Depression: Our journey to happiness

    Caution: May be slightly triggering. But i promise, i will get past all the cons and move on to the pros, i just want to first, use the following quote in order to try to illustrate depression for those who are not familiar with it's grip.
    "Depression is humiliating. It turns intelligent, kind people into zombies who can’t wash a dish or change their socks. It affects the ability to think clearly, to feel anything, to ascribe value to your children, your lifelong passions, your relative good fortune. It scoops out your normal healthy ability to cope with bad days and bad news, and replaces it with an unrecognizable sludge that finds no pleasure, no delight, no point in anything outside of bed. You alienate your friends because you can’t comport yourself socially, you risk your job because you can’t concentrate, you live in moderate squalor because you have no energy to stand up, let alone take out the garbage. You believe you've become pathetic. And you have no capacity to stop the downward plunge. You have no perspective, no emotional reserves, no faith that it will get better. So you feel guilty and ashamed of your inability to deal with life like a regular human, which exacerbates the depression and the isolation. If you've never been depressed, thank your lucky stars and back off the folks who take a pill so they can make eye contact with the grocery store cashier. No one on earth would choose the nightmare of depression over an averagely turbulent normal life.

It’s not an incapacity to cope with day to day living in the modern world. It’s an incapacity to function. At all. If you and your loved ones have been spared, every blessing to you. If depression has taken root in you or your loved ones, every blessing to you, too. No one chooses it. No one deserves it. It runs in families, it ruins families. You cannot imagine what it takes to feign normalcy, to show up to work, to make a dentist appointment, to pay bills, to walk your dog, to return library books on time, to keep enough toilet paper on hand, when you are exerting most of your capacity on trying not to kill yourself. Depression is real. Just because you've never had it doesn't make it imaginary. Compassion is also real. And a depressed person may cling desperately to it until they are out of the woods and they may remember your compassion for the rest of their lives as a force greater than their depression. Have a heart. Judge not lest ye be judged." - Unknown

      Depression is not laziness, not an excuse, nor a choice. Depression is not a connotation for sad nor is it a synonym for having a bad day, a bad week even. Depression is something you must fight every day, It does not last a day, in most cases, it lasts years and tries to swallow you whole in it's darkness. Depression shuts off all your lights and makes you run aimlessly through the seemingly never ending night then walk, still heaving, and then crawl and then just lay there until you one day, the lights start to flicker and for a second, you regain hope. Depression is a battle THAT YOU WILL WIN.

To those of you currently battling depression:

Hello my fellow warriors,
   There are certain things i know you will hear all the time: "It will get better" "This too shall pass" "There is light at the end of the tunnel" and these statements are true, but many times, what you aren't told, is, yes, i PROMISE, In time, happiness will find its way back to you, but, It won't be easy, you cannot expect it to be, but it WILL be worth it. Please, be patient. When you get out of this, happiness will be like gold to you, it will be even more enjoyable than before, You were given this fight because YOU ARE STRONG ENOUGH to defeat the darkness. Please, do not give up on yourself, I am rooting for you. I know the people around you may not understand, you may be called lazy, you may be called angry, bitter, asked why all you wear is sweatpants or why you hide under so much make up; why you spend so much time in your room, in the dark and told to "get over it"' asked why you "can't take a joke" or why you never smile.... Forgive these people, for they truly do not know. No one can truly understand how you feel unless they have been there themselves, which is why it may get lonely sometimes, but i promise you, you are not alone. I've been there, and i've gotten out and i promise, if i can, you can too. In those 5 years I was fighting, I lost a lot of people I thought would stick with me forever, but then realized, some of those people were only holding me down further. I've been to the lowest of lows and still managed to float back to the surface. When you hit rock bottom, there is no where else to go but up, It's cliche but ever so true. I always held everything in, not wanting to burden anyone with my problems, which was a poor choice, because then eventually, the pressure would build up and i would explode. The thing is, i never really had anyone i felt comfortable talking to, because i knew they wouldn't understand which would make me feel even more distant from the rest of the world... "abnormal" i guess. Or the few times i would try to reach out for help and my hand would get slapped away, so i just stopped asking.  

    It's not that i didn't want help, it's that i didn't know the right place to find it. And this is why I am here, I am here to give you a place to run to when you feel like you can no longer go on. I am here here to share parts of my story in order to let you know that I DO understand and i want nothing more than to be there for you, whether it's for advice or just to have someone who will listen. This does not need to end in any way but you finding happiness and i am here to help lead you to it. I know what it feels like to have seemingly absolutely nothing to look forward to but, I found the strength to hold on and get out. I had that strength all along I'm here to help you discover yours faster than I did. There is so much to look forward to, when you get out of all this, you will emerge from the darkness, a thousand and one times stronger than ever before, your perception of the world will transform and everything seems so much more beautiful. In a way, I guess i can call this my twisted blessing, because without everything i went through, I would not be the person i am today. I would not see things the way I do now and I would not value certain things as much as I do now. I PROMISE YOU, FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART, IF YOU KEEP FIGHTING, YOU WILL COME OUT OF THIS VICTORIOUS. Force yourself to get out to bed and break habits, depression wants you to lay in the darkness all day, do not feed it, do not give it power over you. Fight and when it tries to fight back, fight harder. You are stronger than these thoughts, you are stronger than these feelings, you are stronger than the blade and the self harm, you are stronger than your scars. You are stronger than everything trying to keep you down; throw them out of your way. Delete all those mourn-worthy songs on your phone and get leave the people who are bringing negativity into your life, behind. Many times I found myself doing a much needed "friend cleanse". Surround yourself with people who love you and not only want to see you happy but are willing to help you get there. Run (exercise is proven to increase the chemical in your brain which makes you happy) listen to uplifting music, engulf yourself in positivity. You will get through this, and you don't need to do it alone, You can always reach me at my email ( asknathia@gmail.com) my ask (http://www.ask.fm/natvice) or my twitter (http://www.twitter.com/NathiaWray) or you can get further guidance by calling one of the numbers located in the following link http://natvice.tumblr.com/suicidehotlines .
Hold on my souldiers, this battle is not over until you have won.
To those of you in recovery:

To my fellow champions, 
CONGRATULATIONS, you've made it!
    There will be days when familiar feelings emerge and that may become scary, but i promise you, keep fighting and ignoring those feelings, they won't trouble you for long. Sometimes, in recovery, you are constantly worried, waiting for sadness to emerge once again, waiting for something bad to happen because that is the same old routine you're used to, that nothing good can come your way without 5 bad things to follow, but I promise, it's okay, the darkness over. Enjoy this newfangled happiness, don't spend your time worrying when it will end, you've earned this. Recovery is the time when you rebuild your village after the war. yes, there will be some days that are better than others, but remember all that you've fought off and how far you've come, you absolutely cannot turn back now. Expect those familiar past feeling to try and creep up on you, they will try but don't let them succeed. Sometimes, there is a twisted sense of comfort in those feelings because, that's what you're used to and change can be frightening but, don't fall for it, there is no glamour in sadness. You are new and the strongest you have ever been, nothing can bring you down as long as you learn how to remember where you came from without going back there. When life tries to throw a curveball at you, remember all the bullets you've dodged and wounds you've healed, how hard you've fought and how far you've come. Of course things aren't always going to be peaches and cream, but that's life, things happen, it's your job to determine how you react and how you let it affect you. Don't ever, for a second think you don't deserve the happiness coming your way, and yes, there is even more to come than you have right now. Build a positive community, build a support system, with a handful of genuine people who have made it out of the dark as well.  Surround yourself with positivity, stay in the light and know your limitations. Remember it's okay to let go. Live every day one day at a time and don't think too far ahead, that'll only stress you out. And most of all, BE PROUD OF YOURSELF. I sure am proud of you

To those of you who have never experienced depression:

How to help
    One thing that irks me is when people use "depressed" "anxiety attack" or "panic attack" as a synonym for "bad day" "startled" and or "stressed". Those are not the same thing, and people tend to take others less seriously when they reach out for help because of that, they are just seen as over-exaggerating. 

1.  Do not mock/dumb down the pain of others. Also, be considerate of others feelings, no matter if they show signs of depression or not. You never know what someone is going through. I was the queen of a fake smile, to this day, nobody really knows what went on in my head. Following things up with "I'm just kidding", doesn't soften blows or excuse your statements either. You never know what people are going through, treat everyone with delicacy.

2. They are still people. They just handle things differently than you: Just because you don't understand something, does not mean it is abnormal. Don't talk to someone with depression as if they are inhuman or pitiful, that will only push them farther away and make them feel even more alone. Depression is not a choice and those with it, should not be exiled for it, they should be brought closer. 

3. However, sometimes, the best thing you can do for someone is to leave them alone. This all depends on the person, the circumstances and the extent of time. I know personally, I need a break from people. I cherish my alone time every day, it gives me a chance to just stop and relax. Give them the advice, love and support that you can, and then let them have time to breathe and soak it all in. After, check up on them, daily. Send a text just to let them know you were thinking about them, ask them how their day is going and how they're feeling, let them know you are always here for them whenever they need it.

4. Some people just need a listening ear: You may not understand what that person is going through, however, if they reach out to you, sometimes they just want someone who will listen. Some people, just need you there. Don't ever make them feel like a burden, then they will just stop coming to you all together. Be there for them as much as you can and reassure them that you WANT to help them, not that you're doing it out of pity. If you think the situation is too much for you to handle, do not take in on all by yourself, If it gets too serious, then yes, tell someone WHO YOU BOTH CAN TRUST to help intervene (EX: if say, one of their triggers for depression is their life at home, i definitely would not suggest going to their parents, but another trusted adult, pastor and or counselor instead. They may (Will) be upset with you, but you're doing it because you care for them). Do not ever feel like this persons life is your responsibility, as much as you would like to help, there is truly only so much you can do, which is give them your love and support. Depression is a battle of the mind.

Signs someone may be depressed:
(These definitely are not all of them and some people may not show any signs at all, but here are some)

- Irritability/always angry 
- Loss of interest in passions 
- Deteriorating hygiene,
- Talking about/ hinting at death a lot, especially placing it in a positive light.
- Lots of time in the dark/always sleeping/insomnia  
- Long sleeves in summer  (Could mean hiding scars)
- Immense weight loss or weight gain in a short period of time

    "The greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time."
    

Keep fighting, 
- Nathia

Where to find help when you are...

                        
    Hey guys,
    Sorry i haven't posted in a while, i've been really busy and i'm going to be busy again this week but i didn't want to leave you guys hanging! You can always reach me at my email, twitter, or ask, all links are located on the home page nav bar. I'll leave the links below also. I came across this and i thought it was amazing, I hope this helps some of you, I know I will be using this! In times of trouble, turn to God, for he holds all the safety, comfort and answers you are looking for. Do not try to find comfort, safety and answers in things of this world, that is like searching for comfort in a bed of rocks. Here are some scriptures categorized by needs. Whatever you're going through, God always has an answer. 

• Afraid:John 14:27; 2 Timothy 1:7; Hebrews 13:6; 1 John 4:18
• Angry:Matthew 5:22-24; Romans 12:10-21; Ephesians 4:26, 31-32; James 1:19-20
• Anxious/Worried:Matthew 6:23-34; Philippians 4:6-7; Luke 12:22, 25, 31; 1 Peter 5:7
• Bereaved:John 11:25; 14:1-3; 1 Corinthians 15:55; 2 Corinthians 5:1; Philippians 1:21; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 1 Peter 1:3-4
• Bitter/Resentful:Matthew 6:14-15; Romans 12:14, 17-19; Ephesians 4:31-32; Hebrews 12:14-15; 1 Peter 2:23
• Depressed:Matthew 11:28-30; Romans 8:28; Philippians 4:13
• Discouraged/Disappointed:Matthew 11:28-30; Romans 8:28; 2 Corinthians 4:8-9, 16-18; Galatians 6:9; Philippians 1:6; 4:6-7, 19; 1 Thessalonians 3:3; Hebrews 10:35-36; 1 Peter 1:6-9
• Distraught/Upset:Luke 18:1-8; Hebrews 12:3; 13:5; 1 Peter 5:7
• Doubting:Matthew 8:26; John 6:37; PHilippians 1:6; 2 Timothy 1:12; Hebrews 11:6; 12:2; James 1:6, 8; 1 John 5:13
• Far from God:Luke 15:11-24; Revelation 2:4-5
• Hopeless:Romans 15:13; Colossians 1:3-5, 27; 2 Thessalonians 2:16-17; Hebrews 11:1
• Jealous/Envious:1 Corinthians 3:3; Galatians 5:29-21, 26; Hebrews 13:5; James 3:16; 5:9
• Impatient:Romans 5:3; 8:25; 12:12; Galatians 5:19-21
• Lonely:John 14:15-21; Acts 2:25-26; Hebrews 13:5-6
• Sad:2 Corinthians 1:3-4; 2 Thessalonians 2:16-17; Hebrews 4:15-16
• Sick:Matthew 18:19; 2 Corinthians 12:7-9; James 1:6; 5:13-16
• Suffering:Matthew 5:10-12; John 15:18-20; Romans 8:35-39; 2 Corinthians 12:10; 2 Timothy 3:12; James 1:12; 1 Peter 4:12-14; Revelation 2:1-
• Tempted:Matthew 4:1-4, 11; 26:41; Luke 17:1; 1 Corinthians 10:12-13; 1 Timothy 6:9; Hebrews 4:15; James 1:2-3, 12-15; 4:7
• Troubled by wrong thoughts:Philippians 4:8; Colossians 3:2
• Weak:Romans 5:6; 2 Corinthians 12:9-10; Ephesians 3:16; Philippians 4:13
• Withholding forgiveness:Matthew 6:14-15; 18:21-22; Mark 11:25; Luke 6:37-38; 11:4; 23:34; Ephesians 4:32

Also, Here's a worship video, I love this song. When worshiping, sing the lyrics like it's a prayer or a love song to God, depending on the lyrics. Not only does God hear your prayers, but the hears your worship. 
Link to video for mobile users

Links:

Twitter

Ask

Email: asknathia@gmail.com

Take care guys

- Nathia

FLAWS: A transformation documentary.

       

    So I've decide to take my artistic abilities and put them to good use.... Not that I misuse them, I just usually use them for recreational purposes. 

    Lately I've been hearing a lot of "wow she's so beautiful" "she's perfection" "I wish looked like her" when speaking about celebrities. What many of us forget, is that, that is about ten pounds of makeup, heaven-sent lighting and hours of Photoshop editing. I am in no way saying these women are not beautiful, of course they are, with or without the touch-ups, but to compare yourself to these unattainable standards of beauty that you see on television, photos, magazines etc. is absolutely absurd, you'll only discourage yourself.

    For this reason, I've taken one of my not so flattering photos and created a mini transformation documentary titled "FLAWS". In this documentary, I am amateurly filming the process it takes to eliminate what some may find as "flaws" from one of my own photos. In actuality, blemishes, acne, sun spots, freckles, wrinkles and so on are just proof that we have lived. These things should be cherished, for they are what make up the beautiful being that is you.

   This video is to prove a point that if I, a high school student with no degree in graphic arts, can make such a transformation to a photo, imagine what someone with years of experience and the educational and professional tools can do in order to re-create the people society seems to idolize.

Here are a few things I want to clarity before you watch the video;

- This video is in no way, me portraying what I "wish" I looked like.

    I love myself. I've spent so many years figuring out how to love myself and have succeeded. I'm actually pretty happy I don't resemble the end result of the video because I am just fine the way I am. This is who I have learned to love. In the video, I am eliminating what people may perceive as flaws while I, on the other hand, see them as everything making someone even more worthy of a pencil stroke.

- No. I do not do this to my photos.

   This was a one time thing which took a couple of hours. If I took that much time to edit all my photos before I posted them, well that would just be a foolish waste of time. I did this for a purpose, to portray a message which was worth the time spent. 

   

   Love yourself just the way you are, find the beauty in what bothers you. Stop comparing yourself. I cannot emphasize that enough. If you constantly compare yourself to others, how will you ever expect to be satisfied with yourself? You are more than enough. You are beautiful.

Psalms 139:14 

"I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;

    your works are wonderful,
    I know that full well."

Without further adieu, I present to you, FLAWS:

CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE VIDEO FROM YOUR MOBILE PHONE

Motivational Monday

  
    

    Many of you voted for this, however I am going to take this far beyond one post. I have decided to dedicate "Motivational Monday" as an uplifting series in which I will shower you with quotes, links to poetry, videos, music,uplifting photos and much more, every Monday. Just something to keep your spirits up. I'll incorporate tips and things I like to do to improve my mood and some of my own encouraging words. I hope you read and or listen to these messages and really take them to heart,finding a way to apply them to your everyday life.

Hope this helps keep someone going.

Enjoy.








"At some point you just have to let go of 

what 

you thought 

should happen and live in what is happening." 

- Unknown





"You can’t get much done in life if you only 

work on days when you feel good."

- Jerry West

"I’m definitely pro-selfie. I think that anybody who’s anti-selfie is really just a hater. Because, truthfully, why shouldn't people take pictures of themselves? When I’m on Instagram and I see that somebody took a picture of themselves, I’m like, ‘Thank you.’ I don’t need to see a picture of the sky, the trees, plants. There’s only one you. I could Google image search ‘the sky’ and I would probably see beautiful images to knock my socks off. But I can’t Google, you know, ‘What does my friend look like today?’ For you to be able to take a picture of yourself that you feel good enough about to share with the world – I think that’s a great thing."

Ezra Koenig being an angel

A Beautiful Poem by Michael Macalintal  At first it may sound  sorrowful, but really, listen to what he's saying. It's the humbleness of if all that makes it so beautiful. The fact that he doesn't even realize how beautiful he naturally is, therefore he apologizes for it when honestly, he should be thanked. It's people like that, we should cherish the most.
(CLICK HERE TO HEAR THE POEM)

“Friendship with oneself is all important, because without it one cannot be friends with anyone else in the world.”

— ― Eleanor Roosevelt

Although it may seem cheesy (no pizza), This song instantly improves my mood and just makes me want to get up and do a cha-cha!

CLICK HERE FOR MOBILE VERSION OF VIDEO

“The two most important days in your life are the day you are born, and the day you figure out why.”

—	Mark Twain

“Do not become a stranger to yourself by blending in with everyone else.”

—

Dodinsky

PLEASE don't give up on your dreams (This video really touched me, listen closely):
CLICK HERE FOR MOBILE VERSION OF VIDEO

“STOP comparing women.
We are not the same. 
Let our differences be the reason why we connect so beautifully.”

—	Individuality, Alex Elle

"THERE IS NO PASSION TO BE FOUND PLAYING SMALL - IN SETTLING FOR A LIFE THAT IS LESS THAN THE ONE YOU ARE CAPABLE OF LIVING."

Nelson Mandela

Music: 

Rend Collective - You are my Vision

CLICK HERE TO VIEW MOBILE VERSION OF VIDEO

Spend your time on those who love you unconditionally. Don’t waste it on those who only love you when the conditions are right for them."

- Unknown

"Remove yourself from the situation, change it, or accept it totally. If you want to take responsibility for your life, you must choose one of these three options, and you must choose now. Then accept the consequences. No excuses. No negativity. No psychic pollution. Keep your inner space clear."

Eckhart Tolle 

FACT: Smiling instantly Improves your mood. It sends a signal to the brain which automatically starts creating a chemical which causes happiness. So please, SMILE AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE. You'll be much happier that way.

CLICK HERE FOR MOBILE VERSIONS OF VIDEO

You are Wanted

Heavy does not mean hopeless: My fitness journey

                                      
   
     Girls(and even guys), we are beautiful no matter what our size. Today, I'm focusing in on all my curvy beauts. 

     
    One thing people get totally wrong is associating size with health. Just because you are on the slimmer side does not mean that you are healthy. There are those who eat nothing but junk foods and have a killer metabolism; which turns everything into energy and forgets that fat exists, but, that's a heart attack waiting to happen. Being on the pleasantly plump side of things does not connotate with unhealthiness. Some people are naturally curvaceous and have extra meat on their bones, which is perfectly fine, it's just more of you to love! I know personally, I probably eat less than half of what the slimmer females around me do and I'm still not model potential, which by the way, I'm perfectly fine with. I don't drink soda at all, no juice, no bread, I don't like meat, we don't have snacks, candy or sugary foods in the house and it's pretty much always been like that. "Then why are you not a size 0?" You may ask? Because for a long time, my metabolism decided to go on a vacation, but with constant activity over the summer I've managed to rev it up and lose 30 pounds, but I'll get into weight loss a little bit later. 

Here's a little bit about my journey in accepting my body:

    
    Let me start this out by saying that I am going to be completely honest with you, in minimal detail, in the next few paragraphs. I am in no way looking for your pity, your attention, sympathy or opinions. I am here to share my experiences with others, in order to let them know that they are not alone and that if I could learn to love myself, so can they. With that being said, here we go:  
    I've always been heavier and taller than the majority, until I hit high school. To be quite honest, when I look back, I really was not that heavy, but I was told constantly that I needed to lose weight from my family, my doctor, strangers and people at school, in not some of the nicest ways, which really didn't help the cause. In middle school I was about 120-130 pounds, while everyone else was about 90 but you have to take in consideration that I was about 5 inches taller than everyone else. I was also an emotional eater and had to deal with a lot back then, not just pertaining to weight (which I'll address in posts to come) up until the beginning of junior year. I've been called every name in the book, by "friends", strangers and even family. Last year, I was immensely stressed out, causing me to gain 30 pounds in about 5 months which is a very short amount of time to gain that much weight. I was unhappy with myself, overweight and full of absolutely no energy. Very rarely could the people around me detect the changes in my mood and behavior, I try not to let my problems hinder other people, but the people who lived with me noticed the drastic change. I was sporting a beer belly without the beer, sleeping way too much, highly irritable and highly unmotivated. I had always been on the heavier side but never had it actually affected my health until then. Little did I know, gaining that much weight in such a short amount of time was actually pretty dangerous. That was when i woke up and my metabolism floated on back from the deep jungles of Africa or wherever it was. That's when I started pushing myself to go to the gym, (which drastically improved my mood), changed my eating habits (primarily the fact that id come home, sleep all day and then eat all night)and changed my attitude towards myself and overall outlook on life. I stopped caring what everyone else thought of me and developed my own opinion. I started looking in the mirror more and giving myself complements. I went from "no one will ever love me" to "well maybe some day" to "you know what, I'm pretty cute" to " I love myself. I am beautiful and if my body is a barrier between me, and someone's ability to love me, then they were not for me in the first place. If someone can love me now they can love me later, at my best." I became genuinely happy when i stopped trying to please people and figured out what I wanted for myself,and took steps to attain that. 
So far, I've lost 30 pounds and I've taken a slight break from living at the gym because school occupies 99% of my time, but I'm still making sure I maintain my current weight until the summer, when I can focus in on working out again. I am again healthy now,and I'm still not a size zero. Quite frankly, nothing is wrong with being a size 0 but I don't think I ever want to nor will ever be. I'm naturally curvy and I LOVE IT. Yes, I am still choosing to lose more weight, but I'm still happy with who I am. I always say "I'm going to love the 'fat' until I can love the fit." What's the point in hating yourself? That's not going to change the way you look. However, loving yourself changes your perception of yourself, physically and mentally. Love yourself as you are now and work hard and keep loving yourself until you reach your preferred size. Someone once asked me, "What's the formula to happiness" and I replied with "A relationship with God, determination, positivity, confidence/Knowing your Self-worth and Doing what you love."

    If you're curvy and healthy, don't feel pressured to lose weight to fit the "norm", normal is boring. If dropping a couple pounds is what will make YOU happy, then by all means, go for it! I'll be right here cheering you on, every step of the way. If you need to lose weight for health reasons, don't view it as something forced and impossible, see it as a journey towards a new and improved you! Also, don't babysit the scale; It's a marathon, not a race. Even pound a week is still progress! Sometimes your body tones before it actually loses the weight, giving the illusion that you lost weight, but that's okay, at least you're seeing and feeling the change so you know all that sweat and sore muscles are worth it! I promise you, being sore is the best pain there is, it's the pain of champions.

    Your weight is just a number, your health is what matters. Someone who is 5'2" and 130 pounds will look drastically different than someone who is 5'8" and the same weight. Your weight does not determined your worth, happiness, beauty, success or how loveable you are. You and only you detriment those things. Beauty starts on the inside and works its way out. If you love yourself, people will catch on to that and will start loving you just the way you are; there is Nothing more beautiful than confidence and humbleness. 

" You've always been beautiful, now you're just choosing to be better, faster, fitter and stronger. Remember that."

~ Nathia

How to submit

                                   

    Hey guys! I want this blog to be as much yours as it is mine, therefore, I encourage you to send me questions, topic suggestions and your testimonies/stories of anything that you have encountered that as impacted you/your views in a  certain way. Let us share the Goodness of God with the world. 

Real-life story submissions:

    Stories do not need to be "dead-pan" serious, of course you can add humor to your experiences, I mean, laughter is the best way to move past a situation; by making light out of it. However, stories must not be fictional. They can range from anything like dealing with relationships issues, encounters with discrimination, stereotypes, body image, ANYTHING really, anything you can think of that has impacted you/ your views in any way, that you want to share. It is certainly not limited to what I mentioned above, those were just examples. All stories will remain anonymous. The point in these stories are to;

A: express yourself 

and 

B: show others that they are not alone when it comes to experiences,ways of thinking, etc. 

C: Share what God has done and or is doing in your life!

    Comments are allowed below the posts, in which others can reply to these stories, respectfully expressing opinions, advice, and or just letting the writer know that they too have experienced the same thing.

This is a completely judge-free zone in which anyone and everyone is prompted to feel free to be free.

 Question submissions: 

Questions are for people seeking advice or my views on a certain topic. When submitting a question, you also can send a topic suggestion which will be added to the following weeks poll (polls will start again back shortly). Questions can also be submitted anonymously.  

How to submit:

Stories, questions and or topic suggestions can be sent to: asknathia@gmail.com 

(Please, put "natvice" in the "subject" bar so I know to get to it right away.)

Questions and topic suggestions only can be sent to: http://www.ask.fm/natvice (not all questions asked will be featured on the blog).

Thanks so much, I can't wait to hear from you guys!

xo,

- Nathia