
Breathe: The Stress Less Podcast
Bonnie GrayThe Cost of Being Too Strong: How the Father Wound Disconnects Us from Emotional Wellness #167
June 2, 2025 ● 19 minShare this episode
Feeling emotionally exhausted from always being strong? In this episode, discover how the father wound leads to hyper-independence and disconnection from emotional wellness — and learn how soul care, science, and God’s love can help you heal and feel safe again.
Description
Have you ever felt like you always have to be strong — even when your heart feels worn thin?
Many women carry the hidden weight of father wounds — growing up without the presence of a loving father, or with a dad who was emotionally unavailable. Over time, they learn to protect themselves by becoming hyper-independent, numbing the part of their heart that still longs to be nurtured, seen, and safe.
In this episode, you’ll learn how being “too strong” for too long can disconnect us from emotional wellness. Bonnie explains how father wounds often lead to hyper-independence, and how soul care helps restore trust, emotional safety, and the freedom to receive love again.
Tune in to understand how hyper-independence develops as a trauma response and how it quietly impacts your ability to rest, feel connected, and be vulnerable. You’ll be guided through a breath prayer to reconnect with God’s nurturing presence, and take two practical soul care steps — rooted in scripture and science — to begin reparenting your heart and experiencing emotional wellness.
Key Takeaways from Today’s Soul Care:
• Why the father wound often leads to numbness or emotional shutdown
• What science says about the nervous system and our need for safety
• How “being strong” can block us from receiving love
• Why soul care is a spiritual path to restoring vulnerability
• How to gently reparent your heart with God’s truth and tenderness
Breath Prayer:
Inhale: He gathers the lambs in His arms
Exhale: and carries them close to His heart
Scripture of the Week:
Isaiah 40:11 —
“He gathers the lambs in His arms and carries them close to His heart.”
Isaiah 46:4 —
“Even to your old age and gray hairs I am He, I am He who will sustain you.
I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you.”
Featured Resource: FREE Soul Care Quiz at https://soulcarequiz.com
Get your free personal wellness assessment – and learn which type of soul care – emotional, physical, spiritual, or social — you need most.
→ Take the free quiz at https://soulcarequiz.com
Connect with Bonnie:
Bestselling Books by Bonnie:
https://amzn.to/3NpVYQd
Join the Soul Care Newsletter:
https://thebonniegray.com/subscribe
Watch Weekly YouTube Devotionals:
https://youtube.com/thebonniegray
Follow Bonnie on Instagram & Facebook:
@thebonniegray
Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.
Today's Devotional
A Prayer to Embrace Rest and Relaxation over Summer Break - Your Daily Prayer - June 23
When summer doesn’t go as planned, Jesus still offers us soul-deep rest right where we are. Slow down, breathe in His peace, and let Him restore you.
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