“I didn’t leave my husband because I stopped loving him. I left because I was starting to forget how to love myself.

People assume divôrce means failure. No! sometimes, it’s survival.

For years, I kept quiet, smiling for the camera, wearing my ring like everything was okay. But behind the scenes, I was disappearing, emotionally, mentally.

I gave the best of me to a man who eventually stopped seeing me. Conversations turned to silence. Respect turned to tension. And the home I tried so hard to build started to feel like a place I didn’t belong.

Walking away wasn’t easy. It wasn’t dramatic. It was silent, deliberate. I didn’t need to announce it, I just started choosing myself again.

I stopped posting “Chioma Akpotha” and went back to being “Chioma Chukwuka” not because I hate my past, but because I’m reclaiming my name, my peace, and my power.

I didn’t lose a marriage. I found myself.

-- Chioma Chukwuka