“Overthinking and chronic stress feed into this lens by breeding deconstructive thoughts that are often beyond our control. This fear of a loss of autonomy often causes us to feel imprisoned by our own limiting thoughts. Open-mindedness paints a path towards awareness and consciousness where how you choose to construct meaning from your environmental stimuli establishes control over how and what you think.”
Read More“I realize my full potential and I have a desire to openly express myself and be the best that I can be. I have not always had this ambition. My story is about my journey from confidence to loss of sense of self to re-affirming who I am and who I want to be. I hope to empower the BSC community to love themselves, believe in themselves, and reach their full potential.”
“My whole life I have been praised because of my light-ish skin tone and my loose-ish curly hair. As a child, this made me extremely confident in my looks and growing into adolescence even more so because I learned how to actually do my own hair. When I was younger, I just thought that I was beautiful and that’s why people praised me for my looks, when I got older, I realized the implications of colourism.”
Read More“It never dawned on me that self-love was something that wasn't taught until I was in my early 20s. I figured that people were born with confidence and care for themselves and that ultimately something was just wrong with me. It wasn't until I began to recognize that so much comes from your childhood environment and cultural factors that I began to figure out the details.”
Read More“I realized I needed to forgive myself. I had forgiven those I felt I needed to for my own peace. But it was my turn. I felt like I was carrying my childhood self on my ankle. As I’d take steps, I’d feel her weight on my feet. I was in need of comforting her, the little girl who would get so excited to see her dad come home from work but would arise disappointed the next day when realizing he got in late again.”
Read MoreMany women of color are misdiagnosed or undiagnosed in regard to chronic illnesses. It is so important for us to advocate for ourselves. No one knows your body better than YOU! Educate yourself on ways to live a proactive healthy lifestyle. Many black women are dying prematurely whether it’s childbirth or a chronic disease, it is time for a change. The change will start with each one of us.
Read More“Last year was the most challenging. Being limited from what I was used to, adjusting to a new normal that is steadily adapting itself, I became more anxious than I ever felt before. Alternatives were not working for me and wrapping my mind around expectations was just as exhausting. Eventually, I burnt out…At this point in time, I have decided to take the reins of my fear in life. I am doing so, by acknowledging that even if you think you are moving forward, overthinking, and anticipating all your fears, can and will only hold you back. Fear does not attract what you want to happen. Mind over matter is of utmost importance.”
Read More“When I was younger, I was fully aware that I was ‘bigger’ than other kids around me but it didn’t really occur to me that I was negatively seen for being fat until I entered elementary school. I would like to add that I am fortunate that I was never extremely bullied by my peers but little things have stuck with me, resulting in a detrimental effect on my self-confidence and making me increasingly self-conscious as a young girl.”
Read More“Being one of the five Black women in the design program of my year has taught me a lot about myself, the design industry & how important it is to be surrounded by people that are like you. When I look back at the past three years of being a designer, I realize that there were certain things that I needed to grow as an individual & creative.”
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