The two most powerful words when we're in struggle: me too.

In Brown’s work on shame, vulnerability, and belonging, the phrase “me too” names the moment isolation breaks. Struggle often comes with the belief that one’s pain is uniquely defective; hearing someone else say “me too” counters that narrative by restoring common humanity. The power is not in advice or solutions but in recognition—an empathic signal that suffering can be shared without judgment. The quote also implies an ethic of response: when people disclose hardship, the most healing reply is often solidarity rather than fixing, reframing, or minimizing. “Me too” becomes a bridge from secrecy to connection, which Brown argues is essential for resilience.