#HEYGRRRLFRENNNS it’s that time of year again. The sun is finally staying out past 6 pm, the group chats are talking about bottomless brunch, and suddenly everyone’s reorganizing their closets and lighting candles that smell like fresh starts. Spring always brings this wave of renewal, and while we love a good deep clean, the kind of clutter that really weighs us down isn’t just in our homes. It’s in our heads. It’s in the narratives we’ve been carrying. It’s in the roles we’re still performing, the insecurities we’re still nurturing, the beliefs we’re still holding onto even though they stopped serving us a long time ago. Let’s be real, some of us are walking around with mental storage units full of expired feelings. And we keep trying to manifest new beginnings while holding on to old versions of ourselves. Versions that are still operating from fear, still believing they’re not enough, still replaying stories about who they have to be in order to be loved, seen, or safe. And it’s not your fault. You were probably handed those stories before you even had the language to question them. But now that you do? You get to let them go. There is something powerful about naming what no longer belongs to you. Not in a dramatic, I have my life all figured out way, but in a small, honest, this doesn’t feel like me anymore kind of way. That is where emotional spring cleaning starts. Not with a full reset, but with a moment of truth. A pause. A real look at what you are still holding that you have already outgrown.

This blog post is not about becoming a whole new person. It is about making space to come back to yourself. Emotional spring cleaning is not about perfection. It is about honesty. And honesty starts with asking what stories you are still telling yourself that are no longer true. Maybe you are still carrying old definitions of success, beauty, or worth that you picked up years ago without realizing it. Maybe you are still playing out habits and patterns that were once protective but are now holding you back. Maybe you are still identifying with a version of yourself that no longer fits, just because it is familiar. Comfort zones be loud sometimes. Letting go does not mean pretending those stories never shaped you. It means choosing to tell a different one now that you know better. Because sometimes growth is not about adding more. It is about releasing. Clearing emotional clutter is how you make room for clarity. It is how you make space for new thoughts, new dreams, and new ways of being that actually feel like you. This week, we are talking about how to recognize what you have outgrown and how to release it with intention. Not because you are trying to be perfect, but because you are ready to feel lighter. Ready to stop letting old stories take up space in a life you are still writing!

Drop the Baggage, Keep the Lesson

A lot of us are holding onto emotional baggage that doesn’t even belong to us. Stories passed down through family, religion, media, and survival mode that taught us how to shrink ourselves, stay small, and avoid rocking the boat. For Black grrrls especially, this baggage often shows up as pressure to be strong all the time, to put everyone else first, to be selfless, grateful, quiet, and unproblematic. It is exhausting, and it’s also deeply ingrained. Like Generational trauma much? We were never taught how to question those stories. We were just expected to live inside of them. So instead of checking in with ourselves, we internalize. We assume the problem is us. We think we are not doing enough. Not healing fast enough. Not successful enough. When in reality, we are just trying to grow inside a script we didn’t even write. That’s why emotional spring cleaning matters. It’s not just about setting better boundaries or saying nice things to yourself in the mirror. It’s about getting honest about what you’ve been taught to believe and deciding whether you still want to carry it. There’s a difference between wisdom and weight. Some of the stories you’ve been carrying did teach you something. They kept you safe. They helped you survive. But you’re not surviving anymore. You’re building something new. And in this season of growth, you don’t have to carry every story that got you here. You get to take the lesson and leave the rest. You get to say, “That helped me once, but it’s not helping me now.” This kind of clearing is quiet. It doesn’t look like a glow-up. It looks like asking yourself better questions. It looks like noticing your patterns and choosing not to repeat them. It looks like giving yourself permission to do things differently even if no one else understands why. Emotional spring cleaning isn’t about becoming a perfect version of yourself. It’s about getting honest enough to release what’s no longer yours to carry—and brave enough to believe you’re allowed to grow past it.

The Same Ol Grrrl

It’s easy to get attached to the versions of ourselves that once helped us survive. The overachiever. The people-pleaser. The fixer. The quiet one who never made waves. These roles might have protected you once, but they don’t always evolve with you. And sometimes we keep playing them out not because they still serve us, but because we don’t know who we are without them. Identity crisis aisle five. But just because something used to be part of your identity doesn’t mean it has to stay. You’re allowed to shift. You’re allowed to let go of roles that make you feel small, tired, or disconnected. That’s part of emotional spring cleaning too—realizing that growth isn’t always about doing more. Sometimes it’s about being less performative, less self-sacrificing, less available to versions of yourself that were built in survival mode. A lot of us grew up in spaces that praised us for being responsible, quiet, or easy to manage. We learned that being “good” meant being agreeable. That self-worth had to be earned through achievements or service. That confidence was arrogance and that softness was weakness. These ideas are not just outdated. They’re harmful. And yet, they still shape the way we move if we don’t pause to examine them. Letting go of these stories might feel scary at first. You might worry that people won’t recognize you. That you won’t recognize yourself. That’s normal. But what’s waiting for you on the other side of that fear is something softer and more true. The freedom to create a version of yourself that actually feels like home. Not because you’ve fixed everything, but because you’ve stopped performing and started listening. You don’t have to keep playing a role you’ve outgrown just because it’s familiar. You’re not meant to stay the same forever. You’re meant to evolve. And even if that evolution is uncomfortable, it’s worth it. Let the version of you that’s tired of performing take a break. Let the version of you that’s curious and open finally take the lead.

Grrrl, Let it Go

Letting go isn’t always a big dramatic moment. Sometimes it’s subtle. Sometimes it looks like taking a deep breath before responding to something that used to set you off. Sometimes it’s catching yourself in an old thought pattern and choosing not to spiral. Sometimes it’s hearing your inner critic speak up and deciding not to let her run the show. You’ve been muted, ma’am. Emotional spring cleaning is less about reinventing yourself and more about remembering who you are underneath the baggage. And the more you let go, the more space you create. Not just in your schedule or your relationships, but in your mind. The stories we carry take up room. They shape how we see ourselves. They influence what we believe we deserve. And when those stories are rooted in shame, fear, or outdated expectations, they block our growth without us even realizing it. You do not have to carry what you’ve outgrown just to keep other people comfortable. You do not have to keep identifying with pain just because it’s familiar. You are allowed to be new. You are allowed to be different. You are allowed to wake up one day and decide that who you were last year is not who you want to be anymore. That’s not fake. That’s growth. It is also okay if letting go takes time. You might not be able to release everything all at once. You might need to revisit the same story a few times before you feel ready to move on from it. That doesn’t mean you’re failing. It means you’re being gentle with yourself. It means you’re practicing. And that’s what this season is all about—softening into the parts of you that are still unfolding and giving yourself the grace to take your time. So if you are in the middle of a slow release, a quiet shift, or a subtle transformation that no one else can see yet, know that it’s real. Know that it’s enough. And know that the lighter you feel, the more room you’ll have for the version of you that’s trying to grow next.

You do not need to have it all figured out to let something go. You do not need a full rebrand, a dramatic epiphany, or a neat little storyline. Sometimes it starts with a quiet decision. A gut check. A moment of truth where you realize, “This no longer feels like me.” That is enough. That is the beginning. Emotional spring cleaning is not about becoming someone new. It is about clearing space so you can meet the version of yourself that has been waiting underneath the noise. You are not too late. You are not behind. You are simply shedding what you’ve outgrown. And that is worth honoring. The things that helped you survive do not have to stay forever. The roles you used to play, the beliefs you used to hold, the narratives that no longer fit—you are allowed to release them. And in their place, you can start planting something softer. Something rooted in your actual needs, not your past fears. Something that makes room for joy, ease, curiosity, and rest. This season, permit yourself to unpack. Even if it is messy. Even if you are still learning what to keep and what to let go of. The clarity will come. The peace will follow. You do not have to hold everything to prove how far you have come. Sometimes, the most powerful thing you can do is lighten your load and make space for what is next. Now go and be great you lil grrrly pop. TTYL.