Peace: Be Still

A Women's Guide To Prioritizing Her Wellbeing

There are certain conversations women only have in a quiet setting or in safe environments facilitated by someone they truly trust … the kind we save for a trusted friend, or for those rare moments when our soul is too tired to pretend. And this, dear friend, is one of them.

Peace

Not the decorative word on a holiday card.

Not the polite smile we wear when our heart is heavy.

Not the performance of “I’m fine” that we’ve all mastered, all too well.

I’m talking about the real thing—the God-gifted, soul-settling, mind-restoring peace that holds you together when life is pulling at your every seam.

Especially during the holidays—when everyone else seems wrapped in joy—we feel the pressure to smile through exhaustion, hide behind perfection, and pretend our souls aren’t weary.

And I need to say this with authority and with love: Peace is not optional. Peace is essential. Peace is instruction from God. It is His reminder that your soul has a right to breathe.

WHY SO MANY WOMEN STRUGGLE TO KEEP IT

God offers us peace as a divine stabilizer—a grounding force that lets us stand steady even when life feels unstable.

But women, especially, struggle to maintain it. Not because we are weak, but because we have been conditioned to carry more than any one soul should ever be asked to hold.

We carry our households.

We carry corporations.

We carry our partners.

We carry our children.

We carry emotions—ours and everyone else’s.

We carry expectations that were never meant to be ours.

We carry childhood wounds while still showing up as grown women.

We carry disappointment, heartbreak, survival, and responsibility.

And all that carrying has a consequence.

Psychology confirms what we have already come to know:

• Women experience anxiety at nearly double the rate of men.

• Emotional overload keeps our nervous system in a constant state of alarm.

• Peace deprivation alters sleep, mood, appetite, and the ability to think clearly.

• Chronic stress reshapes the brain, making calm feel foreign and chaos feel familiar.

So when you say, “I just want peace,” you are not being dramatic. You are identifying a spiritual and physiological need.

THE GOD-GIFTED JOY OF PEACE… AND WHY WOMEN NEED IT MOST

Peace is not passive. It is not soft. It is not the “quietness” we force ourselves to fake.

Peace is a divine alignment—your soul’s ability to breathe and be still, Peace Be Still, while the world spins. It's a gift from God that comes with authority: “My peace I give to you…” — which means what God gives you, no one should have the power to take.

But here’s the part women rarely say out loud:

We are conditioned to sacrifice our peace for everyone else’s comfort. We become the family anchor, the emotional regulator, the cheerleader, the chauffeur, the holiday host, the fixer, the glue, the peacemaker, the therapist, the strong one—while quietly unraveling inside.

Clinical psychology even supports this truth:

• Women experience anxiety disorders at nearly twice the rate of men.

• Chronic peace-disruption triggers physical symptoms: headaches, migraines, digestive issues, panic attacks, insomnia, overweight, heart attacks, and strokes.

• Emotional labor depletion—the cost of managing everyone else’s emotions—can lead to burnout and depression.

• Hypervigilance, especially in women who have experienced trauma or instability, tricks the brain into believing peace is unsafe… so we reject it even when we crave it.

WHEN YOUR SOUL IS WEARY

You know the signs.

I know them too.

A weary soul doesn’t just feel tired—it feels drained, overextended, undone.

A weary soul becomes forgetful.

Disconnected.

Easily overwhelmed. Emotionally reactive or emotionally numb.

Sometimes both, depending on the day.

And here’s the truth most women avoid admitting: A weary soul often loses peace not because life is loud… but because we’ve ignored the warning signs for far too long.

THE REAL COST OF PEACELESSNESS

Let me offer you the question I had to ask myself:

Is the cost I’m paying worth what I’m receiving?

Sometimes peace slips away because the exchange rate is unfair. You give your emotional stability…and in return you get stress.

You give your mental clarity…and get confusion.

You give your time, energy, compassion, and often times love…and get very little poured back into you. If the value isn’t equal, you have the right to rescind the offer.

Not out of anger.

Not out of punishment.

But out of wisdom.

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN A WOMAN LIVES WITHOUT PEACE

Let’s speak plainly, friend to friend:

1. You shrink.

Dreams get smaller. Purpose gets quieter. You stop recognizing your own reflection.

2. You disconnect.

Not because you don’t care—but because your soul is tired of trying to hold everything together.

3. You move into survival mode. Your brain stays alert. Your shoulders stay tight. Your breath stays short.

4. You silence your needs. You talk yourself out of rest. You explain away your exhaustion. You normalize what should never be normal. This is why peace must be protected, not postponed.

HOW TO RECLAIM YOUR PEACE

Here’s where wisdom, therapy, and experience meet:

1. SET INTERNAL BOUNDARIES FIRST. Boundaries don’t start with other people.

Return to yourself. They start with the conversations you have with yourself. Tell yourself: “This is too heavy. I don’t have to carry it.”

2. IDENTIFY YOUR PEACE-TAKERS. Look around your life and ask:

• Who drains me?

• What drains me?

• What do I keep saying yes to out of guilt or fear? Awareness is the key that unlocks change. Peace requires honesty. Ask: What do I need? What do I feel?

Honor your peace as sacred.

Meaning:

Not everyone gets access.

Not everything deserves your energy.

Not every situation requires your presence.

3. STOP NEGOTIATING WITH YOUR NERVOUS SYSTEM.

If your body is screaming “I’m overwhelmed,” listen.

Your nervous system is not lying.

Stress hormones do not negotiate—they respond.

Meditation helps to regulate your body's nervous system.

4. PROTECT YOUR QUIET TIME LIKE IT'S PRICELESS.

Quiet is not an absence of sound.

Quiet is where God reminds you who you are.

This is where God downloads clarity.

This is where your spirit resets.

Give yourself what you give others: presence.

5. PRACTICE SOUL MAINTENANCE.

Peace is maintained through:

• Prayer

• Journaling

• Therapy

• Breathing practices

• Supportive community

• Rest

• Life Coaching and Honest conversations

These are not soft skills—they’re survival tools.

THE FINAL TRUTH: PEACE IS YOUR AUTHORITY

Dear friend,

you are not asking for too much.

You are asking for what God has already reserved for you.

Peace is not weakness.

Peace is power.

Peace is strategy.

Peace is clarity.

Peace is your soul remembering who it is… and refusing to settle for less.

So as this holiday season unfolds, I want you to do this with confidence and wisdom:

Choose peace like your life depends on it—because it does.

And remember this:

A woman who stands in her peace, stands in her purpose.

Stands in her identity.

Stands in her God-given authority.

During this holiday season, I challenge you—not to decorate for everyone else’s joy, but to unwrap the peace God gifted you… and keep it.

Move through December with authority. Move with intention.

Move with quiet confidence. End STRONG. Because a woman who is at peace

is a woman standing fully in her divine power.

And that woman?

She’s unstoppable.

Love, Peace & Blessings,

Latonia A. Dior

The Formule'