Abuse doesn’t always end when the relationship does. The words spoken in anger, control, or cruelty don’t just fade away when you step into something healthier. They linger, curling into the corners of your mind, surfacing in moments you thought should be filled with joy. I know this because I’m living it. For years, I was told I was fat. I was told I was stupid. I was told I would never amount to anything. Those words became a soundtrack, one I didn’t ask for but somehow still hum along to. And even now, years later, in a marriage that feels safe and full of love, those echoes still whisper. Tomorrow, I’m boarding a cruise with my husband—a man who loves me as I am, who has never once made my size a condition of his love. But instead of packing excitement into my suitcase, I find myself folding in self-doubt. “I should have waited until I lost weight.” “I should have bought bigger clothes to camouflage my body.” “What are people going to think?” These thoughts don’...