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Embracing My Inner Truth: A Journey of Self-Awareness and Recovering from People-Pleasing
Navigating relationships and personal beliefs can often feel like walking a tightrope. We are constantly balancing our own needs and preferences with the expectations of those around us. During emotionally vulnerable times, this balance can tip, leading us to make decisions that betray our true selves. This blog post explores a personal experience during the…
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Healing in Community: Exploring the Superwoman Schema with Geaux Girl Giving
Last week, I had the privilege of facilitating a discussion about the superwoman schema for an incredible organization called Geaux Girl Giving. Being in the company of Black women was profoundly healing for me as the facilitator. I felt seen and understood as the women in the room shared their own challenges with navigating the…
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Unmasking Hidden Struggles
I was recently reading Kerry Washington’s memoir, where she shared a deeply personal account of her struggles with disordered eating during her college years. She explained that disordered eating was her way of masking emotional pain, comparing it to self-medicating with drugs or alcohol. For Kerry, maintaining the appearance of having it all together was…
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“Listening to What Our Emotions Are Telling Us: Understanding the Signals Within”
Emotions act as signals within our bodies, guiding us on how to meet our needs. They are not inherently good or bad, but rather indicators that provide insight into our well-being, feelings, and necessities. For example, consider how you respond to thirst—you reach for a drink because you recognize that hydration will satisfy this bodily…
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Waiting to Exhale
This past Saturday, I had the beautiful experience of viewing the 90’s iconic film, “Waiting to Exhale,” with an intimate group of black women, followed by leading a discussion about the movie. The event was hosted by a non-profit organization, Black Women for Self, founded by Samjah Iman and Chaila Scott. Black Women for Self’s…
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Breaking Free from the Superwoman Schema: A Path to Healing for Black Women
Several pervasive and damaging stereotypes about Black women are perpetuated by society, which in turn affect both how others perceive us and how we view ourselves. These stereotypes simplify our complex identities and obscure our true selves, undermining our autonomy. These stereotypes include the Mammy, the Jezebel, and the Sapphire. However, there is one stereotype…
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Critical Consciousness, The Tilted Room Theory, Resilience & Swiss Cheese For Visionaries, Luminaries & Disruptors…
If you have ever imagined a future that does not exist for the most vulnerable among us, but yet one that we are all entitled to as citizens of this country…and you continue to fight for all of us…and you remain proximate to the struggle, addressing injustices across all the systems with which we interface…this…
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Childhood Trauma & Adverse Childhood Experiences do not have to define our destiny!
Childhood trauma is an injury that requires rehabilitation. It is important to understand that our bodies have the same physiological response when presented with a threat to our emotional well-being such as self-esteem or bullying, as it does when we are presented with a physical threat such as being approached in the woods by a…