Welcome to Not Fine, Thanks

You're safe to fall apart here.

If you’ve ever said “I’m fine” while your insides were screaming “I’m NOT fine!” this space is for you.

As a therapist with a presence on Instagram, I’ve started to really notice that posting on the platform often feels like a curated projection that everything is fine, well, and “perfect,” even when it’s not.

I realize, if I am to model for you what it means to continue healing, I have got to walk the walk.

I’ve always been cautious to share personal elements of my life on my Instagram page because, as a therapist, my work is not about me; it is about my clients. As a relational therapist, I know that self-disclosure can be powerful in the therapeutic relationship, only when used to attune to the client.

Having a large platform on Instagram changes the game a bit as I expand to embody the role of therapist, educator, and author. I cannot possibly attune to everyone individually, but I know that my personal story can help many in my community feel seen and less alone.

As I write a book that is part memoir, I am allowing myself to embrace more honesty and authenticity with my community, always with the intention of allowing others to feel comfort and validation in the sharing of my own story.

Substack feels like the right place to do it.

I know you have also likely learned to hold it together, smile through the pain, and pretend you’re okay — because it felt safer than being honest. But eventually, that mask gets heavy.

Not Fine, Thanks is a home for anyone who is tired of pretending. Here, I’ll write about what it means to come back to yourself — to stop managing everyone else’s emotions, to tell the truth about your own, and to remember that being messy, imperfect, and not fine is often the doorway to real healing.

I’ll share reflections, stories, and gentle tools from my work as a trauma therapist, but also from my own life, as someone still learning how to rest, feel, and be real.

This space isn’t about fixing yourself. It’s about coming home to yourself. If you’re craving honesty over perfection and connection over composure, I hope you’ll stay awhile. You don’t have to be fine to belong here.

P.S. Hit subscribe to get new reflections straight to your inbox — and if you’re not fine right now, you’re in the right place.

Let’s be real together!

Megan Walsh