Keeping Up with Confidence

Hi friends! It’s been a few days, but I wanted to shed some more light on some of the things I mentioned last. It makes me sound like a broken record, I know, but I do that for a reason. Not only do I want this to be about accepting yourself and a condition such as TS, but I want this to be about building that independence and confidence along the way.  I hope these little tidbits are useful not just now, but all the time. 😊

I’m asked every so often about how I can stay so confident and sure of myself through a lot of this. Here’s the thing. You have to WANT to. It doesn’t come easy, but if you work with it and learn from it, you’re golden. I also just really enjoy doing things like this and want to gear this work more towards these issues.

It’s not too hard to figure out what you can do to help yourself become more confident in what  you say and do, but how about keeping up with your strategy?

It’s taken me years to figure out who I am and how I operate (…still not done 😝😁).  I have to see and do things over and over again to understand. It helps me to experience things like this so I can become more and more confident over time. I’ve been told that I also “throw” myself into whatever’s put in front of me. Once I start, I intend to finish. 😄

I also see the different meaning this takes on as I begin to explore what I’m going to do with life as I get older and come out of school, too. So…as always – stay positive and CONFIDENT in yourself. Take those risks and face those challenges. It’s worth it. ❤

When you have confidence, you can have a lot of fun. And when you have fun, you can do amazing things. ~ Joe Namath

What you feel is what you are…

…and what you are is beautiful. These are just words from a little something I thought I’d share with you today.

During my freshman year of college the club I’m so fortunate to be a part of, Curry H.I.P.S (health, image, power, success), did a project called Operation Beautiful. The whole idea behind this was for members of this club to go around unnoticed and leave notes or encouraging words and quotes for students to see (so it wasn’t until later they’d find out it was us 😆). I really enjoyed this project, and here’s why.

It was so neat to see everyone walking around wondering who was leaving these messages. Most said how reading them just made their day so much better. I’m all about spreading the happiness and positivity around. I say all the time that I just don’t see the point in negativity! 😊

I also wanted to tie this in again with the body image issues that can come with having TS. I do feel it’s important to talk about these a lot as it’s something I see everyday. Not only should you learn to love yourself as a person because let’s face it, you are awesome and you and I both know it, but learn to love and accept your appearance too. I mean honestly, I have the droopy eyelids, and there’s even a little bit of scarring on my back from a mole I had to have removed. I don’t mind these things at all, because they’re what makes me, ME.

So, please stop beating yourself up over those things. Be proud of, and accept every single one of your flaws. Remember that there isn’t anyone else like you, and that’s what makes you, YOU! ❤

…it’s the little things.

Mom made another comment last night that quickly caught my attention. She says she notices that yes, not only do I like being with my friends, but I don’t mind being with the family either. I enjoy being at home, working and relaxing while I can.

I was raised to have a very strong work ethic, and I do consider myself a perfectionist. In my book, this can be both a good and bad thing.😂 In elementary school all the way through middle school years, I was always the student that had to have every single assignment done perfectly. I didn’t and still don’t want to miss a beat! When it comes to my job now, I’m the same way. I like to leave work knowing I’ve accomplished what needs to be done for the day. This is just how I am, and there’s a lot I’ve learned from it.

Not everything in life will work out the way you want it to. Sometimes things happen, and you just don’t have any control over it all. Step back and enjoy the things that matter most, like family and friends! When I think about it, those were the first people around when I was diagnosed. I like to keep things very simple, too. I look at each day as if it’s just another chance to enjoy what I love most. 😊

Never lose sight of what’s most important in your own life, and as usual, live each day to the fullest. ❤

 

I think it’s important to find the little things in everyday life that make you happy. ~  Paula Cole

Forever daddy’s little girl…

Father’s Day is tomorrow, and I wasn’t going to let it pass without more appreciation for mine.

I’m extremely close to my mom for many reasons, but growing up I was always known as the “daddy’s girl” in the family. No matter what, you’d probably find the two of us getting into some sort of trouble. I can remember one summer watching the CMT Music Awards like we always do. He spontaneously ordered a full pizza at 8:30pm, when we’d already had our real dinner!  There was also the summer he came home from work one day with one of those blue Intex pools to have in the backyard. That gave  us hours upon hours of fun, and it’s just little memories like that I’ll always be glad to have. 😊

My dad’s always been around for the countless surgeries and doctor’s appointments, too. I’ll never forget how he would sit in the room with me and my mom waiting for the doctor, and play with the garbage can as if Oscar from Sesame Street lived in it! 😂 I still have a little stuffed bear he bought me after one of my surgeries. It’s white with gold angel wings on it, and when you press its belly it says “I’m your guardian angel; I’m your special friend!”.  He sure knew how to make me laugh when I was scared or cheer me up when I was sad.

To this day, dad still does the best he can for me, my brother, and sister. Sometimes it’s rough, yet he still manages to pull through. No matter what, I can say I’m pretty lucky. 😊

Happiness is a choice…

A dear friend to our family has certainly had a huge impact on me in recent months. She has taught us all about what it means to live life to the fullest, and choose happiness.

Like her, I firmly believe that a life of laughter and positivity is the only way to go. Life can be hard at times, and it’s often this attitude that helps bring me through those difficult days.

An old pic with the brother and sister; I choose happy every day with these two by my side. 🙂

I’m also known as the peacemaker in my family. I don’t like to see anyone upset, or unhappy. I enjoy lending a helping hand and making others smile. If I have the ability to make someone’s day, then why not make my time worthwhile and do it?
🙂

This is my thought behind all of my work in the TS community. I was given the amazing opportunity to let other girls like me know they’re not alone, and that life can and will get better. It’s just another lesson that I hope everyone can learn from. Choose happiness, no matter what, and everything will fall into place. ❤

“If you want happiness for an hour — take a nap.’
If you want happiness for a day — go fishing.
If you want happiness for a year — inherit a fortune.
If you want happiness for a lifetime — help someone else.”
Chinese Proverb

 

 

Fearless

…that’s a word I’d use to describe myself. It’s taken me forever to realize this, but I’ve had a lot of growing up to do and can definitely see it in my personality.

 

When I was younger, I could never get myself to step out of that box. I guess it was always thought that there would be some sort of limit on me and what I could and couldn’t do. I can’t tell you how many times I used to hear things like “oh, she’s too short” or “oh, she just won’t see it that way; it’ll take her a while.”

It’s situations like that in which I would always feel the need to prove people wrong. To this day, I still feel the same, but for different reasons.

 
Having Turner’s syndrome has shown me time and time again that although some things in life are made more difficult because of it, I can’t let it all scare me. My mom’s the one who came up with the whole “living in a box” thing, and I couldn’t agree more 😊. I do hope younger TS gals can use that as a new skill. It’s important for everyone to learn,  really. Don’t live life scared for the future is what it means. Focus on life now, and take everything as it comes. There’s a certain strength in believing that whatever happens happens for a reason.

I tend to think you’re fearless when you recognize why you should be scared of things, but do them anyway. ~  Christian Bale ❤

Becoming your own advocate…

It’s not easy when you’re young. Learning how to speak up for yourself and take responsibility is a huge thing, and it doesn’t come naturally.

I was diagnosed young, so it was my parents and other family members who spoke for me. Mom would explain everything to the doctors and order medicine, too. I finally got to a certain age where my mom said that’s it – this is on you. You don’t need us to do these things anymore. It’s your responsibility.

I knew I was going to have to step up eventually, after all it’s my medicine and it’s me the appointments are for, right? However, it’s not just about those things alone. My 21st birthday is right around the corner now (that’s a big deal for me considering the fact that doctors didn’t think I’d live too long), and a lot of things are going to start to change. I’ve already learned to be happy with who I am. I have to learn to continue to stay true and stick up for myself when needed. I can make more of my own decisions, especially when it comes to health care.

What I’m trying to say is that you shouldn’t wait to work on things like this. Start as early as you can so that you’re comfortable. Who knows where I’d be if my parents hadn’t done a good job of pushing me to communicate these things? I also just thought it would be a good idea to bring this topic up like this so you can see it from the different perspective. Remember that you know you better than anybody else, too.

I learned a long time ago the wisest thing I can do is be on my own side, be an advocate for myself and others like me. ~ Maya Angelou ❤

Words to live by

“Be who you were created to be, and you will set the world on fire.” – St. Catherine of Sienna

If you know me well enough, you know I’m a sucker for a great quote or poem. I was looking through my Twitter feed, and found that one. It got me thinking again.

As life goes on, I’m finding that saying to be oh so accurate, as with every other one you’ll also see everywhere on my Facebook timeline. 😂

When I was diagnosed with TS, I had absolutely no idea it would have this much of an impact. I didn’t know that so many years later I’d be out there bringing awareness and sharing my story. So, as I get closer to finishing my college career, I’ve been asked more about what exactly it is I want to do. I only recently decided on the career in genetic counseling. It can and will take a lot of time and effort, but my hope is that I’ll eventually get there.

It’s been evident since I was born that I’m not one to give up. I don’t like to be told I won’t necessarily get a chance at something in life. I figure if I’ve made it through so much already, what’s one more challenge?

To be honest, and this might be because I’ve been doing this for so long, I don’t see myself doing anything else. I feel as though I have this all in my blood! I was born the way that I was so I could help people. I always say that my page and blog is like having a dream job; one that I’m not paid for. I want to be able to expand on it all, and someday be able to actually work in a field that’s held such a special place in my life for many years now. Don’t ignore it when you find yourself involved in something that you love. Just go with it. Work towards that goal or dream and do what you can to make a difference. ❤

The Independent Butterfly

I’m sure we’ve all had those moments where we’re just left to think – why doesn’t anyone think I can do this or that myself? Or maybe about the question of where to go for help with something when it’s needed? Both of those scenarios can be quite scary for us TS girls to think about.

I find that a lot of girls and women with TS have trouble figuring out how to be a little more independent. I’m saying this now because I now know how important of an issue this can become as we get older.

It’s important to learn, and take everything day by day. Just because you don’t see or understand something the first time doesn’t mean you won’t get it later.

For example, I work very hard every day to work on finding things I know I will enjoy doing. These are things I won’t necessarily need a lot of help with, like reading or writing. I like to try and keep as busy as possible to help me stay on track, too, and focused. This means I’ll go and plan out days and weeks ahead with whatever seems interesting or worthwhile to me. My resident assistant job really helped with that!

I also work to try things that I know might be a little difficult for me at first. An example here would be different kinds of arts and crafts-type things. Never in my life did I think I would be able to create four different bulletin boards over a semester, and then do it all over again the next! It took a lot of planning and tapping into my creative side I had no idea existed. 😝😂

I’ll never forget my mother’s piece of advice. This might come off a little strong, but she’s always told me to stop and think a second. No matter what happens, I have the ability to figure these things out all through life. I’m not as incapable as I think I am at times. So, that’s the advice I’ll pass along to you. Whether it has to do with work or school, you can and will find your way. If someone says or shows that they don’t believe in you, don’t be afraid to show them how wrong they are. If you’re scared of asking for help, don’t be. It’s ok, and will help you learn and become stronger than you already are. ❤