Body image, self-confidence, addictions

Posts

LGBT-Acceptance-Among-Latinos-MainPhoto

LGBT Acceptance Among Latinos

,
Anyone who knows me personally knows that my favorite TV show of all time is Rupaul’s Drag Race. It’s everything I always wanted Project Runway and America’s Next Top Model to be, plus it’s about a squillion times more entertaining. I…
What-Is-Latina-An-Interview-with-Marabina-Jaimes-MainPhoto

What Is Latina? An Interview with Marabina Jaimes

,
Marabina Jaimes is the Emmy Award Winning-Host of PBS’ Storytime! and the voice of Mary Alice Young, the narrator of Desperate Housewives, in the Spanish version of ABC’s hit primetime series. With hundreds of commercials in both Spanish…
Atheists-Among-Us-Absolutely-MainPhoto

Atheists Among Us? Absolutely.

,
It was 1988 and I was sitting in my junior year religion class at my Catholic high school. Despite the best efforts of my teacher (a perky ex-nun, think Kathy Najimy in “Sister Act”) I was bored to tears. Suddenly, the door to the classroom…
A-Daughters-Dilemma--Will-I-Repeat-the-Cycle-of-Domestic-Violence--MainPhoto

A Daughter’s Dilemma: Will I Repeat the Cycle of Domestic Violence?

,
Mami and my stepfather are arguing more often. I hear their spats from my bedroom and want to hide in my closet, shrinking in a corner like a 7-year-old that is scared of The Boogie Man. I hate conflict. I can't stand the yelling and the…
Breaking-Moms-Heart-A-Daughters-Guilt-Over-Moving-Out-MainPhoto

Breaking Mom’s Heart: A Daughter’s Guilt Over Moving Out

,
UPDATED August 1st, 2016 I've decided it's time to get my own place. But I feel an enormous amount of guilt over this. I concocted this plan after a ridiculous battle ensued between Mami and me. The culprit: a mountain of clothing. The…
The-Psychology-of-Hair-A-Mane-Obsession-MainPhoto

The Psychology of Hair: A Mane Obsession

,
UPDATED August 1st, 2016 “I’m going to grow out my hair,” I announced to my partner Joseph as we were entering our apartment building. For him, the comment came out of the blue. For me, it was a subject I’d been musing about for…

Throwing Bullies in Jail is Not the Answer

,
If navigating parenthood is tough, navigating childhood is tougher. We’ve all heard the horrifying stories of kids committing suicide because of bullying—bullycide as it being called. In California, a new law, named after 13-year-old…

Recognizing a Mother's Pride in Her Kids

Mami says that she’s proud of me, but I don’t always believe her. It could be because I’m an Aries. (Aries are known to be tough on the outside, yet our ruler Mars makes us secretly insecure.) Or maybe it’s the limited ways in which…
Meryl Streep as Margaret Thatcher

Honoring the Iron Lady in Our Lives

,
Watching The Iron Lady on the big screen, I was suddenly taken out of the film by a flash of recognition. For a moment, I saw my great aunt Concepcion—known to us as To (my brother and I called her Toe)—come to life before me. Like Margaret…