I Wish I Would Have Known
Cassie Lydon
Intro This is a book consisting of everything I and others like myself wished we would of known when we were growing up. You may think that one thing can shape or destroy everything you have in the blink of an eye. I thought the same way, and what I know now is that those instances where I thought everything was crashing down around me are completely insignificant to me now. They shaped who I am because I over came those obstacles and learned from them. The most reoccurring worries I had were relationships of all kinds, some were good and some were bad, and the struggles with self-image and self-esteem. How was I supposed to know what was going to matter in 10 years and what wasn’t. There was no one there to give me the low down on why I needed the people in my life and how important I was to myself. This book is your cheat sheet. You can read it and us it or just read it. I’m no expert I’ve only lived through it all. Everything I wish I would have known is so that maybe you can find the answer you were looking for without the struggle and heart break of figuring out on your own.
Relationships re路la路tion路ship Noun 1. The way in which two or more concepts, objects, or people are connected, or the state of being connected. 2. The state of being connected by blood or marriage. Synonyms relation - connection - connexion - kinship - affinity
ABout 77% of Teens have a
Relationship
With their parents
Relationships Really what is a relationship? Have you ever thought that you have some sort of relationship with every person we meet. You might be someone’s acquaintance or someone’s best friend, but regardless you have been part of their life. A lollipop moment is a moment when someone has made a impact on your life and they didn’t even know it. These are moments where someone said something or did something that made your life fundamentally different. I cant say I’m an expert but I’m almost certain these things happen in our everyday lives, those friends and family that have always been there for you or said the right thing just one time, it’ was probably just what you needed at that moment. I can think of several people that have made a great impact in my life but I don’t think they will ever know if I don’t give them proper credit for it.
I would tell you this is a section filled with all my regrets like how
I wish I would of listened to my mother more, I wish I wouldn’t have listened to that boy that said cute things to me, and I wish I would of picked my friends better. But I’m pretty sure there can’t be regrets in the people we have had in our lives, only lessons to be learned.
Dear Little me,
This has been my first year living independently in an apartment
away form my mom. I knew I was going to have to move out eventually because that’s the “grown up” thing to do. Mom was never as strict as everyone else’s parents but it was still hard to live there. Things were dramatic and there was lots of unnecessary yelling, it was too catty for my liking. I remember feeling alone a lot because no one was ever really home. While it was nice to have time to myself , it was also nice knowing someone cared where I was or what I might have been doing. I know I thought when I got to live on my own everything would be better. There wouldn’t be any drama, no one would tell me to clean anything, and I could make all the decisions.
Too bad no one told me it wasn’t anything like what I was expecting.
At times I am more lonely then I was living at home. I do have roommates but our schedules are so different it’s only by chance that we run into each other and hang out. Plus a roommate does not have to be your best friend nor do they have to love you. I find that my roommate and I tell each other what our day was like only because we want someone, anyone to know. It’s not like when you came home from school and mom asks “how was your day?” or “did you make any new friends?”. No. Most people really don’t care like your mother does because no one else is your mother.
I wish I would of appreciated the care of my mom more. I don’t want
to scare you out moving out because it’s a great growing experience, I just wish I would of known that without her a part of me would change. I wish I would of known to be more grateful, to love a little more, and to be thankful for my mom’s home cooking. I wish I would of thanked her everyday for putting a roof over my head and food on the table because doing it by myself is harder then when I was living with her.
Love, Mama’s Girl
Family Your family is the first relationship you have. It is there to teach you how to love. One of the most important things to know is to not only love yourself but to also love others. We think we are forced to love our family because they are related to us by blood. But I don’t believe that. I learned the hard way that I love my mom, my home, and a place I felt secure. Living on your own is a big step in growing up. We are forced to adapt to living a completely different lifestyle with completely different people.
I wish I knew to love my family a little more. We were never a
touchy or emotional family. It was an unstated understanding that we cared for each other. If I could go back I’d tell my mom and sister everyday how much it meant to me that they cared for me. In the adult world love doesn’t come as easily. Nothing is easy in the adult world. Having a core family behind you makes it a lot easier. At times if I don’t have enough money in the month to afford rent and groceries my mom will buy me food. It means more to me then she could ever imagine. She does it so effortlessly because she’s always cared for me.
Your parents shape your life whether you like them or not. They
teach you the lifestyle they know and it’s weird but you’ll find out that when you live on your own you will live the same way your mother did. It’s a very strange cycle. So listen to your mother and father. Let them take every picture they can of you growing up because that stage of your life will pass and the closest thing to memories is photographs. They have altered their lives to make your life that much better so don’t blow it.
Boys Eww. Sick. Gross. Yuck. Boys. For the record at my age I still think boys are totally gross and yet for some reason we need them for survival.
98% of High School relationships don’'t last
Boys can be a girls biggest weakness. I wish I would have known how to stay away from boys when I was younger. Actually, I wish I still wish I knew how to stay away form boys.
In all reality the heart hurts the worst. When you are 13 and 14
years old, I’m sorry but you don’t know what love is. Heck, I don’t even know what love is. So now you’re questioning my credibility right? Well for me it only took one boy to take my heart in his hand and crush it like the little bug it was. I actually watched him do it so effortlessly and afterward I heard a chuckle come out of his mouth…ok I’m only being a little over dramatic.
Boys are not complicated
at all though. They want what they want and they don’t want what they don’t want. What I’m saying is that if a boy is into you he will do anything to have you, and if he doesn’t like you he will give no effort. When boys give you nothing you walk away. No if, ands, buts about it. You won’t change their mind. Noting is going to change their mind. Besides, why would you care about someone who doesn’t care about you? See as girls we play these strange mind games with ourselves. We analyze every thing he does, has done, maybe might do, or what we think he is thinking. Confused? Good. It’s stupid and confusing because it’s all made up in our head. I really wish I would have known that the first boy to hurt my heart would be so insignificant to my life years to come. Seriously, ask me what his name was, I bet I don’t even remember.
If you think you found the right boy now then I caution you. He
may be the boy you will be with for the rest of your life but then again he may not. What people need to understand is that when you are
growing up you need to be able to live life and find yourself. I know it sounds corny but it’s true. I’ve seen plenty of girls who have found themselves lost when their high school boyfriend breaks up with them in their first semester of college and they don’t know what to do or how to be without him. As young women, soon to be women, society now a days asks us to be independent. We have the opportunity to have careers and be the bread winners. You can choose the way you want to live your life but how will you know which lifestyle is right for you if you don’t give yourself a little taste of the “good” life. And for the record I am not trying to put a damper on the wonderful thing you might have with this boy I just challenge you to take a step back and maybe take some nights away from your boyfriend and go hang out with your friends because your friends are much more likely to out live your boyfriend if you know what I mean.
Dear Me, There is going to be a boy you will meet when you are 14 years old. I’m writing this to warn you. He will be the best and the worst thing to ever happen to you.
I wish I would have understood that things when you are 14 years
old are not going to last forever. He is going to make you trust him and you are going to tell him everything. Then one day he will be gone. Out of no where he will stop texting you back and I’m still not sure if you will ever see or talk to him again.
This boy will in fact break your heart. It’s the first heart break you will
experience. What I wish I could of known was that this boy was actually very insignificant to my life and you were not supposed to give him the power to tear you down.
Boys can say cute things but I think they are just telling you what you
want to hear. You need to leave this boy because it was not supposed to last forever. As much as you want it to work it’s not going to. Please walk away as soon as you can. I have seen so many people date and break
up. I really don’t think you’re supposed to find the right person when you’re a teenager. You need to grow so please let yourself.
Love, Fell so Hard
To find a boy it’s essential to know that you are amazing and
deserve the best. If you don’t think you deserve to be treated with the utmost respect by a boy who genuinely cares for you, you are crazy. There are so many people in the world and one of them is meant to be with you. I remember feeling like no boy would ever want me. I was so wrong. I was just waiting for the right one. Heck, I’m still waiting but this time around I’m very satisfied with my status and confidence and security is key. I’m pretty sure boys can smell fear.
Friends For reasons we can never know, fate brings friend to friend, then leaves the rest to human nature. While a few special friendships last a lifetime, the vast majority prove easier to leave behind. Some take years to fade away; others end spectacularly. Research shows that the quickest way to end a friendship is betrayal.
Types of friends: •
The Best Friend: The golden friend. This person is a thousand times better then a boyfriend or mother. They are there to listen but never judge, help you get out of a jam, tell things to you straight, and always be the first person you call about anything. But I think the most important job of a best friend is to heal your broken heart. In my professional opinion they almost resemble an invisible friend you might have had when you were young in that they are both common and always by your side.
•
The Old Friend: Most likely some sort of lifelong friend. These types of friends are the hardest to keep and this is only because when
people grow they tend to change. While your old friend might be just an old best friend they are still totally worthy enough to be around even if its a phone call every couple months do it as if nothing has changed •
The New Friend: New friends are so much fun. They remind me of a new relationship. You guys are still learning about each other so there’s always plenty to talk about. Since the friendship is so fresh it’s fun kind of like the a circus performance
•
The Wild Friend: E veryone has that one friend that is just crazy. And I mean crazy in the fun way not the insane way. If you’re anything like I am this friend is mostly a bad influence because they spend their time convincing you to do things you wouldn’t normally do. I do enjoy this friend but there is a point when you need to not do what they say.
•
The “Married” Friend: I don’t mean married as in has a ring on her finger (although when you’re my age that’s very possible) this friend is just way to tied down to some boy. The number one rule is to never ever tell this girl she is acting like an idiot. She might be but when she’s in her happy bubble she’s not going to listen to you. She might just need some space from you. I’d say don’t ditch her just yet especially if she makes a little effort. When he leaves her it would probably mean the world to her if you were there to let her cry on your shoulder. Just put yourself in her shoes.
•
The Guy Friend: Obviously we can call this a “friend boy”. This relationship is kinda weird because people always assume you guys are dating when clearly you are not. The only thing that gets weird about guy friends are when you start to have feelings for them or they start to have feelings for you. I think most the time that ends up in a termination of the friendship but maybe a relationship can blossom too I’ll be slightly optimistic about this one.
•
The Secondhand Friend: When someone introduces you to someone else, supposedly because they think you’ll hit it off, it could be a clever strategy to ditch you both. Which is good: Secondhand friends are a better deal than new friends because there’s already some sort of connection even if it’s awkwardly some other friend you guys have in common.
•
Friend with Benefits: AKA the worst idea you’ve ever had in your entire life. The only reason we want to kiss someone or have any sort of physical relationship with them is because we are attracted to them and once you’re attracted to someone you’re going to what to be with them. Hands down you’re setting yourself up to get your feelings hurt.
Friends are key to survival. Without a key group of friends to
confide in I don’t know how I would of gotten through high school and made my way to college. They helped a little with the school part but they defiantly helped with keeping me sane. I have always been a “girl” type of girl, meaning I’ve always gotten along really well with girls because I was too laid back to take any of the drama. The other side to that is being a “guy’s girl” where you make better friends with guys. Wherever you might fall just be cautious of who you choose to spend your time with. If ever you feel you aren’t being your true self around a friend then they’re probable not a friend.
Dear Me,
Going to a college none of my friends were going to was the scariest
thing I’ve ever done. I remember at orientation trying to talk to girls to make friends but they just seemed to stuck up to give a rats ass about me.
Maybe it had something to do with being raised by my dad and hav-
ing a brother but I found out really fast that I liked to just chill and hang
with the guys. It started with knowing one guy in the group, next thing I knew I was one of the “bros” drinking beer every weekend.
I soon understood why I needed girl friends. With partying every
weekend came big risk. I didn’t have friends to watch out for me when I really needed them. I was sexually assaulted one night at one of the “bros” parties. The boy had no connection to my friends but what I found out was that as a bro you are expected to watch out for yourself.
I wish I knew those first weeks of college that I needed to establish
the same type of connection with girls like I had with my high school friends. It doesn’t mean you have to replace them at all but you need some people on your side who will have your back.
Love, A Guy’s Girl
About 1 in 4 women are sexually assaulted in their academic career
in the US. Most girls mentality is that it would never happen to them. I’m not here to say that it will but you need to understand that is does exist and can be stopped.
Friends can help in many other ways too. They are there to keep
you grounded. They will give you advice, even if you don’t want to hear it you know you need it. They are there to make sure you aren’t sitting alone on a Saturday night with a tub of ice cream and two spoons. They are there to get you through the good times and the bad. So to all those with friends like this, never let them go. My friends and I all went to
1 in 4 Women are sexually Assaulted in their Academic career
different colleges but we never let that stop us from talking everyday and visiting as much as we can. I’ve even made just as good of friends in college. I never replaced anyone but just let my heart grow a little bigger for more people. Friends really are forever while boys will come and go. It’s very true, I’ve seen it happen.
There are rules though in order to keep these so called “friends”
you have. I’ll list 5 unwritten (now officially written) rules to a stable friendship:
Rules of Friends 1. Friends don’t date each others Ex’s — This is for several reasons. Even if it was only one date that person is off limits to you. As a friend you have to support them through a breakup. If they are upset or hurt by something their ex did it is your responsibility to listen and not date the person. Also it’s just weird. Your friend does not want to see that person let alone you hanging out with them. There are other people out there so lets not be some guys sloppy seconds. 2. Friends don’t steal friends — You might think that taking the friends of your friends is merely a way to expand your social circle. Yes, that can work but be cautious on how you go about it. Think, if you introduced two of your friends then all of a sudden they started hanging out and ignoring you, you’d be pretty upset and left out. So don’t do that to other people. Make sure to include the mutual friend. 3. Friends take turns — This sounds like what we learn in kindergarten, but it is true. Sometimes we forget about the other person in the relationship. You can switch off deciding what you do or where you eat. It also includes sharing the limelight. It’s important in a friendship to give and receive empathy and never take each other for granted. 4. Friends stand by friends — There is nothing worse then a friend that bails when things get tough. Even if you don’t agree you can
always still care. A true friend will stand up to gossip about you, they will give you the benefit of the doubt, be available for you when things are tough, and defend you when needed. If you expect this from a friend you should do it for a friend as well. 5. Friends don’t blow friends off — Friends show up when they say they are going to. You want to be that person your friend knows they can count on for the little things too. You can’t be the friend that cancels the RSVP last minute, or the one that they don’t ever expect to come. Do the things you say you are going to do because eventually they will stop inviting you if you never show up.
A huge way we keep in touch with friends is through social media.
I mean what ever happened to just calling someone or knocking on their door to see if they were home? I am a strong believer in social media. Today it is way easier to keep in touch with friends and family on what ever they may be up to. With social media also come “creeping”. We all know we do it. I just warn you that there is a time when the creeper could get caught! Social media if used correctly can be a great tool to have your friends on but be careful of what you post because I’ve heard the internet is forever.
Relationships are what make up our experience of living. Without
them we wouldn’t be knowledgeable, we wouldn’t be loved, and we’d be very lonely. Family, boys, and friends are what shape us to be the women we are meant to be. Using these relationships are going to make you a better person even if you only use them as a learning experience. I’d say every person is a lollipop moment we just don’t know it.
73% of teens
are on a social network communicating with friends
Self-Image self-im·age Noun 1. The idea, conception, or mental image one has of oneself. 2. One’s own idea of oneself or sense of one’s worth
75% of teenage girls with low self-esteem 25%
reported engaging in negative activities like cutting, bullying, smoking, drinking, or disordered eating.
This compares to the
of girls with high self-esteem
Self-image Young women in our culture are always being pressured to be “perfect”. I used to think I was the farthest thing from perfect. What I didn’t know until now is that there is no such thing as perfect.
The media is one of the biggest influences on how we feel about
our bodies. The average female model is about 5'7" and weighs 117 lbs, but the average American female is about 5'4" and weighs about 140 lbs. Reality is not what’s on the TV or on the run way. Only about 5% of the population has achieved this ideal thinness seen in the media. So what that means is that it’s nearly impossible to look like that and while you may not ever look that way it’s perfectly OK.
I believe we are all beautiful, it is only our own personal interpre-
tation of how we see ourselves. No one else in the world is as big of a critic as we are on ourselves. I wish every time I was so upset because I thought I was fat, someone would of told me I would eventually accept and love myself the way I am. We all are different and we contribute so much to the world. We are here for a reason and we look the way we do for a reason
90%
of people with an eating disorder are women
Dear Younger me,
I wish you would of known how beautiful you really and truly are. Those kids at school weren’t as harsh now that I look back. The person that was the meanest was you. I know you have it in your head of what you would like to look like, and looking through those magazines for “inspiration” is not going to help anything, actually its going to make you feel worse.
The biggest word of advice I can tell you is to stop trying to change
yourself. I know you never thought I’d be one of “those statistics”. I saw girls on TV who would make themselves purge and thought “I could never get to that point”. Little did you know, that was when the seed was planted into your brain. When you make the choice to binge and then purge it was supposed to be a one time thing. That one time turned into many more times and then you realized the hard way it was addictive and it was a problem.
I wish I could tell you not to do it and to just suck it up and love you
for you because recovering from this disease is not fun and it is the hardest thing I’ve had to face. Way harder then facing my own reflection in the mirror.
Love, Older you Eating disorders happen more often then you think. With 8 out of 10 girls not being happy with their reflection and the media pressuring us to be skinny, women are more likely then men to develop a disorder which is most likely going to lead to more severe problems in the future.
The things written in the letter by a good friend of mine are very
true. You may not think it is going to be a problem or that you would never be “that” girl. I’m not saying you will be, we’re just here to make you aware of how much risk it is not loving and accepting yourself is.
There are plenty of other ways you can loose weight without starving yourself and sacrificing your health. For example you can eat healthy and exercise.
Exercising Between the ages of 10 and 14 most girls will put on an average of 40 pounds. This is not unusual or unhealthy. Unfortunately, myself and many others thought this was the worst thing to ever happened to them. One thing that you can do to make sure the you grow healthy and not feel like you’re not just sitting around getting fat, is to exercise regularly. Something I have come to know about myself is that no matter how much I weigh or what I look like if I’m exercising regularly I automatically feel better about my appearance. I’m no scientist or anything but it might have to do with the hormones that are released by physical activity that make you a happier person. I wish when I was 13 years old I would of gotten my butt off the couch and gone for a run. It’s easy to be active when you’re a little kid because everyone is running and playing outside. In high school it’s harder to be that active. If I were you I’d join an athletic team, anything will do. As long as you have a team to support you while you are exercising it doesn’t matter how hard the run may be because they are enduring it with you. I got myself involved in lacrosse. My team was the worst in the state but we had so much fun and I can be thankful for that team because I was in the best shape of my life when I entered college. Here’s the amount of exercise you need: •
3 days of intense exercise like running or spinning
•
3 days do a low-intensity exercise like a long walk
•
The last day is your day off
Don’t spend time just sitting on the couch. An exercise session should last 30 minutes to an hour. You should burn around 400 calories in a high intensity workout. If you aren’t sweating while doing a high intensity workout you’re not working hard enough. If you are sweating profusely, breathless and when you’re done you can drink lots of water without an effort you’re doing it right!
Something to remember is to not over do it. Once you condition yourself and build up endurance you will be able to work out for longer amounts of time as well as more intense workouts. I challenge you to set goals for yourself. Whether it’s to exercise twice a week, to eat a little better, or just look at yourself a little different when you look in the mirror. Write down 5 goals here and later when you come back to them you can be proud when you have accomplished them. Any sort of a confidence booster helps.
Goals 1. 2. 3. 4.
Self-esteem Lets talk about self-esteem now. What does that even mean? I went ahead and looked it up for us: self-esteem is a psychology term that describes our emotional evaluation of our own self worth. I think this goes hand and hand with our self-image there’s just more of an influence from our emotions that determine our self-esteem.
Our peers are always lowering our self esteem. Whether they
mean to or not the things they say for some reason we actually care about. Most people are looking to bring others down because they are dealing with their own insecurities. I can guarantee that the things they say will be so insignificant when you are in college and beyond that you shouldn’t even worry about them now. Let’s do this though, I challenge you to be a better person then every one of those people who ever hated, judged, made fun of, or laughed at you. Be a better person by showing them how you are more successful then they are and are going to do bigger and better things. I do not mean you need to get on their level and hate back at all. Words are not going to fix this problem, only actions will. You need to better yourself and find something you’re passionate about and be successful in that so that in 10-15 years when you run into them again (which is going to happen) and they hug you because they’re so happy to see you, you will smile and when they ask how you’ve been doing and what you’ve been up to, you can tell them! If you have goals and you reach them you have nothing to fear because this person will never be able to bring you down when you’re at your peak. This is just something to think about.
For now let’s talk about ways we can currently increase our
self-esteem. First, you need to take a step back and figure out what is influencing your self-esteem the most. Most of the time authority figures (like parents, teachers, and role models) have a big impact on our self-esteem. If we always hear criticisms then of course we would grow up constantly seeing our own disappointments. An authority figure can
have a big impact but our biggest critic is our “inner voice”. We are our own worst enemy in this case. Sometimes the two go hand and hand, we can model our inner voice after an authority figure in our life that has given us disapproval in the past. Now that you can generally see the source of lowering self-esteem I know your wondering if it can even be repaired, and it can. •
Since we can assume our worst enemy is actually our inner voice just STOP. Try to stop thinking these negative thoughts. Take control and compliment yourself more then you bring yourself down. If you start giving three really nice compliments to yourself everyday they will overpower those negative thoughts.
•
Aim to accomplish rather then perfection. The media idea of perfection are most unrealistic there for leading to disappointment and lower self-esteem. If you aim for a goal and not perfection you can actually accomplish a goal, but aiming for perfection is less realistic.
•
Seeing mistakes as learning opportunities can remind us that we are growing and everyone makes mistakes. If you accept mistakes as a learning experience you are more likely to build esteem and also grow by learning from yourself.
•
Try new things. If you experiment with new activities you are more likely to get in touch with some of your special talents. There fore taking pride in those accomplishments.
•
Recognize what you can change and what you can’t. There are things about ourselves we don’t have the ability to change like our height. So it’s just a matter of learning to love yourself anyway. Things that you can change, you can make goals and start today.
•
Take pride in your opinions and ideas. Stand by them and never be afraid to voice your opinion.
•
Make a contribution. If you get involved and give back to someone or something you will feel one of the greatest feelings. Try it.
•
Have fun. Just because you feel like your not satisfied with the way you are now does not mean you should miss out on anything. Enjoy your time with your friends and the people who love and care about you, just avoid putting your life on hold because you don’t want to miss out on anything
.
Dear Younger me,
If I could tell you one thing there is no doubt in my mind it would be
to never miss out on anything. I can’t say that I ever regretted the things I had done in the past but I know for sure I regretted the things I didn’t do. Specifically, was the spring break trip I didn’t go on. If you ask anyone else why I was not there they will tell you its because I had work and couldn’t get out of it. Truth is, I am the biggest liar on the planet. I could of easily asked off work and gone with tons of my friends and tons of boys to the beach. There was only one real reason why I didn’t go and that was because no force in this whole world could of made me walk out on the beach in a swim suit feeling comfortable and confident. I know now it was a self-esteem issue because I wasn’t fat or anything. I got complimented on my appearance but my internal voice always told me otherwise. So what I’m telling you is to go on that spring break trip, walk out in a cute swim suit and remember you’re the only one that actually cares and sees yourself in that negative way. I’m no expert but if you can’t tell yourself you’re beautiful then no one else can.
Sincerely, Beach Babe
Am I Normal? This is a question I think I have faced majority of my time here on this planet. What is normal? And how do people manage to “fit in” anywhere. The best answer I have for you is nothing is ever really normal. I think we spend so much time trying to fit in when we’re younger we miss out on just being happy. I know you think I’m getting all sappy but it’s true. I pride myself on being different. If we all fit in to the typical “Katie” stereotype this world would be so boring.
Let’s think about your friends and why you like to hang out with
them. There is probably something that stands out about them that made you want to be their friend in the first place. Maybe they do fun things with you or you talk about things you don’t talk to anyone else about. There for we can assume you don’t just find them as part of the mass, meaning you’re friends with them because they are abnormal and that fits in with your life.
I can remember spending so much of my time trying to wear the
coolest shoes or do my hair the exact same way everyone else was because I thought if I had what they had I would be the norm and I would fit it. What I learned later was that I was actually made to stand out. I’m not saying I colored my hair purple (but props to the girl who does) I just mean that I’m a little quirky and it’s a hell of a lot easier being myself then trying to be someone else; excuse my language. So I challenge you to try it. Wear what you want to wear, maybe something that shows your personality. In college I have seen one of my best friends transform herself to be the real her. I watched her cut her hair to a medium length, dye it a light grayish blonde and sometimes she puts on a dark magenta red lipstick. This might sound like it looks strange to you but she is such a beautiful person on the inside and out. I think actually think she’s gotten more positive attention from since she made some of these changes. There is no normal and what you might think is normal will defiantly not be normal to anyone else. Think about that.
Why listen to me? I can tell this whole time you have been wondering who is this person and why should I take her advice. Exactly. I’ve been asking myself that exact same thing for sometime now. I am not a professional at all but I have been through a lot in my years. It did take me a long time to figure out who I was and what I wanted to do with my life; I’d say longer then your average person. I really did figure it out though I swear. All of the things I wish I would of known is not only so I can document it but also so that someone can learn from it because that heart break really hurt, and it wasn’t fun when I wasn’t happy with the way I looked. To credit myself a little bit more and maybe then you’ll believe me, I asked some wise young women what they wish they would have known and let me tell you the answers are pretty darn close to what I’ve been telling you and also very helpful:
“Let mom take those billion pictures of everything you do. You’ll treasure those late” -Alexa Beyer, 20
“If your friends tell you that a guy sucks, he probably sucks.” -Taylor White, 21
“Don’t try to be anyone else. Feeling like you don’t fit into a stereotype is actually a good thing. Just because someone seems cool and popular does not mean they will be a good friend. Find true friends and don’t let them go.” -Lauren Smith, 22
“Be confident. Wear high heels even when you’re 6'1". If it makes you feel beautiful, wear it.” -Jessica Morgan, 19
“Whenever you have anxiety, ask yourself if you’ll this test/ game/boy in 5 years. If they answer is yes, how about 10 years? At some point in your future, it is bound to not matter.” -Laurel Battey, 20
“It’s okay to have that extra cookie.” -Alli Grant, 21