10/11/2025
๐ธ Black Girl Day Off ๐ธ
October 11th will always hold special meaning for me โ itโs the official publication date of Restoring My Radiance: A 30-Day Guided Journal for Self-Care. (I waited until October 26th to share her existence, because Iโve always loved the number 26 โ divine timing is funny like that โจ). Itโs the 1 year anniversary! ๐ฅฐ ๐ ๐
Today, in honor of Black Girl Day Off, I want to pay homage to every woman who has ever silently suffered behind high-functioning depression โ including the woman I once was. Around the time I was crowned Miss School of Education, I was also deeply struggling with trauma, the invisibility of being a strong performer (and the accompanying assumptions that I was always fine/did not require emotional support), and exhaustion. I even considered dropping out of graduate school.
Creating this journal became my love letter to every version of me that survived, and to every person currently on their self-rescue journey. Journaling has been a safe haven for me as long as I can remember, as therapy was not accessible or even normalized during my upbringing. I often think of Cheslie Kryst, crowned Miss USA in 2019, and recently Tyra Spaulding, a former Miss Universe Jamaica contestant. ๐๏ธ The masking of pain behind smiles is terrifyingly real. The regalia of achievement means little without the ritual of restoration. It may glimmer, but it cannot outshine the quiet work of healing. The crown looks different when peace is a part of the outfit. ๐โจ
Please know โ you are not alone.
Please rest.
Please donโt give up.
There is a future version of you who will be so grateful that you kept going.
Today, itโs an honor to be a licensed counselor supporting high-achieving professionals and college students: a beautiful full-circle moment that reminds me that healing is holy work. ๐
Thank you, God, for every divine wink.
Miss SOE was one of them. Iโve always been called to leadership before I felt ready or deserving. But day by dayโฆ Iโm becoming HER. ๐ซ๐๐พ