When You Feel Alone: Lean Into Connection with Therapist Breeze Potts

What if the very things you're doing to protect yourself from rejection are actually keeping you from the connection you're longing for?Episode SummaryHave you ever felt lonely even when you're surrounded by people? Maybe you have friends, family, a spouse, a church community—and yet something inside you still feels disconnected, unseen, or alone.Licensed mental health counselor Breeze Potts joins Willow for an honest conversation about why women often struggle with loneliness and what can keep us trapped there. Breeze shares that underneath anxiety, depression, relational conflict, and other struggles, she often hears a deeper question from women: Who am I, will I be accepted, and am I enough?Together, Breeze and Willow unpack how comparison, social media, shame, and the fear that our struggles are "too much" can cause us to withdraw from the very relationships we need. We may cancel plans, stop returning texts, become critical of others, or convince ourselves that no one really wants to know us. And sometimes, without realizing it, our inner assumptions begin creating the loneliness we're trying to escape.But there is another way. Breeze encourages women to lean in—to challenge the stories we tell ourselves, become aware of our patterns, reach out, and take small courageous steps toward connection. And at the heart of it all is the beautiful truth of Emmanuel: God is with us. We don't have to clean ourselves up, fix everything, or become someone else before God meets us. He meets us as we are.If you've been feeling lonely, disconnected, rejected, or convinced that you're too much, this conversation will remind you that you are worthy of relationship, community, and love—and you don't have to stay isolated.Meet Breeze PottsBreeze Potts is a licensed mental health counselor who has been practicing for more than 12 years. She has a gift for "drawing the deep out of people," helping women explore the thoughts, assumptions, patterns, and experiences that can keep them stuck.Breeze and Willow have been friends for nearly 20 years, and their long-standing friendship gives this conversation an especially honest and vulnerable feel. Breeze brings both professional training and personal experience to the conversation, openly acknowledging that many of the questions she helps women navigate are ones she has wrestled with herself.Key TakeawaysWhen you feel lonely or disconnected: Look beneath the loneliness and ask what beliefs or fears may be keeping you from reaching out.When comparison makes you feel like you're not enough: Recognize how social media and idealized images can distort the way you see yourself and your life.When you assume you're too much or too broken: Challenge the inner story that says you're the exception—that God's grace and other people's love somehow don't apply to you.When you're tempted to isolate: Take one small step toward connection instead of waiting for someone else to rescue you from loneliness.When you wonder whether God is really with you: Remember Emmanuel—God meets you right where you are, just as you are.How This Episode Will Encourage YouIf you're lonely, don't believe the story that you're too much, too broken, or too difficult to love. Lean in, reach out, and let safe people remind you of who you really are. God is with you—and He often uses other people to help you experience that truth.Follow Willow: Website | Instagram | Facebook💑Check out Collide’s website for info on upcoming conferences, events, and resources.📲Follow Collide on Facebook and Instagram for encouragement, inspo and a fun peek into our ministry.