Self Care: Indulge

Many people talk about self-care but don’t actually practice the act within their daily lives.

During the last year of my graduate program, my fieldwork professor preached to the high heavens on the importance of self-care within the helping field. She warned us that therapists, counselors, and social workers experience the most burn out in the field because we are constantly giving of ourselves daily. Every week she would ask each student in class to name something that they did for themselves over the weekend. Many of us would say sleep, catch up on shows, watch a movie … you know things that don’t really apply to self-care. Our responses were more of a break from the routine of our hectic schedules.

Self-care is actively setting time out of your busy schedule to cater to you.

That means mind, body, and spirit.

Self-care goes far beyond getting eight hours of sleep. It’s in your thoughts, your actions, how you carry yourself, what you do for others, and your outlook on life.

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Valentines Day, 365

To be treated like a Queen is every girls dream. To be heard, to be seen, to be clothed in grace, to be loved – effortlessly.

I will not be sad on this day, for I have experienced Valentine’s Day, each and every day for the past year. I have been showered with love, gifts, hugs, kisses, prayers, encouragement, and unwavering support.

I will not be jealous on this day, as I sit back and watch others celebrate their love. I’ll reflect on a love that I experienced not too long ago. I will bask in the beauty of flowers received with my girlfriends. I will help them pick out the perfect outfits for their dates. I will wait by my phone to listen to their stories. I too, will smile in glee.

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YEAR TROIS (THE FINALE)

I can do this. I can do this. I CAN DO THIS.

That’s what I’ve been telling myself ALL summer to keep me motivated. Cause the burn out is REAL!

Initially when I started graduate school I knew I’d be finished in two years.

 NOT.

Shortly after my first semester, I learned that the track (Multiculturalism & Social Justice) I originally signed up for was actually not a track. Instead it was a motto embedded within the foundation of the program and I was forced to now choose another track – Guidance Counseling, School Counseling, or Mental Health.

Long story short – here I am continuing my journey. I will be starting my third and final year of graduate school tomorrow night…with hopes of attaining my license in Counseling (#MentalHealth; #JourneytoLPCC).

You know you’re fed up and ready to graduate when you have a countdown system on your phone. Continue reading “YEAR TROIS (THE FINALE)”

When The Bird Leaves The Nest

There comes a time in your life when you have to start making your own decisions. You have to be confident in them, confident that you’re capable of making logical decisions and overall utilizing your own discernment.

Coming from a late night, I boarded my solo flight, took my seat and began to reflect on my capability of making decisions and the recent disagreement I had with my mom.

Last year I was inspired and encouraged by one of my professors to apply for Alternative Breaks (AB). AB is a program provided by LMU where they select a group of students to travel to various counties/countries in hopes of fighting one common goal — social justice. I quickly became interested and applied to become a group leader for the Mental Health trip. My good friend Lila and I applied, had our interviews and waited for the verdict. We knew that there could only be one leader, but we promised each other that we’d still participate no matter who got the position. Fast-forward a couple of months later many things were going on in the world from the continuous Police brutality resulting in the killings of my people, to terrorist attacks in my beloved Paris, Brussels, and beyond (…sadly things are still occurring).

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The List

The older I’ve become, the longer My List has grown. If you don’t know what LIST I’m referring to, I’ll give you a quick example:

It’s the list we all create at age 16 where you plan out your entire life – down to the name of your unborn daughter, the future dog, honeymoon destination, and what type of car you’re going to drive.Screen Shot 2016-03-25 at 8.01.48 AM

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Or even better – you played MASH which predicted your whole life all on one sheet of paper. No one couldn’t tell me that I wasn’t going to marry Morris Chestnut, Lance Gross, Dreux Frederic (Lil Fizz from B2K), and Patrick Breeding (of B5) all at the same time lol

The list that never comes true – yet it takes you on a whirlwind of ups, downs, doors shut in your face, as new ones are prepared and opened when you’re ready to receive what’s behind it.

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Chasing Your Passions

In the digital age today, there are so many ways you can pursue your passions beyond the 9-5 hustle and bustle. Avenues like promoting your clothing lines via social media, self-publishing a novels, connecting with others who are like-minded and just as goal driven as you – the world is your oyster.

As I’m vastly approaching the end of my graduate program I’m constantly trying to find ways to align my passions of writing and poetry, and somewhat fuse those aspects with my soon to be career. I’ve been blogging on different platforms for about six years now and this blog has been my first official site. So far I’ve come to find that my niche is creating – writing, telling stories, motivating, baking … you get the idea. On the other hand, having people stay interested in what you have to say is the key to success. It definitely can become daunting at times, but eventually you find your flow and werk it out.

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The Promise

I have wanted to purchase a promise ring for myself to myself for a while now. As I was reflecting over 2015’s life events, I decided that I would buy the ring in 2016. I would no longer put it off, or wait for that special someone to buy one for me. Besides, the promise to myself would be different than the promise that the significant other would be promising to me anyway.

I wrote this declaration in my journal on Christmas Eve. 2015 was a great year all around, there were definitely some highs and lows as each year brings but I decided to move forward with this mantra that I’m calling …

The Promise:

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Shades of You

To the quiet girl
I hear you
Most can’t fathom your beauty and the true essence of all that you have to offer because you have been drowned out by noise
I once was you, but then one day I found my voice
Stood up for myself in the most simplest of ways
All without having to get out of hand
Outta pocket neck rolls, hand claps, and witty snap backs
Shut it down with an act of kindness
A notion that is overlooked Continue reading “Shades of You”

#SELFLOVE At Its Finest

I’ve been working on this post for a while now, and one little class discussion took this over the edge for me. My heart breaks to see so many people (girls/women especially) constantly use negative self-talk, not love themselves unconditionally, and overall ignore the love that comes from within. In my Human Sexuality class my professor challenged everyone to get ‘Out of Their Comfort Zone’ and explore something they’ve never done before, totally alone. This varied from attending cultural festivals, interacting with people you wouldn’t normally speak to, attending a church/temple and a range of other activities. Last Tuesday, we had the chance to sit at the front of the class to share our experiences and how the assignment made us feel. Continue reading “#SELFLOVE At Its Finest”

Vingt-Quatre

I laugh at this picture because it is SO me! My good friend Jackie aka Selena as my mom calls her tagged me in this post on IG. Her tag said “So You” and I’m thinking to myself like … What’s me? Lol I get on IG and instantly start laughing and smiling.

“A classy woman with a little bit of hood in her, and a lot of God!”

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It gets no better than that! I’m more like a teeny bit of hood, but I can take it there when necessary. Don’t let my cute face fool you!

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