From Losing Your “Old Life” to Finding Your Power: Grit, Gratitude & Growth
How to move through grief, anxiety and big life changes without losing yourself.
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Watch On YouTube 〰️
TL;DR
Grief isn’t something you “get over” it’s something you learn to live with while you keep moving forward.
Grit is not “sucking it up”; it’s acknowledging that something is hard and choosing to act anyway.
Gratitude isn’t toxic positivity; it’s noticing what helps you get through the day, especially in tough seasons.
Self‑compassion and intuition are practical tools that help you build real confidence and stop chasing outside validation.
You don’t need perfection to change your life or your health, you just need to show up and try, one small step at a time.
🎧 Available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube or wherever you listen to your podcasts.
Introduction
Imagine being a teenager, already dealing with all the usual hormones, friendships and school pressure and at the same time, losing your sight.
That was reality for Laura Bratton. Diagnosed with an eye disease at nine, she slowly went blind over the next decade. By the time she finished high school, she had very limited light perception and no usable vision. Alongside that came deep grief, panic attacks and heavy medication that left her feeling like “a zombie walking around.”
Today, Laura is a grief counsellor, keynote speaker, author of Harnessing Courage and founder of Ubi Global, where she helps people navigate change using two deceptively simple tools: grit and gratitude.
In our conversation on The True Form Podcast, we went deep into what those words actually mean when life falls apart, whether that’s losing a loved one, going through a breakup, facing a health diagnosis, or just feeling like you don’t fit in. We connected her story to everyday challenges like gym anxiety, perfectionism around training and the pressure to “get over it” quickly and move on.
This article pulls out the most practical lessons from that chat, so you can apply them in your own life not as fluffy mindset quotes, but as concrete steps you can take today.
Listen On Apple Podcast
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Listen On Apple Podcast 〰️
Listen On Spotify
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Listen On Spotify 〰️
Lesson 1: Give Yourself Permission to Grieve
What It Is:
Permission to grieve means allowing yourself to feel the full weight of your loss, without rushing to “get over it” or judging your emotions as weakness.
Why It Matters:
Most of us have absorbed the idea that grief should last a few weeks and then be done. Laura shared how this belief made her think there was something “wrong” with her because she was still deeply grieving both her blindness and the teenage experiences she was missing. When you don’t give yourself permission to grieve, your pain doesn’t disappear, it just goes underground and leaks out as anxiety, numbness or burnout. Letting yourself grieve is what actually allows that pain to slowly move through you.
How To Apply It:
Name the loss honestly. Write down or say out loud what you’re grieving: a person, a relationship, your health, a version of your life you hoped for.
Drop the timeline. Notice any “I should be over this by now” thoughts and gently label them as unhelpful stories, not facts.
Validate your feelings. Instead of “I shouldn’t be this upset”, try “Of course I feel this way, this really matters to me.”
Make space for emotions. Set aside a small, safe window (even 5-10 minutes) where you let yourself cry, feel angry, or admit how scared you are.
Avoid comparison. Don’t measure your grief against how you think others would handle it. Your experience is your own.
Pro Tip:
Grief is not a character flaw, it’s a normal response to losing something important. Treat it like weather passing through, not a personal failure.
Try This Today:
Finish this sentence in a notebook or phone note: “Right now, I give myself permission to grieve the loss of , and it makes sense that this hurts because .”
Lesson 2: Sit With Your Pain, But Don’t Sit in It Alone
What It Is:
“Turning towards” your pain means consciously feeling difficult emotions instead of numbing or running from them, while letting other people, or even nature or art, help hold the weight.
Why It Matters:
Laura described years of panic attacks and depression so intense she could barely function, heavily medicated and constantly overwhelmed. One of the key shifts was learning to face her pain instead of trying to deny it, and to lean on support so it didn’t feel too big to handle. When you try to go into deep grief completely alone, it can feel terrifying. Shared, it becomes bearable and slowly starts to move.
How To Apply It:
Choose your “containers.” Decide where you feel safest feeling big emotions, with a close friend, in therapy, on a walk in nature, journalling, or through music/art.
Signal your need clearly. Tell someone you trust, “I’m not looking for advice, I just need you to listen while I get this out.”
Let someone else “hold” it. Talk, draw, cry or sit quietly. Imagine the other person, or the environment, holding the emotion with you.
If you’re the supporter, listen. Resist the urge to fix. Laura’s advice: listen, validate, and say things like, “I can’t imagine how hard that was,” instead of handing over a to‑do list.
Set a gentle boundary. After a while, close the ritual: “That’s enough for today. I’ve honoured what I’m feeling, and now I’ll focus on the next small thing I can do.”
Pro Tip:
If you feel useless listening to someone’s pain, remember Laura’s line: “Listening is enough.” Trying to fix everything often just adds pressure.
Try This Today:
Text a trusted friend: “Hey, I’m going through something and could use 10 minutes of you just listening, no advice needed. Are you up for that this week?”
Lesson 3: Practise Self‑Compassion Like You Would for a Best Mate
What It Is:
Self‑compassion is treating yourself with the same kindness and understanding you’d offer a close friend who is struggling.
Why It Matters:
When people told Jack to “just get over” his breakup, it minimised his pain and made him feel like he should be tougher. Laura pointed out that we’d never speak to a friend like that, we’d offer support at 3am and cheer when they met someone new. Self‑compassion isn’t self‑pity. It’s acknowledging, “This is hard, and I’m going to love myself enough to figure out how to move forward.” That mindset makes it far more likely you’ll actually heal and take healthy action.
How To Apply It:
Notice your inner voice. When you’re struggling, write down what you’re saying to yourself. Would you say that to a friend?
Rewrite the script. Turn “Suck it up, get over it” into “This is really hard for me, and that makes sense. I’m here for myself while I work through it.”
Use the best‑friend test. Before you talk to yourself harshly, ask, “What would I say to my best mate in this situation?” Say that to yourself instead.
Allow both pain and progress. Give yourself permission to cry at 3am and to be excited when something new or good appears. Both can be true.
Normalise discomfort. Recognise that feeling scared or sad doesn’t mean you’re failing, it means you’re human and you care.
Pro Tip:
If “self‑compassion” sounds too fluffy, swap it for acknowledge. As Laura said, “If I could sum up self‑compassion in one word, it’s acknowledge.”
Try This Today:
Write one self‑compassion sentence about something current: “This situation is tough because , and I’m allowed to find it hard while I work out my next step.”
Lesson 4: Redefine Grit, It’s Not “Get Over It”
What It Is:
Grit, in Laura’s framework, is acknowledging that something is hard, scary or painful, and still choosing to take the next step. It is not suppressing feelings or pretending everything is fine.
Why It Matters:
Many of us think resilience means “suck it up, swallow your emotions and push on.” Laura rejects that. For her, grit is sending the scary work email even while your heart is racing, or walking into the gym even though you’re anxious. She still felt anxious after pressing send on that email, but the point is, she did it. Waiting until you feel nothing before you act means you may never act at all.
How To Apply It:
Identify the next tiny step. Instead of “fix my whole life,” ask, “What’s the next 30‑second action I can take?” e.g. put shoes on, open the email draft, book the appointment.
Acknowledge your fear. Say, “I’m anxious and I’m doing this anyway,” rather than “I’m not scared.” Both truth and action can coexist.
Lower the bar to ‘trying’. Laura’s coach told her, “It’s not about perfection, it’s about progress.” Execution equals trying, not nailing it.
Detach from outcomes. See each action as practice, not a test. Whether the email lands perfectly or not, you’re building the “I can do hard things” muscle.
Celebrate effort, not perfection. At the end of the day, ask, “Where did I show grit today?” even if the step was tiny.
Pro Tip:
If you’re waiting for fear to disappear before you act, you’re mixing up grit with numbness. Grit is action with feeling, not without it.
Try This Today:
Pick one thing you’ve been avoiding (a message, a booking, a gym visit). Set a timer for 2 minutes and take just the first step, write the message, open the booking page, or stand at the gym door. That counts.
Lesson 5: Practise Real Gratitude (Not Toxic Positivity)
What It Is:
Gratitude, as Laura uses it, is noticing and appreciating what helps you get through life, especially through hard days. It is not saying “be grateful and get over it” or pretending your pain doesn’t exist.
Why It Matters:
When people told Laura to be grateful and move on from her blindness, it minimised the reality that she still lives every day in a sighted world without sight. Her gratitude isn’t “I’m so glad I’m blind”; it’s “I’m thankful for my guide dog who helped me navigate safely today.” This kind of gratitude becomes a source of grounding and strength, not a way to silence emotions.
How To Apply It:
Keep grief and gratitude separate. Allow yourself to say, “This is really hard” and “I’m grateful for what’s helping me through.” Both can be true.
Focus on supports, not silver linings. Notice people, tools, environments or habits that make your day a bit more bearable.
Integrate it into your evening. Laura suggests a simple cue: as you wind down, think of three things you’re grateful for from that day. No journal required.
Use reminders. Set a phone reminder labelled “Gratitude” or put a sticky note on your mirror so you don’t forget.
Start small and specific. “My friend picked up the phone,” “The walk cleared my head,” “My body got me through the day.”
Pro Tip:
If gratitude feels fake, you’re probably trying to use it to erase pain. Use it to support you in the pain, not to override it.
Try This Today:
Tonight, while brushing your teeth, name three things that helped you get through the day, out loud or in your head. Keep it simple.
Lesson 6: Trust Your Intuition and Believe You Are Enough
What It Is:
Intuition is your deeper sense of what’s really going on beneath appearances, in yourself and in others. Believing “I am enough” is choosing to start from a place of worth, rather than constantly chasing external proof through bodies, likes or achievements.
Why It Matters:
Losing her sight forced Laura to rely less on visual cues and more on tone, energy and words. She’ll talk to someone who looks put‑together, expensive clothes and all the latest tech, yet hears deep panic underneath. She also sees how people chase supplements, face creams and extreme programs to feel “enough”. When you start from “I am enough,” you still pursue growth, like training and eating well, but from grounded self‑respect rather than desperation.
How To Apply It:
Pause before you buy or commit. Ask, “Am I doing this because I feel not enough, or because I already value myself and want to take care of me?”
Listen beyond appearances. When you encounter “perfect” bodies or flashy success online, pay attention to the actual words and energy. Do they feel grounded or anxious and sales‑driven?
Check in with your body. Notice how your body feels around certain people, content or offers: relaxed, tight, rushed, pressured? That bodily sense is information.
Affirm your ‘enoughness’. Daily, remind yourself: “I am enough because I am me. I can still grow, but my worth isn’t on the line.”
Choose growth from love, not fear. Exercise, eat well and build habits because you care about yourself, not because you’re trying to fix something broken.
Pro Tip:
If a trainer or influencer makes you feel panicked, ashamed or rushed into buying, take that as a sign your intuition is picking up misalignment. Step back.
Try This Today:
Before your next health choice (workout, food, purchase), ask: “If I already believed I was enough, what would I choose right now?”
Mini Case/Example
“The honest answer is pure survival. What put me in that pure survival was going through teenage years and also losing my sight at the exact same time.” - Laura Bratton
“Grit is acknowledging that hard and still choosing to move forward.” - Laura Bratton
“You would not say to your best friend, ‘Get over it, suck it up, move on’, but that’s exactly what we say to ourselves.” - Laura Bratton
These moments from the episode capture the heart of Laura’s message: your hardest seasons don’t have to turn into motivational posters to matter. They just have to be lived through, one honest, gritty, compassionate step at a time.
Quick Wins Checklist (Do These Today)
Write down one thing you’re grieving right now and give yourself explicit permission to feel it.
Tell one trusted person, “I don’t need fixing, I’d just love you to listen for 10 minutes.”
When you catch harsh self‑talk, pause and rewrite it as if you were speaking to your best mate.
Take one gritty action you’ve been avoiding, send the email, message the coach, or walk into the gym even if you only stay five minutes.
Before bed, name three things that helped you get through the day, no matter how small.
Ask yourself: “If I already believed I was enough, what’s one small way I’d look after myself today?”
Closing Insight
Grit and gratitude sound like big, inspiring words. In Laura Bratton’s story, they’re not abstract at all, they’re the everyday tools that helped her get through panic attacks, deep grief and the shock of losing her sight while the world expected her to bounce back quickly.
You don’t have to face something as dramatic as blindness for these ideas to matter. They apply just as much to a breakup, a stalled career, a health scare or the simple fear of walking into the gym for the first time. Every time you acknowledge your pain instead of minimising it, choose a small action in the presence of fear, or notice one thing that helped you today, you’re practising the same muscles Laura uses.
Change rarely comes from one heroic moment. It comes from hundreds of quiet choices to be honest, to be kind to yourself and to keep moving – even when your hands are shaking.
You are allowed to grieve and grow at the same time. And you are more capable, and more “enough”, than your harshest thoughts would have you believe.
Listen to the full episode: From Losing Her Sight to Finding Her Power: Grit, Gratitude & Growth with Laura Bratton
🎧 Available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube or wherever you listen to your podcasts.
Watch me on YouTube
Listen to the True From Podcast:
Apple Podcast -
https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/the-true-form-podcast/id1593804496
Spotify -
https://open.spotify.com/show/6RVH2O6MbLOCohBKPhXO0L?si=ZI8D3MnhSfSjnohSXYN_MQ
Everywhere els -
https://trueform.buzzsprout.com
Sponsor: If you’re interested in trying red and near-infrared light therapy for recovery, pain, and overall health, check out Lumaflex. Use code TRUEFORM for 10% off: https://lumaflex.com.au/TRUEFORM
