Work Took More Than Time

Dear Delyara, It took confidence. Ease. Voice. The old unguarded part of me that once entered rooms without mentally shrinking first. That is the damage I am still dealing with. People talk about work stress like it’s mainly about hours, pressure, bosses, salary. Sometimes it’s much more intimate than that. Sometimes work enters the self. It changes how a woman speaks, how much she apologises, how much space she believes she can take up, how quickly she anticipates criticism. I don’t think I left some workplaces untouched. I think parts of me are still leaving.