What makes you self-conscious?

Does my face look chubbier today? Does this hairstyle suit me? Am I walking too slow? Too fast?

I am guilty of being that person who is self conscious pretty much all the time. I worry about how I appear to other people, whether it’s a bad hair day or a stain on my shirt.

I’ll say it how it is: I want people to like me. The idea of people thinking I am a nice person, looks organised- pretty even- appeals to me.

The past year my perspective of myself has changed greatly, particularly as I have gotten older I notice that I care about how people view me. It’s that irritating feeling when you want to look nice but I do NOT want to seem like a try hard. Pretty vain I know.

As a young women the struggle of having a need to be perfect is something I deal with everyday. But I have come to accept that nobody is that perfect!

Everybody has insecurities which is perfectly normal but i still find myself wondering how do i stop?

It can be hard to not to be self critical of your self and point out everything that is wrong. Something I have been starting to do is look at what is right and be grateful for the features that make you who you are.

The key is to not care what people think – yes I know I know its the advice been told a bazillion times but that is the truth.

When I was younger I was incredibly chubby ( and not the cute kind) then I lost a lot of weight. I would look back on photos and hate how I ruined them. People asked me if I had gone on a diet which kept me thinking about my weight.

I felt uncomfortable when my face looked puffier but it’s come to a point where I really did not want to care about this. And so I did my best to accept all of it. When I gain weight or lose it – none of it even matters. As long as I’m healthy.

Because what does matter is how you think of yourself.

You are your worst critic. Almost all of the time people don’t even notice. Do what is best for yourself- not for others and you will appear happier and nicer on the outside.

That little voice in your head making you doubt yourself is just in your head. I promise you that you most definitely look amazing, so do what you can to feel amazing ! The quirks are what make you special.

It’s the little things that make you who you are so flaunt it! Lift your head up and keep going, because people see what you want them to see. Smile and show the world that you’re friendly and that’s what matters. Don’t even bother thinking about the different coloured socks you put on today.

One of the reasons I began a blog was so that I could share my experience of topics like this. I want people to be able to relate to me and share how they dealt with experiences in their own life.

So how about you? What makes you self conscious and how do you deal with it? I want to hear it all.

Love from Sophia x

The Truth to Clearing your Skin

Good morning/afternoon/evening everyone I hope you are having a rather lovely day. The sun’s shining where I am, and that generally puts everybody in a good mood. Again, maybe it’s just the way the sun seems to be casting its golden rays on my skin, but I have to say- my skin has never looked better.

I have been struggling with acne for a long time and the amount of money that I have probably wasted on skincare is absolutely ridiculous ( from tea tree oil to a LED face mask!) The amount of hours I have spent scrolling through ‘How to get clear skin’ posts is also embarrassing.

So, when I woke up the other day, I noticed something different. My skin was visibly clearer, smoother and brighter. Now I don’t mean absolutely poreless perfect skin ( I’m not sure if that is even possible), but compared to the spotted, textured skin I had before- this was pretty damn great.

Trust me, this is not one of those sites that claims all these random ingredients can do magic. Clearing your skin is a process that takes patience and endurance. Not everything that works for my skin might work for your skin.

The tips I will be sharing are what I have done and think really made a difference to my skin.

But the question you are dying for me to finally answer is HOW? Well dear readers here you are….

1) Drink a tonne of water

This is one of those tips people don’t really like because it’s the hard truth. You probably aren’t drinking enough water. Water is the key way to clearing your skin I promise. 2L everyday will clear out those toxins and hydrate your skin. This was something I struggled to make a habit, so I invested in a pretty big water bottle that I keep with my throughout the day.

2) Sunscreen

UV rays are your skins enemy. If you are struggling with acne like I was it is essential that you are wearing sunsceen every time that you walk out of the house. Every time you don’t you are damaging your skin more- it is as simple as that. Sunscreen is really important so you don’t have hyper pigmentation and scars from your acne .

This is something that I wish I had known because even after clearing my skin, I had to deal with the scars left behind. Don’t make the same mistake- make sure you wear SPF.

3) Be careful with harsh ingredients

It is so easy to get carried away with exfoliants, acids, apple cider vinegar. But these will irritate your skin if you overdo it. My skin has become more sensitive because of strong ingredients ( which I quickly scrapped from my routine.) Tea tree oil was the ingredient that really helped clear my spots. Use it is very very small amounts just on the spot or that too can have an undesired effect.

4) Take off your makeup

There really is no excuse for this. If you are keeping your makeup on all night long do not expect clear skin. The makeup and bacteria clogs up your pores. Personally I use micellar water because it completely gets rid of any makeup or dirt that is on my face.

5) You are what you eat

The sad truth is that our diet can affect our skin. I noticed that on weeks where I ate more healthily, my skin benefited. Avoid processed, sugary and salty foods -all they do is harm your body. Know what you are putting into your body by having homemade sandwiches for example.

6) Moisturise

Some people seem to think that keeping their skin dry, dries out their spots. Bad idea. In order to have healthy, bright skin moisturising everyday is a must. Try a lighter moisturiser instead of a heavy one and your skin will see a difference.

7) Find what works for you

This is time-consuming, yes I know. But the only way to clear your skin is to find a routine that is suited to you and fits your skin’s needs. I advise you go to a skincare shop such as Dermalogica where they can quickly assess your skin and tell you how to take care of it (this is quite brief, but gives you some knowledge.)

8) Facials

I have had a total two facials this year- this combined with all the tips I have given are sure to make a positive difference. My facialist is so lovely and knows exactly how to treat it in these facials. I go to the dermalogica one for the ProSkin30 treatment. The first time I had extractions I was terrified because my sensitive skin had become very red around them. This will go away! A few days later my skin visibly smoother and clearer. It is definitely worth investing in a few facials.

We have come to the end of all my skincare tips. Acne is normal and can be taken care off. It is so easy to let it throw off your confidence ( I understand) but don’t let it- you are beautiful. It takes time but slowly and surely you will come to clear your skin by following these tips, it’ll be worth it at the end of your journey.

I hope you enjoyed this post and I will be posting more self care advice in the future.

q: what is your best skincare tip?

I would love know about your experiences!

Love from Sophia x

The Importance of Culture

I think culture is one of the most interesting and important parts of life. It creates communities, makes us unique and gives us a chance to learn more. I am lucky enough to live in a part of the world that is actually quite multicultural- London. My friends are different ethnicities and religions to myself, but we embrace it and understand the different perspectives within our world. Variety is the spice of life they say, I agree.

I can walk down the streets and see shops selling food from all over the world, cultural clothes and people interacting. Simply put, it is beautiful.

Needless to say, the world has come a long way from where it once was, discriminating against each other because of colour and being denied basic human rights. As I said before, my community embraces culture but there are still people out there who do not understand the importance of the uniqueness of culture.

Why do people see opportunities to show compassion and understanding as a thing to avoid? I don’t think I’ll ever get my head around it.

Being surrounded by different cultures allows us to explore and challenge our own perspectives. We get to share other peoples experiences and better understand not only what we believe, but why we believe it. It is an essential part of our personal growth.

We shouldn’t be scared of our differences.

I recently watched a video published by the BBC about getting South Asians into graphic novels. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/stories-47854848

In the video it talks about how there should be more diverse representation in comic books. Specifically speaking about getting more South Asians into the industry, but I found that there are so many different areas in work that haven’t been touched by culture, graphic novels being one of them.

There is still an urgent need for people to learn more about, to respect diversity and culture, because how else will this world be able to succeed? Communities need to be working together in order to give new ideas to solve problems.

So, what about you? Why not try something new and explore other cultures by asking questions or trying food. Break the barrier. Take a trip to Borough market for example.

love from Sophia x

” Cultural differences should not separate us from each other, but rather cultural diversity brings a collective strength that can benefit all of humanity.”

Robert Alan

hi… my name is Sophia

dear lovely readers,

This is my first blog post, more like an introduction I would think. My name is Sophia and i want to express my thoughts, share my experiences but also record my journey through life. I wanted a place to write my bursts of inspiration and for others to be able to relate to me.

I have to say, I am not the most experienced in writing but I sure am going to give this a try. From style to my studies and interests I’ll be talking about a range of topics that I love. This is practically the busy whirlwind of thoughts that appear in a young british bengali girl’s mind and I hope I can bring a smile to your face. Also as an enthusiastic science geek, interesting research I have read about on medicine and the environment will most probably be shared too. There are a lot of things I want my voice to be heard about, and this is my way of doing it.

I believe that there are many parts to me and this blog will embrace all of them. It will show my journey as I get through life being a young female British-bengali. The ups, the downs, those moments of relief and inspiration.

Being more specific some posts I will be making will be about self care, studying, medicine, causes I care about and personal experiences. In no way am I an expert in any of these subjects, this is purely a creation of my mind for you to enjoy.

I want to help inspire women but also to be inspired by my readers. Feel free to contact me, I would love to talk to you!

love from Sophia x