Our vaults can leave us lonely, isolated from others, exacerbating the pain of invisibility. And thats a tough way to go. The amount we hold there, hidden out of sight and guarded by instinctive feelings of fear or shame, can contribute to a larger sense that we dont belong or dont matterthat our truth will never comfortably fit with the reality of the world were living in. In keeping our vulnerabilities private, we never get the chance to know who else is out there, who else might understand or even be helped by whatever it is were holding back.

The Light We Carry by Michelle Obama