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The Five A.M. Club
The magic of waking up really fucking early.
Growing up, there was a lot of shame associated with standing in the self-help aisle of a bookstore. If you were caught there, rumors would spread around town about how sad, pathetic, and lonely you were. If you were really desperate to read a book that could change your life for the better, you’d either have to wear a disguise to the library or break-in at midnight and steal it.
I’m happy to report that a large portion of humanity has evolved since I was a child, because now it’s cool to be flawed and imperfect. The self-help aisle has been rebranded as the Self-Improvement aisle, the Self-Transformation aisle, or the Personal Growth aisle. People are doing the work. And if your TikTok algorithm is about Green Flags, you’ll know that going to therapy is the most loving thing a person can do for themself.
I’ve been going to therapy regularly since 2016. I arrived completely broken. I had been assaulted by my boss a few months earlier, and it caused me to sink into the deepest depression I’ve ever felt. And that’s really saying something because I grew up in Alaska, where we have the highest numbers of depression and suicide in the nation. Woohoo, we did it! I developed severe PTSD, and I could barely sleep. I numbed myself every day and night with wine or gin to get some reprieve from being alive. Eventually, I hit…
