Queen, how's your heart?
When the group chat goes dry no one panics. That is the unspoken understanding that each member is off grinding at her day job, planting seeds for her side hustle, hustling her children to and from extracurricular activities, carving out quality time for her partner or if she is lucky; taking time to love on herself.
Why is the latter a rare occurrence? Perhaps because of our innate propensity to nurture, often at the expense of filling our own cup.
This proverbial cup includes, our physical, psychological and mental well-being.
This is particularly true for black women, who statistically are more likely to experience untreated chronic stress or anxiety, are 2 times more likely than counterparts of other ethnicities to suffer fatal stroke or heart disease at early age, are more than twice as likely to maintain single-parent households, and/or need to supplement income monetizing skills or hobbies.
February is the Month of Love and American Heart Month, so I’m asking, “Queen, how is your heart?”
The correlating factors between these stats and women of color include: diet, exercise, accessibility, education, and family history.
I was a collegiate athlete, (13 years and 15 lbs ago, LOL) I am now a mother, wife and entrepreneur. My poor eating habits began to reflect in my blood pressure, BMI and energy levels around age 30. I could high key eat a burger and shake before a track meet and be fine my entire life! Today that same burger would mean immediate bloat and breakouts. My vices were sugary snacks and sodium in processed foods. My mother has high blood pressure and suffered mild stroke at age 53. I have never been a good cook, but I have learned to curate tasty meals on a reasonable budget with healthy ingredients. For Example, Vegan spaghetti, using chickpea pasta, zucchini, squash and mushrooms. I found it easiest to incorporate exercise by attending group classes. For instance, the am Saturday or 6 pm Thursday HIIT class. If you can relate to the schedule described in introduction, time management will be key, no better way to prioritize then by attending classes with appointed times. Before I was comfortable at the gym I would jog at the park or track while my daughter played or rode her bike. Addressing mental health, eradicating the stigma that surrounds it in black communities and identifying resources to maintain balance are uncharted waters for me as well. Mother + wife + creative = anxiety. I could admit to stress but did not associate insomnia, loss of appetite or mood swings with mental health issues. My personal approach to finding balance was heavily predicated on mindset. Acknowledgement of need and dismissal of feelings of guilt was essential. Momma can’t pour if she is running on empty.
Releasing myself from the cultural/societal thoughts that I am superwoman who can do all and needs no help was healing. Practice with me, “do you need help? Yes! Can you….? Not today!
As we proceed to trail blaze in areas of education, entrepreneurship, fashion, health, fitness, etc. don’t forget to ask the group chat, and the superwoman in the mirror one important question… Queen, how’s your heart?
This blog also marks my first contribution to Black artisan marketplace blkgrn.com!
check out their website for all things beauty, black owned, non-toxic and more blog content!
Be Well,
Kat
