I sat in the bleachers timidly, middle school made me nervous. Scanning a sea of thirteen year olds my eyes fell upon him. I don’t think he saw me, and I’m glad he didn’t. Surely if he would have talked to me in that moment I would have forgotten how to use words. For the first time in my life my body was electrified. I had to know him. As if it was my last breath I grabbed my bestfriend and asked “who is that?”. That’s *Thomas, she said.

Dear Strong Chick,

How do you take away the guilt that happens when you leave the gym feeling like you didn’t workout at all?

One tour date left, and it just so happened to be in LA. There wasn’t much thinking here. I’m spontaneous, and when it feels right in my gut, I 99.9% of the time say yes.

I booked my flight for the next week. Stalked Airbnbs and bought my ticket to the concert.

This week on the column we are going to be discussing the topic self-care. There seems to be a lot of confusion regarding the term and it’s meaning, so I would like to share what self-care means to me and of course answer some Strong Chick questions!

  Welcome to the place where girls can just be girls. Kickass, united girls. My name is Anna and I am beyond excited to be introducing this column to Strong Chicks Rock! Dear Strong Chick, is a place for young women to ask their questions about feelings, fitness, real-world problems, relationships, mental health, and navigating their place in the world. 

The first time I told a woman she was beautiful felt like the most honestl truth that’s ever left my mouth. I feel like I’m having a Kristen Stewart moment right now. So I guess I’m like, really fucking gay?

3 years ago when I broke up with dieting my biggest focus with my body was beginning to feel normal around food. In this initial phase I kind of stopped taking as great internal care of my body. I wasn't eating a lot of veggies, conscious of taking vitamins or supplementing with things I was deficient in. I was 100000% okay with this because healing my mind was of the most importance to me. 

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You know that scene in Shrek where he’s like ogres are like onions? My dad use to say the same thing about boys.

“Boys are like onions, Rachel. You have to peel back the layers and keep peeling them back to really get to know someone”.

“Binge eating feels like my brain becomes host to a demon. LIke my normal brain is there, but frozen and unable to make a choice. Like I am held hostage to the demon that is frantic, telling me to eat what's in front of me and then some. And even when I want to stop, it says no. Like I’m being sent on a mission and can’t stop until it’s done. Despite tears, physical pain, and wanting to throw up, I can’t stop. Despite an urge so strong it forces me to manipulate situations and lie, I can’t stop. Only when I’m done do I realize what’s happened and then I get my reward for listening to the demon. Shame so big that it swallows me whole.”