I have decided to be part of this challenge, where we post a blog per day for January. Participation is easy; sign up using the link below, and a daily prompt will be emailed to you on a particular topic. First, write about the topic, then add the bloganuray tag to your post. 

https://wordpress.com/bloganuary/

Despite wanting to participate in bloganuary, I somehow got distracted by the new year and working on my most recent blog called Time Traveling to the Past. 

The challenge for 1st January was “What advice would you give to your teenage self?”

To be honest, I have a host of things I could say to my teenage self. From the age of 13 to 25, I was a shy and soft-spoken girl riddled with self double and low self-esteem. I had very few avenues to turn to that made me feel comfortable and proud about myself. I also lacked a supportive peer group and never genuinely bonded with anyone. 

If I could go back and advise my teenage self, I would tell (me) to start writing and documenting experiences. I always wanted to write but felt I lacked the talent and skill. I will also tell my adolescent self that everything I hated about myself was inconsequential. I would say that “No one will ever see you the way you see yourself, so don’t overthink things, and your perception of self isn’t always 100% correct.” To think that you are less than others, ugly, or a misfit isn’t a thought that originated from you. It came from others and how they feel, so don’t let outside forces control you.  I would also tell myself not to believe words such as ugly, stupid, or dumb; and not to associate those words with myself even if they come from peers and my own mother.

I would also say to myself that the boys I was dying to have notice me back then aren’t worth it, and no amount of compromising who I am or was will ever make people who didn’t want to see me acknowledge my existence. 

Thinking back to how I felt in my early teenage years, I still feel a hint of sadness and regret because many of my biggest miss-steps often came down to my low self-esteem. So while the mantra is to say, “I have no regrets.” I think it’s not realistic to believe that we all don’t sometimes fall down the rabbit hole wondering about what could have been. So for that, I will say to my teenage self that it’s okay to have regrets, bad days, and feel sad. Just know that every day that takes your further away from those days will lead you to better days.