020- How to Break the Habits That Are Breaking You

We all have habits that feel harmless but quietly drain our energy and self-worth. In this episode of Beyond Words, Najwa Zebian breaks down how habits born from pain (people-pleasing, shrinking, over-explaining) keep us stuck in survival mode.

Learn how to stop punishing yourself through your routines and start creating habits that honor your healing, growth, and peace.

✨ “Some of your habits aren’t neutral. They’re teaching you to abandon yourself.”

🕒 Timestamps

00:00 — Opening hook: The habits that betray your peace
 02:14 — How childhood wounds shape your patterns
 05:32 — Habits that look “good” but are rooted in fear
 09:00 — Why discipline without compassion becomes self-punishment
 12:45 — Replacing self-betrayal with self-respect
 16:08 — The question that changes everything: Is this habit building me or breaking me?
19:40 — How to make healing a daily habit
22:10 — Closing reflection: becoming who your habits believe in

🧭 Show Notes

You’ll learn:
• The emotional roots of destructive habits
• How “good habits” can still come from self-rejection
• Ways to replace punishing routines with nurturing ones
• How to make peace a daily practice

Reflective prompts:
• Which habit feels like a quiet betrayal of myself?
• Which new habit would help me feel more at home in my own life?

Mentioned:
📖 Welcome Home — learning to build emotional safety
📚 The Only Constant — on conscious transformation

Connect:
Follow @najwazebian for more reflections, and leave a 5-star review if this episode helped you build habits that honor who you’re becoming.