“Loving yourself starts with liking yourself, which starts with respecting yourself, which starts with thinking of yourself in positive ways.” ~Jerry Corsten
Hi! I'm Bielle V. I'm the teenage lifestyle blogger of "How To Live Your Life", which was a blog created to be my outlet for how I felt about life. After moving to Florida and back to New York, I was all over the place with my emotions. My blog became the thing that centered me. How To Live Your Life has been one of the most helpful pieces in my journey to loving myself. It is my creative masterpiece, filled with the lessons I have learned and the advice I have. My journey to truly loving myself has been a tough but beautiful one and I have been grateful to share it all with you!
“Work on being in love with the person in the mirror who has been through so much but is still standing.”
In this episode of "Self Love: Learning To Love Yourself" I had the pleasure of interviewing the lovely Bielle V, a teen lifestyle blogger who is just glowing and radiating in so much love. I know during my teenage years I didn't know anything about loving myself. To be honest my teen years were pretty rough because I was trying to find myself but didn't know which direction to head in. So it excites me to ask this young lady a few questions about her journey to self love and how it has changed her view on life. Continue reading for the interview.
We all have our favorite hobbies and interests ...tell us some of yours, what keeps you motivated?
Some of my favorite hobbies include reading, writing, & film! I love reading so much as I feel transported to a new world every time I open a book. One of my dreams is to write and publish my own fiction series. That's why I'm always so motivated to write. I love writing stories, ranging from fiction to fantasy, because I love bringing my characters to life. I also love writing poetry because it let's out my true feelings when I need to vent. One of my other dreams includes directing a film. I already completed a short film a few years ago and the process of executive my creative vision was truly exhilarating. I am currently working on a documentary right now! All of my interests motivate me because seeing the products of my imagination and my creativity is a such a beautiful feeling!
How would you describe your journey of falling in love with yourself?
My journey of falling in love with myself has been a tumultuous one, and is not over yet. When I was a young camper, one of my counselors told me that she began to love herself at age 17. That truly moved me because it made me realize that we aren't born loving ourselves. We live to learn to love ourselves. When I moved to Florida about 5 years ago, my entire life shifted. I hit my lowest point. After seeing how much I was struggling and how many young people out there were struggling, I became determined to uplift my self esteem and confidence. The journey began after that. The process of journaling, doing affirmations, meditating, training myself to see the positivity around me and in me led me to be where I am today. I now can confidently say to myself almost everyday: "I love myself".
Would you say this journey was a hard, easy, enjoyable, or depressing one?
This journey was challenging because happiness comes in waves. I found myself drifting and falling back into my days or weeks of negativity that I had started at. Sometimes I found myself comparing myself to others, which is really harmful. The journey to loving oneself is hard because you have to embrace all that you are. You have to acknowledge your faults and be willing to strengthen them. You have to recognize your mistakes and own up to them. Loving yourself doesn't mean putting yourself on a pedestal, ignoring your faults and always seeing yourself as the victim, which is what I often tended to do. Loving yourself requires you to remain humble but at peace with yourself, and that requires stability.
What advice would you give the next young girl seeking advice on falling in love with themselves?
My advice to the next young woman seeking to fall in love with themselves would be it doesn't happen in a day. Don't rush it. Change the language in which you speak about yourself, make it positive. Surround yourself with positive people who appreciate you, hype you up, give you the support. Find the beauty with makeup and without. It's okay to cry, it's healthy, so let the emotions out. Loving yourself means putting self care at high priority. Affirm to yourself the things you know. For example, I am human. I have brown hair. Sometimes it doesn't always look the way I want it to and sometimes it's frustrating, but it's mine and I love it because it is a part of me. Don't put too much attention on your social media presence and the amount of likes you have on a photo (this one was really hard for me & I still struggle with it from time to time).
What are some methods you used to find your confidence? Did you seek outside sources? Listen to certain music? Reached out to a therapist?
Pinterest is my go to. Not only does it have blog posts about self care and loving oneself, but it also has challenges and affirmations. My Self Care Board on Pinterest is my beautiful happy place. There, I find all the resources and inspiration I need, such as the Morning Affirmations that I try to repeat to myself every morning. Keeping a journal has also been helpful, for whenever I nerd to vent not so when I want to look at the positive things about my day. I also always make sure to listen to upbeat, positive music. I have two playlists: B's Upbeat songs and B's Moody songs. I know myself deeply now, and if I'm listening to the Moody playlist, I'm obviously not feeling my best. Finding artists who are truly themselves and happy is the goal.
Something I've been more comfortable with being open about in the past year is that I did go to therapy. One of the greatest lessons I learned was "I feel _ because _". This short statement helped me to understand the way my mind works and what overwhelms me or upsets me. Learning to understand myself and my comfort zone helped me to love myself a little more and to be compassionate to others. We are all gentle souls inside that need loving.
How do you feel now vs how you felt then?
Before, I felt really upset with my life and in turn, I was upset with myself. I was emotionally hijacked before I began my journey to self love and I never had the energy to learn to love myself. Now, I feel happy.
Social Platforms:
Website: www.liveyourlifebv.wordpress.com
