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By Sophie Are you a fan of musicals? Do you want to be taken on a beautiful journey in Hollywood? Then this film is for you.
This is a story about an aspiring actress and a pianist who want to make it big in the sunny state of California. By day, Mia (Emma Stone) works in a coffee shop in the Hollywood studios; and as soon as her shift ends, she auditions for various roles in tv shows and movies but doesn’t have any success. Sebastian Wilder (Ryan Gosling) has little jobs here and there - he plays in restaurants and at parties but isn’t satisfied because he’s passionate about jazz and doesn’t want it to die. The film was beautifully filmed, the songs were catchy and made me want to buy a 60s summer dress and dance. I was a bit reluctant to watch that movie as I’m not a big fan of ‘Hollywood movies’ with notorious actors – I prefer independent movies. However, I’m so glad that I gave this movie a shot because I don’t regret it and have watched it a couple of times already. The most interesting thing in the movie is the somewhat realism of the plot. Usually, in Hollywood movies, you would be able to predict the ending and everything always seems so bright and colorful – this was not the case here. This movie showed the struggles of aspiring actors and musicians, the ugly side of wanting to follow our dreams. The message was very empowering: even though the journey to your desired career will be long, you’ll fall many times, you’ll want to give up because it’s draining your energy and you might even doubt whether this is actually for you; please get up, continue to work hard because it will all be worth it. It’s important that your environment supports you, like Sebastian had Mia and vice-versa. If you don’t have people in your surroundings that are willing to encourage you, then I’ll encourage you because I know how nice and strong you can feel when people are behind you and are pushing you to do your best. Overall, I would give La La Land an 8.5/10. The only negative point would be that I would have liked to hear Emma Stone sing more.
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By Vasati Dear future me,
On your rainy days on your lonely nights when you cry yourself to sleep or wake up with baggy eyes For the days you wake up but don't feel like living when you try for too long and just give up on existing When your tears speak for you on behalf of your heart When you can't piece together all your broken parts When those you love leave When time fails to heal for the times you faked a smile and they all thought it was real Dear future me, When you're broken beyond repair and you've been through enough look back and read this for when the going gets too tough Just know that I love you And I'm proud that you're trying your best Hold on for me okay the time's almost up for this test I believe in you I believe in the both of us You WILL learn to love again to believe, hope and trust No matter what life throws at you or how hard you may get hit you're going to be just fine because I will love you through it By Vasati Dear past me,
Don't worry, you turned out fine You've proven to everyone that you are not to be undermined Yes you will mess up Yes you'll make mistakes But as your future self I'm here to tell you that it's okay Don't listen to the haters they're trash in the future as they are in the past But I beg of you past self please don't grow up too fast Dear past self, Enjoy your young self You won't get this back again And always remember not everyone will be your friend Remember who you are Love yourself in all your beauty And don't you dare succumb to beauty standards of society Don't let your life be ruined by 'What ifs' or regrets And please don't hurt other people just because you are hurt Past me, I wish you knew then what future me knows now But mistakes are made, so in this way future me can learn somehow By Jade Note: This article contains a few minor spoilers for the live-action Mulan movie.
When my family heard that Mulan came out on Disney Plus for everyone to watch the new live-action film, we were all excited. Although I had been skeptical about the idea of having some witch as a villain, I was nonetheless excited after seeing the trailer for the movie. After the movie, we were severely disappointed. The movie felt disappointing, a lack of substance. As we were watching, my father pointed out frequent inconsistencies in the movie, from the featuring of buildings from the wrong time period and such. For me, I was disappointed by the portrayal of the Chinese people. As a Chinese-American, I expected Mulan to be an accurate portrayal of Chinese values, right? However, Disney failed us. The movie, directed by a white woman, was nothing like the Chinese culture I knew. Instead, it relied on stereotypes. Stereotypes about the Chinese people surrounding luck. A weird emphasis on Qi. Even my parents, my mom who grew up in Hong Kong, and my dad who grew up in Taiwan, were confused by Qi. In fact, my mom even asked what this Qi was! The concept of the witch got even worse than I had ever imagined. There was a weird emphasis on fate and luck in the film. Although I don’t remember the precise term they frequently used in the film, I really despised how Mulan’s greatness relied on her luck and Qi (life force). Suddenly, it made it seem that Mulan was this great hero who was already powerful because she had some sort of superpower and an incredible amount of luck? It made no sense to me, leaving me feeling frustrated and confused. The emphasis on honor in the film also disgusted me. Chinese culture doesn’t have the same emphasis on honor as the film. I didn’t understand the purpose of the emphasis of honor in the film and shortly realized that it was just a portrayal of a stereotype, the stereotype of the honorific Chinese person. It was a complete miss portrayal of Chinese culture, leaving me feeling disgusted with the film. Frankly, I’m surprised that I was even able to sit through the entire film. It felt so miserable, cliche and fake to me. As an Asian-American person, I couldn’t resonate with a film that supposedly represented my background, my culture. Did Disney even consider how the film would affect people’s view on Chinese people? If they did consider the film’s effect on everyone’s view of the Chinese people, they clearly didn’t think it through. I can’t find a single Asian person who enjoyed watching the film. Through the emphasis of stereotypes and the inability to appeal to the people the film poorly portrays, Mulan is a total flop. Disney’s Mulan isn’t the only blunder of Disney’s when it comes to representation for the Asian-American community. The reliance on Asian stereotypes in the world of Disney films is disappointing. In A Wrinkle in Time, Charles Wallace (an intelligent white boy in the book series) is portrayed as Asian. Charles Wallace is a character mostly defined by intelligence in the film. Marvel’s first movie, starring an Asian-American superhero, is suspiciously about a master martial artist, fueled Asian stereotypes even further. Sadly, before the release of Shang Chi, the only Asian Marvel superhero I could think of, was Wong… Artemis Fowl, instead of accurately portraying the Japanese-Russian Butler, chose an African actor instead to portray the loyal servant of Artemis Fowl, reinforcing the stereotype of the obedient African-American, while relegating the character’s time in Japan to be a time of martial arts training instead, making Japan seem like some magical place where people get master martial art skills from. Disney isn’t the only entity with disappointing Asian representation. J. K. Rowling’ s beloved Harry Potter series featured Cho Chang and the Patil twins, all of whom were portrayed as meek and boring. Cho Chang is perhaps one of the most hated characters in the franchise, with many fans mocking her for being weak. While Rowling introduced Cho as a strong Quidditch player, she suddenly turned her into an absolute wimp and weak person after the events of The Goblet of Fire. The Patil twins were seen as undesirable, being the only options left to bring to the Yule Ball. In Rowling’s most recent work, The Cursed Child features an Asian character who finds the protagonists of the play, only to be killed off a few seconds later. Overall, society has a problem with Asian stereotypes, and unfortunately, it's not going away. This is disappointing to the Asian community. Not all Asians are master martial artists. Not all Asians care about honor. Not all Asians believe in feng shui, Qi or a combination of both. Not all Asians are the same. Stop putting us in a box. By Camille As someone who is naturally awkward, I have too many moments where I am uncomfortable. However, nothing makes me more uncomfortable than seeing people my age. This might seem a bit odd, considering that I have seen people my age every day for most of my life. But after spending 1 ½ years in isolation, I have become accustomed to only seeing the people in my house. Because of this, I am unable to find comfortability around people my age, I can only look on longingly.
For most of my life, I have struggled with making friends. This is due to multiple factors: introversion, socially awkwardness, lack of shared interests, and essentially, making friends was not an easy task. But I managed because I had to spend a good chunk of my time seeing the same people, and friendships were inevitable. The entirety of my senior year was spent online, staring at Zoom profile pictures because nobody wanted to turn their camera on. Before quarantine, I would have hated to spend my last year of high school online, but once I realized how comfortable I was, there was no turning back. Within a couple of months into quarantine, I had stopped talking to most of my friends. I began to feel uneasy even talking to them because I had lost contact with the outside world. During quarantine, I rarely left the house, but sometimes I found the motivation to walk outside and get exercise. When I would go outside, I would have my headphones on in hopes that nobody talks to me. In the dreadful events that I saw kids my age, I would instantly become antsy, eager to put as much distance between us as possible. My body would tense up and I would tilt my head downward, in hopes that they did not pay me any mind. When it eventually became time for senior clearance and I had to go back to the school, I had a painful realization -I felt awkward around everyone. As I observed those around me, I also realized that I had minimal commonalities with them. I would be perfectly fine with my desire not to talk to them, however, I know that communication is a necessity, especially in the workforce. Since this is an issue that I actively combat every day, I am unable to provide evidence that worked for me. I can, however, share newly found advice I plan on using that could potentially help me overcome this uneasiness around kids my age. Ways that we can stop these awkward moments include:
When the quarantine first began, it was an amazing time for introverts or anyone who does not like socializing. There was no need to put ourselves into situations where we would be forced to socialize. However, as the world slowly opens back up and we find communication necessary, a lot of people have found themselves feeling awkward around others. I wrote this article to tell you that you are not alone, and I encourage you to take time to get used to being around people again. By En So, you want to get a piercing?
Piercings can be tricky to navigate. Whether you want to figure out if it would suit you, how easy it is to keep or even where to get it done - it can be easy to be overwhelmed by all the factors that may pop up. I’ve had five piercings done. I’ve had my ears done three times, my nose done and my septum done. Out of the five, I’ve only managed to keep three, and that was out of pure desperation because I didn’t want to take them out. Out of those five piercings, four were done with piercing guns. If you’ve been pierced with a piercing gun and it’s healed properly with little to no hiccups, that’s brilliant, but it’s still very dangerous. Some reasons to avoid piercing guns are-
Out of the four piercings I’ve had with a piercing gun, I’ve only been able to keep two. The first time I had my ears pierced, they got so badly infected and I ended up on antibiotics and had to take them out. A few years later I got them done again, and it started to get infected but luckily with a lot of aftercare,they stuck around. I had the same issue when I got my ears pierced again, but they’re both thriving now. The last piercing I had that used a piercing gun was my nose. It got infected, and I had it for about a month before I had to take it out. For me, the infection looked like a raised bump and depending on the severity, would be painful and would leak pus. It isn’t pretty and absolutely isn’t ideal. Please see a doctor if you think your piercing is infected, don’t just take it out because it could trap the infection. The most notable shops I’ve seen use piercing guns are Claire’s, Blue Banana and even Superdrug. These aren’t the places to get pierced. Sure, they’re cheap,and quite often you don’t need an appointment, but it’s not worth the risk. The last piercing I got was my septum. I got it done with a professional piercer at a reputable studio, and the difference was as clear as day. Just from the appointment alone - I had to wait about two months to be seen, and then when I went to it, the room was completely wiped down, and every bit of equipment she used was sterile and she binned it all after using it so it wouldn’t be reused. One of the most telling bits about that was the fact she asked for ID because she wouldn’t pierce anyone under the age of eighteen, both because it’s a body modification and because of the commitment to aftercare can be a lot for a minor, and the fact she made me wait for five minutes after getting the piercing to make sure I didn’t have an immediate reaction like passing out. In any other appointment they just couldn’t wait to get rid of me to get onto the next customer. That’s not to say that this piercing didn’t have its hiccups. I went so overboard with aftercare that it got very irritated. It took me a while to realise why it was so irritated, maybe about four months, so I definitely made it worse while I was trying to treat it. It’s been five months now and it’s been the smoothest healing period I’ve ever had. Some of the pros I found to going to a professional and getting a needle rather than a piercing gun were-
Even though a professional piercer is more expensive and you’re going to have to wait a little longer, there are so many more benefits to going to a professional rather than going to a retail shop to get it done. Every piercing is going to hurt. Cartilage piercings are going to hurt more. Out of all of mine, my septum hurt the most. It felt like I had been punched in the face. It didn’t last for much longer than a few seconds, though. I remember it hurting and what kind of pain I thought it was like at the time, but now I can’t remember how it felt, only what I thought about it. Where you get your piercing is also important. Surface piercings are much more likely to reject. A surface piercing is a piercing on a flat area, like an eyebrow piercing. It’s important to research what piercing you want before getting it done, and it’s important to know the risks. Aftercare is important. Personally, for the first few weeks I washed my piercing with salt water about three to four times a day. After the first two to three weeks, I toned it down to just doing it in the morning and night. I stopped at about four months, but I’m checking it almost every day to ensure it’s healing. It’s important to move your piercings, but only do this when they’re either wet or are moving on their own. Don’t force them to move. Personally, I leave the original jewellery in for anywhere between six months and a year. I’m going to leave my septum in for nine months, just because of the hiccups I’ve had with irritating it, but that could change if something goes wrong again. It’s important you don’t change it before it’s healed, which means when it’s not tender and when it isn’t crusty. I’m not a piercer. I’m just a nineteen-year-old who loves piercings and has no self-control. I’m already looking at getting my nose re-pierced. Because I can be impulsive, as soon as an idea pops into my head, I do the research because I know it’ll only take one drunk night for me to book an appointment for a piercing. I want to be prepared for that. It’s important that you do what feels best for you, and what’s safe. If you want a piercing, research the piercing and the place you want to go to to get it done. It’s so important to know what these piercings need and what to do if something goes wrong. Useful links - What to know before getting a piercing - https://www.insider.com/what-to-know-before-getting-a-piercing-2018-8#you-can-usually-still-breastfeed-after-a-nipple-piercing-11 Aftercare - https://www.astridandmiyu.com/pages/piercing-aftercare By Camille Picture this: You come home from a long day at work, and you are exhausted. All you want to do is crawl under your blankets and sleep until you are no longer exhausted. This feeling is normal, we all get tired from time to time. Now picture this: You are constantly exhausted, and no amount of sleep or caffeine will shake you out of this daze. This feeling is what being burnt out feels like.
It is too easy for others to label their physical exhaustion as burnouts, however, it is more than that. Being burnt out means that you are mentally exhausted as well. You find even the simplest tasks difficult to complete. You feel empty and struggle to find motivation for anything in your life. After some self-reflection, I have come to realize that I am burnt out, and I have been for a while. It took me so long to realize this because I just assumed I was lazy - all I wanted to do was lay in bed and sleep the day away. This may sound silly, but I found out I was burnt out because of a BuzzFeed quiz. Now, I am not saying that the quiz results led to this discovery. However, when I found that I was feeling most of the symptoms, I decided to do research on my own. Some people might not even realize that they are burnt out, they might just write it off as stress. However, stress buildup eventually leads to burnout. Below is a list of common symptoms of burnout.
Reflecting on my past, I understand why I was behaving the way I was. I did not realize I was burnt out, I just wrote it off as being stressed or unmotivated. Now that I know that I am struggling with burnout, I will attempt to replenish myself. After doing plentiful research, below are ways to help us deal with being burnt out.
Life moves at a fast pace, it does not wait for anyone. It is easy to feel overwhelmed with life and fall into the vicious cycle of mental exhaustion. It is essential not to allow mental exhaustion to control our life as it can lead to burnout. However, by practicing good self-care routines, you can limit these feelings of burnout, and live a physically, mentally, and emotionally healthy life. By Camille One of the hardest aspects about having a good time is when it ends, and all you have left are the images of those moments flashing behind your eyelids. As I have mentioned in one of my previous articles, I already struggle with staying in the moment, due to my excessive daydreaming. The immense anticipation for when a good time turns into a memory does not exactly help me stay in the moment as I already begin to long for that good moment.
I did not realize that I was struggling with these feelings of anticipation until recently when I have had the time to travel back a couple of years to reflect on these moments. When I looked back on those moments, I realized that I was sad before these moments even ended because I wanted them to last forever. Forcing myself back into the moment to focus on my feelings in the present-much rather than the future-was a lot harder than I expected. It is important to live in these moments because we need these happy memories to reflect on. Memories also help shape the person we are today, it preserves room for learning and growth as we progress in life. I cannot live in the moment until I directly confront these fears of a fun time turning into a distant memory. As someone who does not go out often, I have large periods of time to focus on these memories as they are so far in between. Most of my time is spent doing the same exact thing every day, so whenever I have the chance of doing something different, it is exciting. The most painful part of reflecting on memories is the desperate desire to go back in that moment, and the realization that I cannot go back is what causes me to avoid these memories. I became conscious of my avoidance of memories when I refused to listen to certain songs because they had memories attached to them. Songs that I frequently listened to throughout high school are long forgotten because it reminds me of the good times I had. Instead of embracing these memories, I find myself avoiding them altogether which is harming my mental health more than helping it. High school was filled with fantastic moments that continue to be regarded distantly as I try to shut out those memories. Moving during my junior year was especially hard as all I had left were memories to reflect on. I was no longer afforded the luxury of creating these memories in the first place. It became painful, and I envied my friends that stayed behind and continued to have good times. I eventually hope to reach a point in my life where memories are welcome and I can live in the moment much rather than focus on my feelings in the future. I will continue to research how I can embrace these memories, especially at points in my life where I need a pick-me-up. Although I have no useful advice for something I have just begun working on, it is important to even admit that this is an issue. Memories should be something that is embraced, and I should happily regard them rather than avoid them. Good memories are meant to evoke bittersweet moments, and I should anticipate when I get to make much more. Until then, I will focus on healthily incorporating memories into my life whenever they make an appearance. By NJ I started being active on social media very, very late. It wasn’t until the pandemic started that I slowly started being active on the few social media accounts I had, and it wasn’t until a few days ago when writing this that I joined Instagram. While I now have Instagram, Reddit and Quora, it’s actually Tumblr that I use the most. And by that I mean daily. I am on it all day long. I have a decent follower count and some mutuals who are genuinely awesome and who I enjoy talking to. If anything I have had a positively delightful experience with Tumblr. Wonderful friends, not too many creepy DMs. It is basically perfect.
However, I have noticed that while generally sunny, the darker side here is that I had become afraid of how people might interpret what I say. And I mean that seriously. I have refrained from posting fairly innocent opinions because of how much I feared alienation. I have refrained from saying my opinions about innocent things like a tv show or movie I like because I feared attacks from people I disagreed with. Essentially, I had become a people pleaser without even realizing it. And as someone who started their social media journey on Quora, a site full of opinions, this was not only new but a terrifying reality for me. But what really raised the red flag however is when I got into a fairly mild disagreement with a mutual. The mutual in question was already far more confident, outspoken and all-around a better debater than I was. But adding to that I felt like saying anything that disagreed with them might cause them to hate me. That in order to maintain our friendship I had to agree with them even when I didn’t. The whole ordeal left me so mentally drained that I didn’t post or even engage much with anyone online for a few days. I felt exhausted. And a sense of impending doom settled over me whenever I would open Tumblr. What if they hated me? What if others attacked me? What if, even despite both of us apologizing to each other and privating the posts, they still hated me for my opinions? No matter how much I tried, this heavy cloud of regret hung around me. I genuinely felt like it would have been better had I kept quiet. Staying silent means that no one could come after me. I wouldn’t receive hate if I never expressed any strong opinions. This was bad for many reasons. One - this was not the me I knew. I had changed. Two - It was affecting me in real life. I was less productive, angrier and sough to be left alone. Three - I hated the fact that I couldn’t voice my opinions. I hated the fact that this invincible fear held so much control over me. I realized that I was trying to change my opinions to fit other people's opinions so that they would like me. And I hated it. It made me feel like a fake. And this wasn’t the end of these fears. Whenever I would have some helpful link or info to share, I would get really excited but then a small voice in my head would mutter “yeah but what if you accidentally mislead someone? or worse, hurt them in some way?”. It didn’t matter that I knew without a shadow of a doubt that the link or info was safe. It didn’t matter that I would never hurt another person. The second the intrusive thought entered my mind, every other voice of reason was drowned out. Suddenly I was reduced to nothing but a bunch of doubts and fears I was weakly protesting against. I just felt so angry and frustrated at my own inability to stop these intrusive thoughts. And while this is usually the part where I offer some tips to cope, this time I really don’t have much except some generic things I have found to help me like - Change your environment when you feel the panic attacks coming - We know that feeling when the voices slowly start whispering in the back of our mind before the tidal wave of anxiety washes over you. Whenever I know it’s coming and that I simply have no better way of dealing with it, I just get out of that mental or sometimes physical environment quickly. Something as simple as looking at a different location or reading something sometimes helps me reset my mind. It’s not a solution. But still better than me helplessly panicking. Instead of trying to not think about the intrusive thought, let it pass through your mind - I hear it all the time, and yet I always end up trying and failing to ignore my intrusive thoughts. That’s it to be honest. And now for the most important advice - Seek help. You deserve it. Log off of socials for a bit. Maybe take a break from the friends who are stressing you out. Tell them they are stressing you out. Talk to your parents if their words hurt you. But more importantly, get professional help when you need it. International Suicide & Emergency Hotlines (opencounseling.com) - This is a list of suicide hotlines and other help lines and other resources to help you. But this is just the bare minimum and there are absolutely better help out there. By Aiza Living in the same house with the same people for years makes you accustomed to that life. Even the slightest change can be exciting or even unnerving. Take guests coming over for example, when you’ve lived in a small house of 4 people, an added individual seems like a major shift in the daily routine. But this is about a person coming into the house, it can bring joy and a positive change into the house for the short time they are visiting. How do you make someone leaving the house feel normal though?
When you’ve lived with someone for the most part of your life and now they’re leaving to make their own life, it feels as if a part of your life has been removed from existence. It’s how I felt when my only sibling, my older sister, left for university in another city. Even though she wasn’t going too far and we did visit each other as much as we could, there was still an emptiness that nobody else could fill. It could be small things like walking by her room and not seeing her sitting inside with loud music blaring or not being able to have dinner cooked by her on Friday evenings. These were considered the most mundane things when she lived at home but just these things made her absence feel like a void. It has taken a while to grow used to it but I have come to terms with the fact that she is out there, living her best life. No matter where she is, she will always be a part of my life. Yes, her leaving was an emotional time but I am so very happy for her, watching her grow up and grow into the world independently. With that said, I know my time will come and even if it’s as sad as it was to watch her leave, I am looking forward to my life in the adult world. By Camille How are you? A very common question with a very common answer. Most of the time, when people ask how you are doing, it is out of politeness and to create small talk. It is not necessarily an opening to share how you are truly doing. That was fine by me because I never really knew how I was doing.
The issue of me not being in touch with my emotions did not become apparent until I had a teacher that asked me how I was doing but expected an actual answer. When I realized that, I immediately became freaked out and a bit defensive because I did not know the answer myself. Emotions never came easy to me, I have always avoided wearing my heart on my sleeve. I never took the time to ask myself how I am actually feeling. And because of this inability to even be true to myself, I cannot express my feelings to those around me. This is also a reason why I have not been to therapy. Whenever the doctors would ask me if I have ever felt anxiety, depression, or anything of the like, I would always lie and say I was doing fine. Whenever the topic of how I am truly feeling presented itself, I was very quick on how fine I was and seemed very adamant about changing the subject. Ever since I joined TWE, I have found ways to cope with many of the hardships I face in life. Being in such a wonderful organization has given me a lead way on being able to truly reflect on myself and figure out what I am feeling in the moment. I have found that one of my most important steps to coping or recovery is to start from day 1 and look for potential reasons for why I have these issues. Below, I have compiled a list of possible reasons why I have not been able to properly express my emotions.
Compiling this list when I first began to work on expressing emotions, I had an easier time targeting these causes and challenging them. As of today, I am doing much better in terms of how I am feeling. While I am not able to express my emotions to others, being in touch with myself is a fantastic start. As always, problems do not solve on their own. It is up to us to figure out how to solve them. Below, I have compiled a list of ways I was able to be more true to myself about my feelings.
Although it took me years to realize I should have emotions, being able to locate the issues and fix them has made me feel better about myself. Emotions are not an easy thing to recognize and express, but I am slowly learning on becoming more in touch with myself. I hope this article inspires others to seek out their emotions more and express them in a healthy manner. Below is a list of helplines in case you are feeling down. SAMHSA’s National Helpline NAMI Helpline MentalHealth.gov By Kenzie The coronavirus pandemic threw us all for a loop. There was no way that we could have prepared for the 18 months of isolation, anxiety and panic that was caused. We were just doing our best and trying to do as we were told by the government.
For me, a 21 year old employee in a college in the UK, everything changed. Little did I know in March 2020 quite how much was going to change for me due to the COVID-19 pandemic. So I want to talk you through some of the biggest changes in my life thanks to lockdown and coronavirus. These changes made me realise how important it is not to take things for granted and how even in the darkest times, there is always a positive.
In the end, it wasn't as bad as I expected. I got a work laptop, my office just so happened to be a soft office (also known as a bed) and staff slowly but surely became comfortable enough with technology for me to train them on it. I actually really enjoyed working from home - no travelling, I could sleep in for an extra 30/45 minutes, I got to eat lunch with my family and it felt like a win all round. Of course then the pandemic eased and college decided we had to be back in the office 8.30am-5pm, 5 days a week, across all college sites - not what I wanted, but hey. Working from home was fun whilst it lasted.
Luckily enough for me, I could carry on quizzing, all due to Jay's Virtual Pub Quiz. You could tune in live on YouTube or Facebook at 8pm on a Thursday and/or a Saturday and take part in a pub quiz with five fun interesting rounds which varied each week. We had music rounds, we had entertainment rounds, we had sport rounds, we had history or geography and we, of course, had general knowledge (or geberal knowledge as it became known to the community.) I also started doing singing lessons over Zoom. My singing teacher had also found the pandemic difficult, thanks to the shut down of the world. She used to perform on cruise ships and be hired for concerts and events all over the country. The pandemic put a sudden stop to all of this. So she started to teach singing, and I started to learn singing. Pub quizzes unfortunately haven't started back up again yet, and we don't know when or if they will, but Jay is still running his virtual pub quiz and I'm now attending my singing lessons in person. I may have never started singing lessons if I hadn't been bored in lockdown.
During lockdown, something that we started was a family game night. Around once a month, we would jump on Zoom with members of my family from all around the world. We had people in Australia, in Brecon, in Carmarthen, in Rotherham, in Dubai… we were spread to the four corners of the earth and yet we were all together. We were talking, laughing, crying, updating each other on our lives and we were even playing a board game. A board game - over Zoom! Before lockdown, we never would have even considered it, but being so isolated made us realise how important family was.It's important to keep up with family and friends now whilst you can, because you never know what's going to happen just around the corner.
So I started looking on all the usual sites, LinkedIn, Indeed, Facebook Jobs, and applying for anything that sounded new and interesting. Customer service roles, training roles, artsy roles, social media roles - all things that I'd had little bits and pieces of experience with but hadn't done professionally. I had interviews here and there, did the odd logic test or personality quiz, and eventually found a job that I think I'm really going to love. I have been offered a job as an Internet Specialist at a car sales company. It means I'll be taking photos, writing descriptions, uploading to the website, working with the sales team and communicating indirectly with clients via the company social media channels. It's something different to what I'm doing now, in a totally different industry, with totally different people. Truth be told, I'm excited. Terrified but excited. I can't wait to get started.
I started eating more and moving less. Those 20 minutes walks I'd do walking from my car to work, and vice versa - gone. Those evening snacks that I'd sometimes have - more frequent and fatty. When you combine more food and lack of exercise, you put on weight. That made me lose motivation. The lack of motivation made me desperately try and keep up some level of exercise. That exercise wouldn't result in weight loss, or at least not as much weight loss as I wanted. I sometimes even gained weight which, though it may have been muscle, really disheartened me and being so disheartened made me lose motivation. So the vicious cycle continues. I want to be lighter and fit back into my old clothes and see myself in a more positive light but I'm finding it really difficult to do so, and even out of lockdown, I'm finding it hard because the weight won't come off. Weight is always so much easier to put on than it is to lose and as much as I want to be a size 10, or even a comfortable 12, and as much as I want those scales to be below 10st, it just feels like it's never going to happen. It's really hard. The point I'm trying to make is that lockdown has made a real difference to how I felt about myself, both mentally, and physically and I imagine that it will have made a lot of people feel this way. I want you to know that you aren't alone. Now, almost 2 years later, in December 2022 we are living in a new normal. Coronavirus is still around, new variants are causing mass panic and we feel like another lockdown is imminent with every Boris Johnson press conference. But I do want to give a few basic tips on keeping yourself safe in this new normal. They are tips you will have heard before and probably be sick of hearing by now, but they're there for a reason. They may not always be possible but I'm trying to be safe where I can, and you can too.
Please do your best to stay safe, folks, and keep everyone that you love safe too. I know it isn't easy but we will get through it together. Here are some links to things mentioned in this article or resources you may find useful: Jay's Virtual Pub Quiz: https://youtube.com/c/thevirtualpubquiz https://www.facebook.com/jaysvirtualpubquiz/ Outsmarted (the board game we played over Zoom): https://www.outsmarted.co.uk/ https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.qplay.outsmarted https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/outsmarted-companion-app/id1541321303 Websites for Information and Guidance on Coronavirus: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/ https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus https://www.who.int/health-topics/coronavirus https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/index.html https://www.modernatx.com/covid19vaccine-eua/recipients/ By Erica Red. Blood everywhere. Screams. While this might seem like the description of a scene from a horror movie, that was actually how my first period went. I live in a very conservative country and family. Before the day of my first period, I had no idea what periods even were. I had no older sisters and my mom and I did not have the most comfortable relationship. In addition, I was not someone with a lot of friends when I was in seventh grade, therefore, the internet was all I had when it came to information about periods.
However, searching up the word “period” on google was not much help for me and I was very overwhelmed by all the information that I received. Light flow? Heavy flow? Ovulation? Discharge? I had no idea what any of those words meant, and the huge variety of period products I had to choose from left me confused and with a huge headache. But don’t worry! Today I will be helping you figure out which period product is right for you: pads, tampons, or menstrual cups? In a survey conducted by the period tracking app Flo, it was found that 45% of people preferred pads, 44% preferred tampons, 2% preferred menstrual cups and 9% used a combination of all three products. However, the “right product” varies from person to person and hopefully, by the end of this article, you will know what is right for you. Let’s start with the pad. This is a classic period product that many people start off with and for a very good reason. They are easy to use and not as intimidating as the other products. Pads are made up of one absorbent side and one sticky side. The sticky side can be stuck to the inside of your underwear to keep the pad in place and the absorbent side will be able to catch any blood. When choosing a pad, it is important to look at the absorbency level, which is how much blood the pad can hold. Make sure to experiment and try many types of pads to see which one feels the most comfortable for you. Pads should be changed around every 4 hours, depending on your flow, and there are special “night pads” that you will be able to wear while you sleep! Pads are the products that I started off with and I found them to be very comfortable and easy to put on. However, pads were often uncomfortable for me, especially since I was someone that was very active in sports. Since I have very sensitive skin, pads would also get quite scratchy and hurt my skin. Therefore, a year or so after I got my first period, I started trying out tampons. Tampons can be a little scarier and trickier than pads. Tampons are short, thin, cylinder-shaped products made out of absorbent material. Some tampons also include a plastic applicator over the absorbent material. Tampons with the applicator may seem harder to insert at first, but with practice, I personally find that the applicators make it much easier for me to insert the tampon. So here’s how you use them:
Putting a tampon in for the first time was scary and felt weird, but over time it has gotten much easier. Tampons are more comfortable than pads for me, and if the tampon is far up enough, I don’t even feel anything at all! Tampons also make it much easier for me to do sports and swim, which is why I mostly stick to using tampons these days. You should change your tampon every 4-6 hours depending on your flow. Finally, there’s the menstrual cup. This is one that I haven’t personally tried but have heard great reviews about. Menstrual cups are small, funnel-shaped cups made of rubber or silicone. They can be inserted into your body similar to a tampon, but they collect your blood instead of absorbing it. You can reuse menstrual cups so they could be more environmentally friendly and price-friendly than tampons or pads. You can empty the cup, wash it, and insert it back in. In between periods, it is recommended that you boil the cup in hot water for 5-7 minutes. Since I don’t have much experience with menstrual cups, here is an article for more information: https://www.teenagerswithexperience.com/guest-articles/a-menstrual-cup I know that getting your period can be a hard and confusing time, especially if it is your first. It definitely was for me. I hope that I have been able to help you decide which product is best for you. There is no right or wrong answer when it comes to period products and it can take many years to find the one that works best for you. However, with time and experience, I promise that it does get better and much less confusing. By Chelsea Who Am I? According to psychology, Erik Erison stated that mainly when one goes through puberty, identity vs role confusion starts to happen. One questions who they are and why they are that way. The fact is that it has taken me a lot of time and crying to be who I am and be proud.
I’m gonna be honest with you: When I was younger, I sincerely wondered why I was alive. I know, it sounds terrible to say among other things, but it’s the truth. I somehow did not belong anywhere. I was “too hispanic” sometimes, and “too black” other times. There were times where I was “not enough of either” or “too much of both.” I am also part of the LGTBQ+, which made me an even bigger target. I was having identity issues every other week. I wanted so badly to fit in, and I was willing to do anything. I even tried to convince myself I was straight, resulting in having queerphobia. Looking back, it wasn’t worth feeling shameful about; but at the same time it made sense. I saw how horribly others were treated for things they could not control - race, sexuality, even the habits of those associated with them. Humans are not always the most understanding. I told myself “I don't like women, only men. I am straight.” Little did I know that I was neither straight or gay. I felt like I was internally suffocating. It was not just the ongoing identity crisis but also family issues. Plus, I consider myself a pessimist who expects a lot. Oddly that is a juxtaposition to each other and a bit of a paradox. Around the time I turned 16, I realized life was getting better. I started to understand who I am. I identify as a female pansexual, my pronouns are she/her/hers and I am content with this. I am about to be a junior in high school and an official lifeguard in the summer. I am okay with being different. I have nobody to please other than myself. I am enough for me and that's the only thing that matters. All I can do is try my best, and sometimes my best will not be adequate, but that's all I can do. Reader, finding your identity is a challenge, but I want you to try. Examine yourself inside and outside. I may not know you personally, but I can tell you: you are beautiful and you're a person with the world in your hands. It is ok to be different. It is ok to stand out. Actually, it’s better to not be the same or conform to social standards sometimes. Identity is not the same among people and it varies to bring the best out of everyone at different times. Being alive means questioning why. Living means figuring things out, no matter how long it may take or how hard it may be to find the answer. Sometimes life is not the best and makes you want to fall down. Fall down with grace, then get right back up. You are a fighter. Picture life as the best wrestler in the world. Sometimes you will be kicked in the face without a doubt, but ‘the best’ doesn’t mean ‘the strongest.’ We, as humans, hold more strength than life. At the end of the day, your opinion of yourself matters more than what others say to contradict that thought. Finding your identity is scary and difficult, but look towards the peace you will feel at the end, to finally have loved and be honest with yourself enough for you to answer the question: Who Are You? I hope you learn who you are soon enough, and that it guides you to be the best version of yourself. I know you got this! By Camille Dear Younger Me,
I never thought I would be writing this letter, especially since it will be put out on the internet for the world to see. However, after reading many strong people from TWE come forward about their abuse, it has given me the means to do so as well. As you endured this trauma, the word “abuse” has never crossed your mind, at least when you would think about your family. Reflecting on the abuse you went through, and how you were able to brush it off, invokes a feeling of envy within me. Because now, I cannot think about the past without getting emotional about it. Even though you were naïve and you no longer exist today, writing this letter is my first step to recovering from this trauma. You were unable to recognize the signs because you thought it was normal. You thought every parent would call their children every name under the sun, every parent would whisper filthy things to one another about their child, just to be brought up as soon as they got angry. But that is where you went wrong. You, my dear, were an unfortunate victim of verbal and emotional abuse. Verbal abuse is abuse that is in the form of words. Your verbal abuser said anything and everything to hurt you. Verbal abuse led to emotional abuse which eventually led to the degradation of your self-esteem. You struggled to fully accept yourself because you were surrounded by people who constantly put you down. There were times where a certain word or phrase would strike an emotional chord within you, but you would swallow that feeling down until you were in your room. You were strong. And I will forever admire you for that. Your experience with verbal and emotional abuse was one that left emotional scars, as you suffered the abuse from both parents. The two people who were supposed to be your support system let you down. They called you so many names, ranging from fat, to wench, to the b-word, to many more derogatory terms; when did it ever stop? When did our parents realize that they were hurting their child, and pushing them farther away than they could imagine? Abuse can last a lifetime. Even when the words stop, the emotional trauma is still there, and it is up to me now to figure out what to do with it. My childhood has left many blemishes on my psychological state. I feel as though the person I am today reflects the experiences I have had as a child. As of today, I find myself unable to properly express my emotions. I tend to hold it all in, locked away in the depths of my mind, never to be found. Whenever I find myself crying around others, I feel disgusted. Part of me wants to be hugged and comforted and the other part wants to be left alone. There is no doubt in my mind that what we went through as a child has deeply scarred us. I sincerely hope that we can reach a point in our lives where we can live healthily–in terms of mental health. Writing this letter to you and acknowledging our pain is the first step to recovery. Your bravery back then has led me to share my story with other people in hopes that they find the strength to fight back. I am sorry that your childhood was not what you expected. But I promise to fight for a better adulthood. With Love, ~Camille I want to extend a special thanks and appreciation to everyone who has read this article! This is one of my more personal works, and I am anxious and excited to see everyone’s thoughts! If you or a loved one is suffering/suffered from any sort of abuse, please look at the links provided below for more help. (These websites do not sponsor TWE)
By Bella Before I jump straight in, I would like to give you a preliminary message. It has taken me a long time to figure out what is best for me when revising, and it is vital to understand that some methods won’t work for everyone. Nonetheless, I cannot emphasize enough the importance of trying new things and figuring out what works for you, as well as being patient if you are not getting the results that you strive for. As an A-Level student, I have had the time to cultivate these methods and am still constantly learning. Don’t lose hope!
Here are some ideas on revision methods you might find useful:
Practice questions. No matter what subjects you’re enrolled in, it is always helpful to see how you can apply the information you have learned in the classroom to mock exam questions. There is usually a variety of practice questions and reference papers that you can find online if you want a cut-and-dry topic. An important aspect of this to note is your use of the rubric the professor gave to you. Learn as much from it as you possibly can. Learn what words you are required to use, what the command phrases are, what timings you need, etc. Admittedly, sometimes it can feel a bit tedious, but in the long-run, it is worth knowing it. ALTERNATIVE REVISION METHODS:
I hope that this has been very advantageous to you and that you might have some new methods that you would like to try out! By Arya The transition from middle school to high school is both a significant and nerve-racking change. Middle school is a laid-back environment where the work is not too serious, while high school becomes increasingly difficult, as the semesters go on and dictates your future career. Going into high school can be extremely intimidating and can feel very overwhelming due to the constant pressure of meeting goals and deadlines.
As an anticipated high school student, you are entering an unfamiliar atmosphere with a much denser school population, a building that can be difficult to navigate, and burdensome. On the plus side, there are diverse extracurriculars to take part in including clubs, electives, and sports. However, because of the many more opportunities you can take part in, there comes many more responsibilities. Graduating from middle school and moving onto high school can trigger a cluster of emotions, including stress and anxiety., but there are also many other aspects to high school than these feelings. Since the middle schools in the area tend to feed into the high schools, the people in your classes will range from those you have known prior, to complete strangers. Although this can be slightly spine-tingling, it is a great opportunity for you to make more friends. These friends can also become study or notetaking buddies, which can turn out to be of great benefit to the both of you. Being engaged with friends and the school apart from your classes is also crucial for the best high school experience. Friends may come and go, but overtime, you will determine who your true friends are and make great memories with them along the way. As for high school events, try to take part in as many of them as you can. If I have learned anything from COVID-19, it is to take advantage of what you have and what you can do because anything can happen. We can’t predict the future. Moreover, if you have the option, you could take much more rigorous classes, such as Honors, AP (Advanced Placement), and IB (International Baccalaureate). But this also means you would need to learn how to manage time more efficiently in order to avoid being bombarded with stress. A methodical way of managing time when it comes to school is writing down all the homework and/or tasks you have for that day or week, then creating a schedule of when you are going to do specific assignments and/or tasks. Personally, I use the Notes app on my phone to jot down all my assignments for school, as well as any extracurricular tasks I have to do. As I complete them, I remove them in order to keep track of what is outstanding. Alternatively, you could use a journal, calendar, or another app on your phone - Whatever you’re most comfortable with! When it comes to actually completing the school work, there are many efficient ways of doing so. Some examples include:
Having a good work ethic and proper time management will not only help you throughout high school, but also through your post-secondary career and the rest of your life. I know going into high school can be frightening, but some of the experiences and memories that are made throughout the four years you’re there are ones you will never forget. Like all things, high school has its ups and downs, but it will be some of the best four years of your life, so make sure to enjoy them to the best of your abilities! By Kenzie Getting diagnosed with an illness or disorder, whether mental or physical, can be really difficult to deal with. You wonder how it's going to affect your life, you wonder how it's going to affect your family and you ask 'why me?' I know how this feels. I've been through it.
In 2020 (as if that year wasn't bad enough already…) I was diagnosed with myotonic dystrophy. According to the NHS, myotonic dystrophy is defined as “a progressive condition, which means it gets worse over time. It often begins by affecting a particular group of muscles, before affecting the muscles more widely.” Myotonic dystrophy is one type of muscular dystrophy or MD which could affect the heart or the muscles used for breathing. My myotonic dystrophy is genetic, meaning that I was diagnosed with it due to my father having it and passing that gene mutation on to me. Since then, I have had to go through a multitude of blood tests, heart tracings, lung function tests, strength tests, and pretty much every other taste you can name under the sun. My diagnosis was really difficult for me because it meant that I had to really think about my future, in particular my future family. I have always wanted to be a mum and my diagnosis means that it won't be as straightforward for me as just trying for a baby. I will have to have tests on my eggs, may have to go through multiple cycles of IVF, will have to have risk assessments and tests throughout my pregnancy, and am at a higher risk of a stillbirth or cot death. This was devastating for me to learn. I didn't care about the muscle wasting part of MD - I only cared about the genetic childbearing part. There was and still is nothing I can do about my diagnosis. It's a matter of playing with the cards I've been dealt and rolling with the punches. The following things are some things that helped me to cope with my MD diagnosis.
This is why support groups and message boards are amazing. They are places you can go which are free of judgement, free of stigma, free of shame. They allow you to talk to others who have been where you are and you can get advice, support, guidance, and reassurance from people just like you. It allows you to form a connection with others like you and it helps you feel less alone. By Sophie  Most people have pets and consider them their best friends. Although a furry living being is cute to look at and hug, it is a big responsibility that requires time, effort, and financial resources.
Even though having a pet may be one of the most rewarding things, it’s a big decision and responsibility to get a cat, dog, rabbit or even a hamster. The expenses can get quite costly. For example, a trip to the vet to get your furry friend vaccinated can cost up to £40 and getting him/her spayed costs between £200 and £500, according to PETMED. Meet my 10-year-old cat. She is not the friendliest cat; she doesn’t allow you to pet her for too long but she’s still the kindest cat in my eyes. A couple of years ago, she was diagnosed with a heart disease which means that she has to take medication on a daily basis and see the vet every 3 months. These are additional costs that couldn’t have been prevented, however, it is vital for her. Cats are nocturnal, meaning they sleep long hours during the day and become active during the night. Therefore, your little fella can wake you up several times per night. Although traveling with a pet can be a fun experience, it is pretty pricey, especially if you want your pet to be with you in the cabin during the flight (this is only possible for cats and small dogs). I have taken my cat on vacation once and paid around £150 to have her with me on the plane. She was very stressed but was extremely calm and meowed only twice. However, other times, when I left the country, I would give her to my sister who took good care of her – I won’t lie, my heart ached to leave her but I knew she was in good hands. If you live in an apartment, you’ll have to litter train your cat – this process can be either long or short depending on the age and on other factors. So, if you adopt a seven-year-old cat whose toilet was outside then it might take him/her longer to understand that this habit should change. Here are some things I would have wanted to know before getting a cat: - Although a cat can be quite small in size, its costs can get high quickly. Being able to cover basic costs (e.g., food, litter box, annual check-ups) is essential, however, putting a larger sum aside in case of emergencies is important – by emergencies, I mean extra vet appointments, travel expenses, medication. - Cats love to play during the night but not necessarily with toys. Whether it’s running after shadows, after a string, or a ball of paper – they will love it and no need to spend money! Apps like Friskies Catfishing or Mouse are meant to entertain cats – I won’t lie, my cat’s attention span wasn’t that good with those kinds of games. - Do you know the saying “You don’t own a cat; a cat owns know”? – well it’s true. They expect you to treat them like kings and queens. Let’s say you’re tired after your working day and you just want to hit the hay, so you close the door and try to fall asleep but you can’t: your cat is scratching your door. That’s because he/she can’t stand not being able to get into your room and snuggle up with you or just walk around your room exploring the surroundings. I would suggest having treats next to your bed and giving some in case the noise bothers you. It’ll distract your cat who’ll be grateful for having a midnight snack and might even take a nap on you – those are the best moments!
“Time spent with cats is never wasted.” – Sigmund Freud In conclusion, having a cat is pretty awesome! You always have someone to come home to and he/she keeps you company by sitting on the table whilst you’re having breakfast. However, getting a pet should be thought through carefully. I promise you that having a cat is one of the coolest and wholesome things ever. No wonder why people compare having a pet to having a child – it’s a huge responsibility but it’s definitely worth it if you have the resources. I promise you that having a cat is one of the coolest and most wholesome things ever. Take care of yourself (and your pet)! By Madeline Light dances across the spines,
lit against the blue and the black, the matte and the translucent of the covers and the dust jackets, assembled soldiers ready and waiting. Light dances across the names lit against the titles, the fonts snow white, glittering gold, pitch black, curled in cursive, strong in caps. Light dances across the waiting worlds, lit against the stories within, the pages to be turned, the spines to be cracked, ready and waiting. By Lauren DISCLAIMER: This is not advice from a registered dietitian. This is not meant to be medical advice. Please consult your physician before making any changes in your diet.
Everyone is telling you how to eat. The media, your mom, your grandma, magazines, the government, etc. They tell you to eat this, but don’t eat that. With all these sources throwing information at you, how do you know what to eat? What is actually good for your body? How do you stay healthy? My experience with food has been a long one. Food has always been an outlet for my emotions and thoughts about myself. Before you can really decide what is best for you, you must realize that food is food. It is not a reward, punishment, or competition. Your body needs the food to convert it to ATP which is your body’s major source of energy. It takes energy for you to just breathe. It takes energy for you to exist. The best advice I’ve ever gotten is “I have no advice for you.” Everyone may not look all that different and we all generally have the same organs and tissues, but biochemically, we are extremely different and unique. Therefore, someone who does not know you medically, cannot know what is healthy for you or not. Of course, there are generalizations based on studies, but everyone’s ranges, limits, and needs are different. The person who knows your body best is you. So how do you know what to eat and how to eat? Should I do intermittent fasting? Should I eat less sugar? Should I take supplements? The answer is: maybe. Not an exciting answer, yes, but a true one. Only a doctor or someone who knows your body’s biochemistry and you uniquely as a person can tell you what’s best for YOU. The best way to gauge what’s good for you and what’s not good for you is what makes you feel physically vibrant. Dairy products may make you feel bloated and blah. So don’t eat dairy products. Beans may give you abdominal cramps. So don’t eat beans. You may feel energized eating a big breakfast rich in healthy fats, such as avocado toast. So continue eating your avocado toast. Experiment with what makes you feel good. So where do you start? Start experimenting. Try new foods that you know nourish your body. Fried foods and candy may make you feel emotionally good, but too much can make you feel physically exhausted, groggy, bloated, and achy. The only way to find what's best for you is to know yourself and try all the options you have. Eating should be enjoyable, but eating is necessary. You must get all your nutrients. Food is inevitable and a battle we must face everyday. Meal time does not have to be a battle if we shut out all the external voices telling you what they think is best for you. Listen to what your body is telling you. Once you tune into your body and listen to what it needs, eating will no longer be a daily war but just a daily occurrence that helps you be the best version of you. By Lana For the past few months, it has become evident that hate crimes are being targeted toward the Asian demographic, particularly those who are elderly. Communities that have encapsulated decades of Asian culture and representation are now being muddled with harmful rhetoric and physical assaults that have led individuals to be in critical conditions. As I continue to see news articles circulating online and the overwhelming reactions from the #StopAAPIHate movement, I wanted to write a letter to my grandparents based upon these events.
To my grandparents, I wholeheartedly despise the reality where you are forced to fear of being hate-crimed and harassed in public. I hate the increased portrayal of xenophobia, where we are faulted and belittled as the ‘kung-flu’ or ‘Chinese virus,’ but I especially loathe how you are the physical targets due to being older and more incapable of defending yourselves from spiteful people. As immigrants who sought for better lives for the family, you have paved the path for me to comfortably express myself and my cultural identity. It simply feels unfair for me to now benefit from my surroundings, while you are continuing to face the lingering and despicable racism that I cannot eradicate from your lives. When watching the news, the crimes being sporadically done are within areas of our community. I am incredibly scared that you will be next. As you possess the soul to continue persevering, I now have the spirit to bring recognition against such injustice. Love, Lana Ever since the rise of assault cases toward AAPI (Asian and/or Pacific Islander) citizens amidst the pandemic, I have attempted to bring awareness to this issue within my community. For the past few months, I have created a collection of art pieces that expressed a lens of violence and prejudice against the AAPI demographic. My message was able to be recognized through school-wide art festivals and local coffee shop windows, which allowed my community to understand how my cultural identity drove me to vocalize my perspective on this social justice issue. Whether it is locally or globally, you may have the opportunity to become involved. Every bit of effort counts and will be recognized. For those who feel compelled to bring recognition and spread further awareness for AAPI hate crimes and the #StopAAPIHate movement, please check out their website; it consists of resources to report incidents, provides news and safety tips when going out in public, educates on what is considered as discrimination through a federal perspective, and contains organizations to donate to. It also contains multilingual translations for languages spoken among Asian communities, which will be useful for a larger demographic to understand the material. Furthermore, I will provide a series of resources and links below that promotes support against racism. It is vast, so please feel free to share or go through these resources and learn more on whether there are any organizations near your community.
Please feel free to use these resources! I hope that we all may one day feel protected and safe again as we unite through solidarity and strength during this difficult period of time. By Kenzie A hobby is defined in the dictionary as 'an activity done regularly in one's leisure time for pleasure.' Many people have a lot of different hobbies depending on their interests and what they enjoy doing in their spare time. It could be singing or painting, or it could even be something like cooking or gardening.
Something that is also widely discussed is whether having a hobby is beneficial and productive. Hobbies can sometimes be seen as a waste of time where, unless there is an end product that can be shown off or displayed, there is no point. Hobbies take up time where someone could be doing their homework, getting extra credit at school, studying, or helping with the housework. While this is true, this doesn't mean that hobbies are useless or a waste of time. They can actually be really beneficial to mental health and a person's mental state. Let me explain why. One of my favourite hobbies is amateur dramatics. I love to act and particularly enjoy musical theatre where I get to sing and dance as well as act. When I am on stage, I get the opportunity to forget everything else that I am dealing with in my real life and fully engage with and understand the character I am playing. I feel like as long as I am on that stage, whatever is going on outside can't touch me and is irrelevant. Being on stage makes me happy and sometimes, that time away from focusing on my problems even helps me to see it through a clearer pair of eyes and find a solution. One way in which having a hobby helps your mental health is by providing a break from thinking about your issues. If you are focusing on something else other than your problems or your feelings, it means you are fully engaged in something else which can take up your time. This can be really helpful for those who struggle with a busy school life as it means that you can have some 'you' time where you don't have to think about your issues. It's always good to take your mind off things for a little while and then come back to your problems with a clear head and a fresh view. For example, when I was stressed about my exams, I would stop revising and instead watch some YouTube videos. Those videos would relax me, make me laugh and sometimes even give me new ideas on how to revise more effectively. A second way in which a hobby can be beneficial is that it can be used as a stress reliever. Every human being has what I call a stress container. Everyone's stress container is different sizes and shapes and with this stress container comes a little tap where we can let our stress out if our container is getting full. If our container overflows then that can cause us to feel really overwhelmed and lead to mental health disorders such as anxiety, PTSD or depression. Hobbies are one of the things which we can use to activate our little tap and let some of our stress out so that our container doesn't spill out. Hobbies are a way to unwind and feel more relaxed and better equipped to deal with the stress and problems of everyday life. A third reason why hobbies are amazing and can make a real difference to our emotional health is that they can help us form connections with other people. Hobbies don’t always have to be something that you do alone. For me, my acting is something I do with a lot of other people who I wouldn’t have met had I not started acting. It's helpful to have a common interest that you can bond over and make a strong connection with. Friends are important and having a hobby can sometimes be one of the best ways to make new friends. Having friends gives you a support system that you can turn to when you are struggling with your mental health and that can be really helpful and beneficial. There are also statistics from a study that found people participating in team sports and team activities were less likely to experience stress, anxiety and depression. If that’s not a great reason to have a hobby, then I don’t know what is! These are just three of the benefits of having a hobby but there are so many more. Doing something you enjoy can be both an escape and benefit your mental health. That escape can be the perfect time for you to take a step back and breathe. So make sure you think about what you enjoy and what hobbies are important to you. You never know, looking at it from a new perspective could help you come up with the perfect solution. By Divaani To be able to dream is defined through the concept of imagination. Something that is almost too seamless to be able to exist. Something so disconnected from real life. It creates this ideology in our minds that our goals can never be equated to our dreams. Quite frankly, we’ve never dreamed of it because it was always considered something that we could never dream of. Something that was impossible.
We’re taught from a young age to only ever envision the attainable. We’re primed to study long hours at school by teachers and encouraged later on to take on the extracurriculars by parents; only to be sitting in an office through our adulthood and pushing ourselves to work harder. Our lives have gradually started to become the accepted norm of today’s society through the same expectations being thrust upon us all. They corner us into materialising such mental representations of our futures to an extent that we do not have the willpower to think of what could be. The wonder that could be —who you want to be. I think about this a lot. I know I would have had various answers for the different time periods of my life but for now, I want to become someone that I had idolised when I was younger. I want to be someone who can speak up intuitively. I want to be someone who can grow to love herself. I want to be someone who doesn’t feel trapped in a turmoil of expectations. I just want to be free. But why do we have this philosophy that we just can’t do it? This recurring thought that I could never be them. We’ve had so many years of education and yet no one taught us how to love ourselves. Everything we’ve looked at, everything we’ve marvelled at was always something we thought that we could never have or be. The reality is that we’ve all just started to become doubters. And the doubters are just dreamers with broken hearts. It all roots from how we think. For instance, we can all agree that only nothing is impossible. So if nothing is impossible, is it possible for something to be impossible? It’s the funny truth. Once your mindset changes, everything on the outside will change along with it. Anything can be beautiful. What’s beautiful is only beautiful if you want it to be. In other words, if you decide that today no matter what is going to be a good day, it is going to be a good day. Similarly, if you resolve that at any cost, you are going to accomplish your dream, you will one day accomplish your dream. The sky is not the limit; your mind is. You can’t just stop dreaming because the night never seems to end. It all comes down to mindset. By Chloë I was in love once.
Not something you’d expect to hear from a 16 year old girl, is it? It’s more the beginning of a tale told by an old man in a care home, yet here I am. The thing is, I hate the concept of love. I hate how it is intangible, I hate those Instagram posts I can’t stop scrolling through; the endless contradictions of ‘If they love you, they make the time.’ and the following, ‘Love means knowing when to step away for a while.’ This endless stream of uncertainty eats away at me, and that’s essentially what love is. Although, it’s probably worse, because all of your words and your actions and your ideas also impact someone else. Someone you really care about. Someone you love. So, yes, I was in love. We dated for a year and a half. He made me laugh and cry and feel every emotion in between. Those are the facts. Those are my certainties and the rest… well, the rest is what keeps me up at night. My relationship had more ups and downs than a wavy day out at sea; we genuinely took the whole ‘rollercoaster of emotions’ to an excessive level. It made it so confusing to realise whether or not I was happy, or if I should end things, or if we were just going through a ‘rough patch’. Essentially, I had no clue. People always say that you can see how bad the relationship was once it’s over, but that’s the worst part: I still can’t tell. From where I’m sitting, I can see the good and the bad just as plainly as I could when we were together and, trust me, I saw the bad a lot more than you would expect. Maybe I was just making excuses, giving him too many second chances, or maybe he was just really busy and I was too demanding of affection and his time. Even now, I can’t decide. So, instead, I force myself to focus on how I felt in the bad times, relive those emotions. And I force myself to remember the good times purely as that: memories. I do not allow myself to emotionally engage with what I have ‘lost’, because this will make me want to go back to a place which wasn’t healthy. If you are in a relationship, have a crush, are dealing with a breakup, questioning your sexuality, or anything in between… then same. I’ve been there, I’ve seen it, I’ve passed ‘Go’ and collected my £200 and honestly, from my experience, it sucks. Emotions suck. Feelings suck. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have them. We spend so much of our time fixating on the present, and that’s okay… until it’s not. Until you cry constantly about how confused you are and how you don’t know what to do. We are teenagers. We don’t know what to do. We make mistakes, we hurt people, we get hurt, we fall in and out of love faster than Bolt doing the 100m, and we aren’t going to stop. These experiences teach us how to cope when we grow up. Because, believe it or not, we are still children. You and me. Neither of us have any idea what’s going to happen a week from now, a day, even in the next hour. We may dress up and pretend to be adults, but it’s just a fantastical desire we are aching to achieve in the hope that this transition from teen to adult will magically solve all our problems, and will magically make sense of the world around us. Yes, I was in love once. But, you know what, in the past two months I’ve made mistakes, I’ve hurt people, I’ve been hurt, and I may have developed a crush or two along the way. And I bet you’ve probably done these things too. It’s okay. It’s okay to be confused and stressed and anxious because we all feel like that, all the time. I hope my experiences have shed light onto just how similar we all are, considering I’m just a stranger sitting in her room wearing a dress in mid-winter and you are somebody I’ve almost definitely never met. And still, I’m here for you, a total stranger offering her hand to help you through whatever it is that’s getting you down. I’m here for you just like your friends are there, and your teachers and your family. We are all going through this together, one big group of people who have absolutely no clue what’s going on. And we are going to do amazing things, I promise. |
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Teenagers With Experience is an online organisation created to provide teenagers worldwide with an online platform to share their own experiences to be able to help, inform and educate others on a variety of different topics. We aim to provide a safe space to all young people. You can contact us via email, social media or our contact form.
Please note that the content on this website is created by teenagers. While we strive to provide accurate and helpful information, it is important to remember that we are not professional experts. If you are experiencing a crisis or need professional advice, please reach out to a qualified mental health professional or a helpline. |