About She Shines Abundance
Let’s skip the part where I pretend I’m a productivity guru who has “healed” herself with green juice and a positive attitude. If you’re looking for someone to tell you that everything happens for a reason or that you just need to “manifest” your way out of a flare-up, you’ve come to the wrong corner of the internet.
My name is Briony, and most days, my life is a bloody joke. I’m a tattooed mum with 2 kids and a body that likes to play a game of “what part is going to fail today?”
A few years ago, I hit a wall. Not just a “I’m a bit tired” wall, but a full-scale, life-altering collapse. After years of living in a hyper-independent survival mode: the kind where you carry the weight of everyone else’s expectations until your spine literally rebels: my body decided it was done. I was diagnosed with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS), Functional Neurological Disorder (FND), Autism and ADHD, and suddenly, the woman who “did everything” couldn’t even stand up long enough to make a cup of tea.
The Reality of the Post-Survival Phase
When you’ve spent your whole life in survival mode, finally stopping feels less like peace and more like a car crash. No one tells you about the post-survival phase. They tell you how to “get through the storm,” but they don’t tell you what to do when the storm is over and you’re standing in the wreckage of your old life, wondering who the hell you are now.
For me, that wreckage looked like moving my entire life to the couch sanctuary. It looked like grieving the “active” mum I thought I was supposed to be and realizing that my value isn’t tied to how much I can do.
This space exists because I’m tired of seeing polished, aesthetic versions of healing. Real healing is messy. It’s raw. It’s often incredibly boring and frustrating. It’s about learning to be a human being rather than a human doing.
Who Is This Space For?
If you feel like you’ve been “put on pause” while the rest of the world keeps spinning, I see you. If you’re living with the silent, lingering signs of trauma or the heavy weight of an invisible illness, you’re not “broken.” You’re just navigating a map that nobody gave you instructions for.
I write for the women who are:
Dealing with the exhaustion of chronic illness (EDS, FND, and everything in between).
Grieving the “lost futures” they had planned.
Struggling with the guilt of parenting with limitations.
Trying to find a sense of purpose when survival has been their only setting for decades.
I don’t have all the answers. Honestly, I’m still figuring out how to navigate the “couch sanctuary” without feeling like a burden. But I do know that there is power in telling the truth about how hard it is.
What You’ll Find Here (And What You Won’t)
You won’t find toxic positivity here. I’m not going to tell you to “stay strong” when you need to rest. I’m not going to tell you that your illness is a “gift.” It’s not. It’s a challenge that requires an insane amount of grit and self-compassion to navigate.
What you will find is:
Realistic Mindset Work: The kind that acknowledges the pain while looking for tiny pockets of peace.
Messy Healing Stories: Honest reflections on the days when everything feels heavy.
Parenting from the Couch: How to be the mum your kids need when your body doesn’t cooperate.
Slow Living for the Chronically Ill: How to build a life that respects your capacity.
From Survival to Existence
We spend so much time trying to “fix” ourselves so we can get back to the way we were. But what if the way we were: the hyper-independent, over-achieving, exhausted version of us: is what led us here in the first place?
My journey has been about stripping away the “shoulds” and learning to exist in the middle of the mess. It’s about finding joy and purpose in the small things, like the way the light hits the floor or the 60 seconds of quiet you get before the kids wake up.
It’s about realizing that even if you can’t “do” everything, you are still inherently worthy of a life that feels good to live.
Join the Journey (Or Just Hang Out on the Couch With Me)
This Substack is my way of reaching out a hand to anyone else stuck in the post-survival fog. We’re not fixing ourselves; we’re learning to live.
If you want to stay connected and get these honest updates straight to your inbox, I’d love to have you here. There’s no pressure to be “high vibes.” Just show up as you are: exhaustion, tattoos, mess, and all.
As a little welcome, I want to share something that actually helps me when my nervous system is screaming. My FREE 60-Second Nervous System Reset Cards are designed for those moments when you don’t have the energy for a 30-minute meditation, but you desperately need to find your centre.
Grab them, keep them on your phone, and use them when the world feels like a bit too much.
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