Let me tell you something I’ve lived:
You can be strong, successful, spiritual, strategic…
…and still be bone tired.
Not just physically tired.
I mean the kind of tired that sleep doesn’t fix.
That “I can’t be everything to everybody anymore” tired.
That “I’m doing all the right things and still feel off” tired.
If you know that feeling, let’s talk.
Because this? This is the Superwoman Complex—and it’s time we let her go.
👑 The Superwoman Complex Is a Setup
It tells us:
- You must be excellent at everything.
- You don’t need rest.
- You don’t need help.
- You don’t get to have needs, because people need you.
Hello …is this sounding familiar?
We didn’t choose this. It was handed to us—from the church pew, the classroom, the kitchen, the boardroom.
And yes, sometimes from our own mothers, who were just doing what they knew to survive.
But survival isn’t the goal anymore. Thriving is.
📺 Cue Shonda Rhimes
Like Shonda Rhimes wrote in Year of Yes, there comes a time when the “yeses” that built your reputation start eroding your peace.
In a word, she was saying yes to every opportunity, every ask, every expectation—until her health and joy were paying the price.
Her shift?
Start saying yes to herself—yes to rest, boundaries, and joy.
It wasn’t easy. But it was necessary.
So is yours.
😞 What’s The Cost?
Living under the Superwoman Complex comes with hidden costs:
- 🧠 Mental fatigue from carrying the emotional labor of everyone around you.
- 🫀 Health consequences from never sitting down or breathing deeply.
- 🧍🏾♀️ Isolation, because everyone thinks you’re so “strong” you must not need support.
But we do.
You do.
I do…
And here’s the truth I had to face last week:
I overfunctioned. I ignored the signs. I wore the cape. And I felt myself folding under the pressure.
So I took it off. And I chose something else.
💡 What Letting Go Looks Like (and What It Doesn’t)
Letting go of the Superwoman Complex doesn’t mean you stop being powerful.
It means you start being whole.
It looks like:
✅ Asking for help before you’re in crisis
✅ Saying “not this season” to what no longer fits
✅ Choosing your peace over their perception
✅ Not performing for worth you already have
Releasing the cape doesn’t mean you’ve dropped the ball—it means you’ve finally chosen to hold yourself.
✨ My 2 Cents:
You’re allowed to be human.
You’re allowed to be held.
You’re allowed to be enough, even when you do less.
Let the cape fall.
Dr. Lisa