May 28, 2020
My triggers can be debilitating, especially ones that come from abuse. At 8 years old I was sexually abused by a teenage boy from my neighborhood. I trusted him, I looked up to him, and I was told I would get to play my favorite video game if I performed sexual acts on him. At the time I had no idea what I was doing. I was 8 years old; How the f*ck would I? While knowing this helped me take a step towards healing, it did n...
April 1, 2020
I remember the empowerment and nerves I felt from sharing this photo 2 years ago. “Good for you! Be you, boo! 😘”⠀ “That skin! Werk! 😍”⠀ “You’re beautiful, with or without makeup. ❤️” These were 3 of 246 comments shared on my first makeup photo. Just reading these comments now makes me feel so incredibly emotional from how supportive you all were. While I constantly share the positive and embrace it, that only comes from h...
March 11, 2020
I’ve met so many people who have not healed from their pain or trauma 10+ years after it occurred. I’ve also met so many people who HAVE healed from their trauma not even one year after it occurred. Time is not the difference. The difference is you. Don’t wait for time to put in the work. Don’t wait for time to accept your feelings. Don’t wait for time to allow you to forgive yourself. Time will only ASSIST in healing your pai...
January 28, 2020
Going through illness & abuse has not made my life easy. If you’re like me, a victim of any extreme adversity, you know how it changes you. I’m not glad I had those negative experiences…I still DO have triggers from what I’ve been through. However, despite going through ALL of these incredibly difficult adversities at a young age…I’m still alive….I’m still here. Shouldn’t that be enough to be grateful for? It is. With the incr...
October 8, 2019
It only takes one....one person to change your life forever. It’s hard to explain sexual abuse or sexual assault to someone who hasn’t gone through it before. All I can say is that you change. You change how you let people in. You change how you express yourself. You change how you experience the world. That change is forever. So many people take this life changing experience with them to their grave, bearing that burden, neve...
July 9, 2019
I still remember hearing the panic in my step-fathers voice as he yelled for help. 15 years old; my mom and I run out of our rooms to see the limp and motionless body of my 2 year old tea-cup yorkie, Max, in my step-fathers hands. I’m not ashamed to admit that Max was my best friend. We adopted him the year I became very sick; Mostly when I found myself at home more than I was at school. I lost so many friends due to my heal...
February 22, 2018
Hey there! I'm back for the first edition of "Taylor's Talk on Life". This series will cover various topics that we all deal with at one point or another. Life is hard and it's good to acknowledge that no one's life is easy. I've always felt that the best knowledge comes from learning from other's experiences (as well as your own). With that being said, this series will be all about sharing my...
October 14, 2016
A 19 year old. Someone who does not live a normal life. Someone who takes medication multiple times a day to stay alive, battles constant fatigue and weakness to get out of bed, and someone who has to plan hours ahead of time to do a simple task. When most people hear this description, they probably picture someone who looks sick, skinny or unhealthy. It's easy to get an idea of someone when you don't have a picture to...
June 19, 2016
Now I know what you're thinking when you see this headline. "A real man? Who is he to say what a real man is?" "He's only 19 years old? What does he know? He's still so young!" I'm going to stop you right there with this one sentence. A "real man" is whoever you want it to be. There is no set of guidelines that you have to follow to be a "real man." Some may say, "We...
November 24, 2015
How many times are we really forced to be cut off from the world? No contact with others, no looking at social media or watching the news. Well, this past week, I was forced to do just that. On November 17th, I underwent a spinal tap for something that I thought would be a piece of cake. Most people would be concerned if they knew that they had to get a 6 inch needle stuck into their spine while awake, which of course I was, b...