As the holiday season is among us and we begin to celebrate with our families or in some cases, not celebrate, I think it's worth speaking some words of affirmation to those out there who may struggle with feeling lonely, depressed, and less then for not having a healthy and loving family. Be easy on yourself, stay off the apps, and check in with how you feel & what you need.  

Peace & love  

Irene 

·Connect with me· 🌱 Tik Tok: irene_selfembark 🌿 Instagram: self_embark 🍊 selfembark.com

Hello Endosisters~ On Today's episode of The Thought Spot I answer some of your questions on my latest Endometriosis Awareness video I posted on my TikTok. Since Endometriosis continues to be understudied both in the general public and within the medical profession, it's so important for Endometriosis Survivors to open up about their journey with this chronic illness to help other women and girls out there who may feel lost & left in the dark, feel less alone with more of a sense of direction + clarity. I know that being able to listen to other women speak about their endometriosis symptoms and how they pursued treatment has not only provided me with a sense of direction with what to do, how to speak about my symptoms, and who to seek help from--but it also provided me with an essential component to the mental & emotional processing of this chronic illness. Cause we all know it is very intense to live with Endometriosis! I hope to continue to share my journey and provide any answers to any women out there who may be lost. Be curious, be discerning, and don't give up! 

Peace & love,

Irene

·Connect with me· 🌱 Tik Tok: irene_selfembark 🌿 Instagram: self_embark 🍊 selfembark.com

Surgery can be scary, but especially when you have no idea how bad your chronic illness and surgery will be. This is the unique experience of pre-surgery nerves many women go through, going into their first Endometriosis surgery. If you're like me, and you had to do all of the researching, self-diagnosing, and intense advocating in order to get your first surgery scheduled--I encourage you to finally take a break from that momentum that got you to this point! I know it's so easy to lose yourself in prepping & planning, but if you've gotten this far, you've more than likely already done all the planning and prepping that is needed. Now it's just about the waiting game & not driving yourself insane in the mean time.  To all the women out there navigating the medical system in regards to their Endometriosis, I genuinely wish you luck and smooth sailing on your journey to a more pain-free life. I'll see you guys on the other side of my surgery! Thank you for watching.  

Peace & love, Irene 

 🩸Period Underwear🩸 

thinx.club/thethoughtspot2  

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🌿 Instagram: self_embark 

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Living with worsening chronic illness is not for the faint of heart. Especially when the medical realm doesn't make it any easier for women like me, who suffer with Endometriosis, to navigate seeking treatment and diagnosis. I've struggled with the chronic illness and chronic pain my whole life, yet I am only now getting the diagnosis and treatment I need for it at the age of 25 almost 26. And what's even more disheartening is....I am one of the lucky ones. 25 is considered a pretty young age for being diagnosed and receiving surgery for Endometriosis. Too often, women with this chronic illness will go their whole lives suffering in silence with no glimmer of hope, knowledge, or guidance in sight. This is absolutely unacceptable. Even though I finally got to the point of getting my Laparoscopy & Excision surgery scheduled with an Endometriosis specialist, it took me 2 years of actively pursuing this exact result to finally get to this point. And by the tie I found myself with a treatment plan, I was already broken down and gaslit into hopeless defeat. 

Should I be surprised that I've faced very similar experiences within my mental health journey and getting the diagnosis I need to provide a sense of closure and deeper understanding of myself? Perhaps the answer is no, sadly. I've been talked over, misunderstood, patronized, and misdiagnosed every single time I sought out help from a professional in some capacity. The road to seeking out the diagnosis for my ADHD wasn't easy, but when I finally received the formal diagnosis & began receiving treatment for the ADHD my life drastically changed for the better. Had I not advocated for myself, had a clear understanding of my symptoms, and trusted my intuition--I'd be receiving treatment for a personality disorder that I did not have. And now I am in the beginning stages of the journey into seeking out a formal diagnosis for Adult Autism. As I continue to navigate this aspect of my life, I have a stronger sense of what I may come across in regards to ignorance from medical health professionals & how to navigate that. I will continue to seek out necessary help from those who are qualified to do so, and I will not stop until I receive that answers I need to help me understand myself more deeply.

If you are interested in my Endometriosis, ADHD, and Autism journey--subscribe and follow me on my platforms. I will continue to make more content and keep you guys up to date on all of these subjects. Cause god knows we need more information and stories out there.

Peace & love,

Irene

·Connect with me· 🌱 Tik Tok: irene_selfembark 🌿 Instagram: self_embark 🍊 selfembark.com

As we move forward and onward in the Feminism movements, I think it's worth reflecting back on ways we choose to empower ourselves in the past and whether or not that is something that truly resonates with us and whether or not we are actually still perpetuating harmful & misogynistic behaviors that actually feeds into the patriarchy and harms feminism. I think we've come so far in female empowerment, but I also think we still have more work to do and what feels "empowering" to us is coming to a point where it can begin to transform into something else. Girls, women, & femmes should be able to feel empowered, seen, respected, & valued in and outside of our desirability--and I truly believe we can get there someday. But it all starts with reflection. Then reflection will turn into action. And this, my friends, is how change can happen. Thank you for listening, thank you for receiving my energy, & until next time--peace & love.

·Connect with me· 🌱 Tik Tok: irene_selfembark 🌿 Instagram: self_embark 🍊 selfembark.com

Hello beautiful people. I've taken a little hiatus away from most social media platforms to work on other projects and maintain my own personal growth--but I've been slowly making my way back to creating content again. In this first episode back I am catching you guys up on what has been going on in my life while I've been away; things like getting diagnosed + treated for ADHD, getting bangs, adopting a cat, starting my own Self Empowerment Coaching business, kicking off my Tik Tok, and finding my true intention with what I wanted to create on Youtube when I eventually found my way back to it. I'm excited to be back and to begin uploading again. I'm honored to be able to share my words, my energy, and my experiences & to continually grow this channel and build this community. Thank you for listening and connecting with me. Peace & love.

We can all agree that there’s no beauty without struggle. And one community that knows this far too well are People of Color. In today's episode we talk about what it's like growing up Asian American. From internalized racism, to assimilation, to lack of representation in the media, to stereotypes, to our faulty love languages, and to our sense of identity, we got topics EVERYONE can relate to. So buckle in and get ready for the ride—the THOTS are letting you in on just exactly what it means to be Asian in America.