologize for being loud or bold—it’s the result of everything I’ve been through. And it’s not just for survival, it’s for thriving.