Jen Brown

Names seem simple, but they carry a lot. History. Identity. Belonging. For most of my life, my name was something I corrected or explained. It didn’t feel like a reflection of me so much as something I managed. That’s changed. This is a story about what it means to choose your name, and in some ways, choose yourself.

https://open.substack.com/pub/jemlr/p/names?r=489e64&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

I spent decades with a name that needed explaining. In a world of Jennifers, I was Jenifer. One 'n.' It was a 1970s spelling quirk that meant constant corrections... And then I got married and with it, came more corrections. I was Meller, not Miller.

Last year, eight years after my divorce, I got remarried and something shifted. I felt the pull toward belonging – toward being fully part of my chosen family, not just in spirit but in name, too. I realized I didn't want a split identity anymore.

I wanted integrity. Martha Beck defines it as this: "who you are on the inside is who you are on the outside."

So, I'm changing my name to Brown. New website (jenbrown.com), new LLC, new logo.

The paperwork is done. And it feels clean. Right.

Names carry meaning. They hold stories. They mark chapters. And sometimes, changing yours is part of becoming who you already are.

I'd love to keep in touch, and my substack is a great place for that. Subscribe at jenbrownllc.substack.com

I was grateful to join my sister on her podcast, Becoming Her, for a conversation about trauma, how it lives in the body, and why healing often requires more than talk alone. We explore rupture and repair in relationships and therapeutic spaces, and how practicing repair can build safety and trust. Sharing it here in case it resonates.

https://open.substack.com/pub/jemlr/p/rupture-repair-and-parts-work-a-conversation?r=489e64&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

Ever notice how you can be doing well and still not feel good enough? This piece came from sitting with that question honestly and listening to what the body is actually saying.

https://jemlr.substack.com/p/why-do-i-never-feel-good-enough