HI FRIENDS! It’s been a minute since I’ve shared a personal post so I figured it was only fitting to share one today given everything that’s happened this past week or so. If you’ve been following along on IG then you know a couple big things happened to be this past week: 1 good and 1, well, not so good.
Bad news first…
I always like to start with the bad news first so that’s what I’m going to chat with you guys about first. If you’ve been following my stories on IG then you know I unfortunately had a pretty bad injury happen on Labor Day, while I was playing tennis. I grew up playing tennis – I played it almost everyday for literally 10 years, I was even captain of my varsity team in high school! So tennis is a very special sport to me and while I don’t get a chance to play it often now, whenever my sister is in town and we have some free time, we like to catch up on some games. Labor Day was like no other, we woke up and wanted to get some games in before we relaxed by the pool. We were playing สมัครบาคาร่า for over an hour when we we were about to pack up and go. But I needed to play a few more points. We were literally playing the LAST POINT, no joke guys, the LAST POINT!! when I took one step forward and suddenly collapsed because felt a pop on the back of my ankle. I had no idea what happened but initially I thought my shoe ripped because it felt like my foot came out of it, but once I looked down at my leg I knew that wasn’t the case. I had no idea what I did but my BF immediately knew it was my achilles. I knew something was wrong but I was able to still move my foot around and even stand on it so I thought that was a good sign. I was in pain but it wasn’t anything unbearable or excruciating, which I am so grateful for. We immediately came home and I spent the rest of my day basically sobbing because I was so scared that I would need surgery and go through Achilles injury rehab (one of the hardest). I didn’t know much about Achilles injuries surprisingly; all I really knew was that Kevin Durant and Kobe Bryant both tore theirs in the NBA lol! After doing my research and performing a home test that’s the most accurate test aside from an MRI (Thompson test), I was pretty sure I tore it. You know when you just have a feeling and you know in your gut somethings up? Well that was me. Everyone around me didn’t believe it was a full tear because of the movement in my leg and the fact that it wasn’t THAT painful. But I just had a feeling.
Although I was able to see a primary care physician the following day (she was 0 help), I unfortunately couldn’t see my orthopedic surgeon for ONE WEEK. This was the longest week of my life because I’m one of those people who just sits and does a ton of research online, and then I go down this deep dark hole of “what ifs” which is never good lol! Basically everything I was reading made me so sad and upset. I was shocked and so worried that I would need surgery, and then on top of that, go through Achilles rehab, which is NOT EASY and such a LONG process. It was a pretty difficult and emotional week for me to say the least. But as the days went on I learned to accept it and worked on changing my mentality and feelings towards my situation and tried to be positive overall. I definitely had more downs than ups but I luckily have the best support system around me to help me through everything.
Fast forward 1 week – I finally met with my orthopedic surgeon on Tuesday. I was super nervous going into it because I was expecting the worst. I always expect the worst, but hope for the best and that was no different in this case. When I met with my doctor, he examined my leg and performed the Thompson test again. From the beginning, I had little pain, minimal swelling and no crazy bruising which were all good signs. After performing the test he confirmed I have an Achilles tear BUT I’m really lucky because I still have tension and movement in my leg and foot which means some things are still in tact. Of course he went into details about all this in medical terms and this is just my way of summarizing haha! But basically since my tear is higher up, towards my calf muscle and not my heel, he can’t perform surgery, even if I wanted it.
*PHEWWW* I can not tell you how much of a relief I felt after hearing this! I was SO so happy. Although I will be able to heal without surgery, it is still going to be a long process. Basically I will be non weight bearing in a cast for 6 weeks, then I will transition into a boot, weight bearing, for 4 weeks or so, then I will transition into physical therapy consistently. It was take about 8-9 months for a complete recovery but I am really optimistic and know I will be back to normal in no time, I just need to be patient with myself because it will take time! For those who reached out during this difficult time, thank you! All the DMS, messages, comments, texts, and calls have meant the world to me, so thank you!
Now onto some more exciting news….
I am so SO beyond excited to share I finally hit 100k on Instagram!!! 100,000 of you. Wow. It’s just crazy and truly blows my mind that there are so many of you here, I am so grateful for all your love and support! Hitting 100k has always been on my mind, a goal for sure. When I started my blog back in 2015 I had no idea what I was doing, there were so many ups and downs, a lot of times where I doubted myself, but I knew this is what I wanted to do so I just kept pushing myself and never gave up! Fast forward to today and I am doing this full time and I could honestly not be happier. I am living my dream job and I am so grateful to be able to wake up every morning and LOVE what I do. It’s been a dream to say the least!
When I first started my blog, 100k seemed so farfetched. It took a lot of hard work, a lot of patience, and a lot of dedication to get here. I think so many of us are quick to criticize and get down on ourselves for certain decisions we make that ultimately didn’t work out for the best, but we rarely stop and praise ourselves for all the things we acomplish in life, big or little. I’m definitely one of those people and through this journey I’ve learned that we should always be proud of ourselves and remember to celebrate these milestones and wins in life.
Everyone’s definition of success is different (and that’s okay). For some hitting 100k followers on Instagram doesn’t mean anything, but for someone like me it’s huge! So I am very proud of myself and I want to share why. I am proud of myself for taking a leap of faith and putting myself out there for the world to see on social media, without knowing the outcome or response I would get. I am proud of myself for being dedicated and consistent; I have posted on social media consistently EVERYDAY for 4 years. I rarely miss a post and while it can definitely get exhausting always being “on,” I know this is my job and I wouldn’t do anything less than put 100% into it. I am also proud of myself for not ever giving up, when it was so easy to. If you’re in this business then I’m sure you can relate… this job is not easy. There are SO many misconceptions about this business. I’ve heard it all, but I never let it stop me. There have been so many ups and downs, so many times I thought maybe this isn’t for me or maybe I won’t succeed doing this, but I still never gave up and I’m proud of myself for pushing through the hard times to ultimately get to this point today where I can confidently say I have my dream job. Today I’m working with brands I would have only DREAMED about years ago. I am so grateful.
My advice for those of you who are wanting to get into blogging and this space, it may sound cliche but if you love it, NEVER give up!! Be consistent on social, create badass content, have a voice, be yourself, share what you love, express your personality, network, work hard, shut out the negativity, be vulnerable and put yourself out there, and lastly NEVER COMPARE yourself to others because everyone is at a different stage in life. I also want to remind you all, no matter what your job is or what point of life you’re at, celebrate your successes, no matter how small or big! No it’s not bragging, no you’re not coming off the wrong way. Celebrating these things in life will keep you motivated, push you to work harder, and lead to even more accomplishments. I’m certain of that!
I want to finish this post by thanking you all SO much for your endless love and support, it has truly meant the world to me and I would not be able to do this if it wasn’t for you guys!! THANK YOU to all 100,000 of you! I also would not be able to do this job without my amazing support system: my family, boyfriend, and friends. Whether it’s snapping my OOTD, helping me shoot a campaign, or waiting to eat until all the food has arrived so I can document it for the gram (lol!!!), these people mean the world to me and this would not be possible with them and their support!
Now that I have reached this milestone, I have so much more I want to do moving forward. This is just the beginning and I can’t wait to continue connecting and growing with you all! ILY ALL!
xo, S
Major thanks for the post.Much thanks again. Want more.