sentences that have altered my brain chemistry

borrowed words from songs, strangers, and the universe

Nov 27, 2025

I don’t know when I started doing this - in high school? in uni? after my first yoga teacher training?

What I do know is that by now, I have over a decade of notes and phrases stored up. They live in half-filled journals, on sticky notes, in iNotes and through screenshots: a catch-all of tiny keepsakes from different versions of me.

I’ve stopped in the middle of a street to write down a phrase I just couldn’t forget. I’ve missed tube stops because I was rewinding a podcast to catch a sentence again. I’ve highlighted lines from seemingly frivolous fiction because a character said something that just. clicked.

As a girl who works online, I’ll be the first to say that social media so often seems to be littered with meaningless Instagram quotes. And like the motivational sayings in the lockers of budget gyms (you know the ones)… most of them float past without a second glance.

But sometimes a phrase stands out. And lands. Like it was meant for me all along.

I like to see them as signs; as little signals from my guardian angels, or spirit guides, or higher cosmic intelligence. Like a nod or cue from my future self, pointing me in a direction or just reminding me that actually, everything really is ok.

And sometimes a phrase lands for a specific situation in my life - but then I come across the same sentence again six months later and the meaning is completely different for me. That the beauty of words - they change and grow as you do.

So here are some of my favourites right now - and if you have any to share, please leave them in the comments, because I find the best ones are always ones that are spoken in conversation. Sometimes, you don’t realise how much you needed to hear something until you do.

some of the phrases I hold onto when I need a lifeline:

rejection is protection
keep every stone they throw at you. you have castles to build.
the greatest love story you’ll ever write is the one you have with yourself
let it be good now
the braver i am, the luckier i get
you’re not behind, you’re just in a different chapter than they are
clarity comes from movement, not thinking
you’re allowed to outgrow the version of you that someone else still knows
the longer you stay on the wrong train, the more expensive it is to get home.
becoming the best version of yourself comes with a lot of goodbyes
does it feel wrong or does it just feel unfamiliar?
you will never be “too much” for the people that are meant for you
become the person you want to spend the rest of your life with
how badly do you want to feel good?
the way you spend your days is the way you spend your life
maybe you don’t realise how good you are because you keep raising the bar
if your heart is pretty, the rest of you will be too
ambition without action becomes anxiety
you can be proud of your past and still want a different future
when you say you can’t decide, it means you already know what to do but you’re not ready to admit it to yourself
the point is not to make it, the point is to be made by it
if your peace depends on everything to be just right, it’s not peace, it’s control
softness doesn’t mean submission
close the window that hurts you, no matter how beautiful the view is
allow uncertainty to feel like adventure
most of the time, we are most fearful about the dreams we care most about
if it’s your calling, it will keep calling
just make it exist; you can make it good later
sometimes the person who reminded you of what your dreams are can’t be the one you build them with
it’s everyone else’s first time living, too
your greatest strategy is your identity
sometimes the reason you haven’t seen something done is because you are the person meant to do it
burnout is the cost of constantly betraying yourself
people who avoid their own feelings can’t help but neglect yours too
trust the plot twist!
sometimes our most valuable resources come from the miseries of our past
most things are not a problem to solve, but a paradox to manage
your life is a mirror image of your thoughts
what’s coming is going to be so much better than what’s gone
you can have it all, but not all at the same time, and that’s wonderful because it means you always have something to look forward to
if you never had the experience that almost broke you, you wouldn’t have the strength that you have today
being ready isn’t a feeling it’s a choice
whenever you’re struggling to make a choice, just ask yourself “which one supports the life i want to create”
you will never be pulled down by someone who is further ahead than you
the one decision you’re afraid of making could be the very one that sets you free
you may not have chosen how your story starts, but you can choose how it ends
change is scary but nothing is as scary as being stuck in the same place all your life
you will never be comfortable somewhere you were not meant to be
stop asking people for directions to places they’ve never been