It’s easy to lose sight of why you started something – the genuine, root, pure catalyst. Below I’ve revisited the root reasons I started The Strange is Beautiful (TSIB), the original goals and the actions I’ve taken, which goals have changed and the future goals for TSIB in 2017 and beyond <3 <3 <3
Root Reasons: Why did I create The Strange is Beautiful (TSIB) in 2014?
- I felt alone, hopeless and scared and wanted to gain control of my mind obstacles and help others do the same.
- I grew up with kids and family who struggled with mind obstacles but who didn’t know how to get better and didn’t have a support system to help them.
- I didn’t want anyone else to feel how I felt when I first got my panic attacks, depression and other mind obstacles and had no idea how to help myself and because I didn’t know my symptoms had a label and that I wasn’t the first to experience them.
- I wanted to somehow track my own cycles of anxiety, panic attacks, depression and other mind obstacles so I can have a greater awareness of early symptoms and be able to take care of it before it becomes too hard to do anything.
- I wanted to create a blog, print guide and supportive community that cares about what people with mind obstacles go through, listens to their concerns and stories and offers resources on how to feel better.
Goals and Actions:
Goal #1:
Track my own cycles of anxiety, panic attacks, depression and other mind obstacles so I can have a greater awareness of early symptoms and be able to take care of it before it becomes too hard to do anything.
Action:
2013 – 2015
I journaled rather consistently from 2013 to 2015 to track my anxiety, depression and panic attacks and still journal and write poetry or songs today when they flare up.
Goal #2:
Create a blog, print guide and supportive community that cares about what people with mind obstacles go through, listens to their concerns and stories and offers resources on how to feel better.
Actions:
September 1, 2014 – Blog
I created TheStrangeisBeauitful.com that offered Share (Me & My Story), Learn (Self-Help) and Release (Submissions of creative media) and my first blog post was posted as well as my story <3
September 2, 2014 – Supportive Community
I created an Instagram account to find and build a supportive community and founded TheStrangeisBeautiful.com, an alternative self-help blog that publishes positive messages, advice and self-help. It started out with “Man Crush Monday” (#MCM), Tuesday “Quote of the Day” (#QOTD), “Woman Crush Wednesday” (#WCW) plus reposts of “Me & My Story.” Now it’s changed to “Meditation Mondays,” Tuesday Community Advice, Wednesdays are usually reposts of an event, Thursday throwback photos of The Strange is Beautiful Alternative Self-Help Guide and Sundays are “Sadcore Sundays.”
December 17, 2014 – Print Guide
I started fundraising through GoFundMe to print 100 of the first The Strange is Beautiful Alternative Self-Help Guides.
February 13, 2016 – Print Guide
I raised $1,000 on GoFundMe to print 100 of the first The Strange is Beautiful Alternative Self-Help Guide and create four online yoga classes for tamasic and rajasic depression, anxiety and panic attacks alternative self-help accessible and offer people an opportunity to create their own individualized healing plan. The guides arrived on February 13, 2016 and the yoga classes were published until summer of that year.
***Ty to Heidi Van den Berg for being the best art director ever, to Nadia and Greig for creating beautiful artwork, to Christian Soriano or filming, to YogaWorks to letting us use their studios, to all that let me interview them, to Liz Campos, Brianna Wright and my parents for helping me fold, stuff and package all 100 of the guides <3 <3 <3
January 2015 – January 2017 – Supportive Community
TSIB had different types of hangouts such as:
January 17, 2015
Self-Help Party
February 15, 2015
LA Zine Fest Meet-Up
March 19, 2015
Tabled at California State University of Northridge’s “Take Back the Night”
April 18, 2015
LGBT center clothing donation meet-up
May 16, 2015
Offered a class at queer and women’s center Heart of Art
July 17, 2015
Offered a class in Santa Clarita to help fundraise to print The Strange is Beautiful Guide.
March 6, 2016
LA Zine Fest Meet-Up
September 4, 2016
SF Zine Fest Meet-Up
December 2016 – January 2017
Online Self-Care Gift Exchange to build community that drew 158 participants.
Goal#3:
Change the way people view “mental illnesses” by leveling the playing field – everyone has mind obstacles, it’s a spectrum.
Action:
2014-2016
Our mission statement says “The Strange is Beautiful (TSIB) is a movement that changes the way mental illnesses mind obstacles are seen, makes alternative self-help accessible and creates a positive community for those struggling.” It originally said “mental obstacles” but later I fully changed it to “mind obstacles” and revealed why in an interview with Fringe Music Fix:
“Mental illness has a terrible history, I don’t like continuing to use terms or words that have such heavy negative baggage. Might as well change the term or word instead of trying to “reclaim” it because in my opinion, it still hurts even after a term is supposedly “reclaimed” and still holds stigma to others who do not know that the term is now “reclaimed” or redefined. In yoga we talk a lot about “obstacles of the mind stuff” as said by the sage Patanjali. I LOVED hearing that phrase because it made me realize that EVERYONE has obstacles of the mind at varying levels and degrees. This makes everyone the same, it levels the playing field for those that feel alone. Just because someone doesn’t have clinical depression, doesn’t mean they’ve never felt sad or depressed and can’t relate to someone with clinical depression. I get extremely annoyed and hurt when people blame how I feel on my depression or my anxiety because they are invalidating my feelings and implying that my feelings are invalid because I have a “mental illness.” This is why I changed the term completely to mind obstacles because EVERYONE has mind obstacles and therefore everyone’s feelings are valid and should be talked through to understand fully instead of pushed aside or ignored.” – Shannen Roberts
Goal #4:
Change the way people treat “mental illnesses” and stress.
Action:
I wrote “mental illnesses” here because I was referring to traditional institutions such as schools, doctors, treatment centers and psychiatrists who still use that term and many of whom do not try offer holistic perspectives but instead push pills without thorough education of the pills to their patients. This is why I work hard to make alternative self-help accessible so that people struggling with mind obstacles can have the research available to them so they can make an informed decision on what would be the best holistic care for them. However, hope to expand on this goal by figuring out a way to eventually introduce these methods not only online but at schools and other institutions. I’ll explain more about the obstacles I face in this goal in the “What goals have changed direction?” question near the end of this article xoxox.
Goal #5:
Tell my story, as a baby step toward my own healing, and as a way to make it easier for others to feel safe telling their story or reaching out for help.
Action: I told my story in 2014 in a blog post and a small zine for the first time.
Goal #6:
Offer alternative resources for people WITHOUT mind obstacles so they can learn and understand their loved ones mind obstacles so less end of friendships and breakups can occur.
Action: I created an article called “How to Help a Friend Through a Panic Attack” but this is something I need to write more about. A continued goal for 2017 and beyond <3
Goal #7:
Make TSIB to be a safe space where people can openly ask for advice.
Actions:
October, 21, 2016
On Tuesdays on Instagram, we offer an opportunity to repost questions that are directly messaged to us so our community can comment their advice.
December 7, 2016
I created a Self-Care Gift Exchange where 158 people detailed what advice they are looking for and we paired them with someone who would be most fit to provide them with that advice.
Goal #8:
Share my self-care/love/help knowledge, yoga studies and spread awareness of mental health.
Actions:
October, 27, 2014
I also published a series of articles on the blog called “A Pose A Day” where I explained how to do one yoga pose per week and explained when it’d be helpful to practice it.
March 30, 2015
The first “Meditation Mondays” was posted on Instagram which let’s me offer creative meditations.
February 13, 2016
Lastly, I had a section in The Strange is Beautiful Guide that detailed what poses will help tamasic and rajasic depression, anxiety and panic attacks and published online yoga classes for those same mind obstacles.
Goal #9:
Encourage the importance of giving a set amount of space to be sad and then to create a plan to move past the sadness.
Action:
October 5, 2014
The first “Sadcore Sundays” post was published on the blog that features and a sad song and it’s lyrics – sometimes accompanied by an interview of the artist – so that people can listen to the music, release their sad feels and tears and find enough relief to do at least one simple goal for the day. I also created “Sadcore Sundays” YouTube playlists.
What are The Strange is Beautiful’s goals for 2017 and beyond?
2017 Short-Term Goals:
- Articles, interviews and art pieces on domestic abuse and sexual assault
- Safe Space Yoga Classes in LA
- Dance for All Bodies in LA
- Another Self-Care Gift Exchange
2017 and Beyond Long-Term Goals:
- More in depth, heavily researched, journalistic articles and interviews so TSIB can be seen as extremely credible.
- Make TSIB a non-profit or in someway an expanded business that can eventually hire people with mind obstacles or who are disabled.
- Develop and implement a mental health education program in schools from K-12.
- Speak at schools, tour and have more interactive events.
- Delegate tasks to people who’d like to be involved with TSIB.
On the contrary, it’s normal and healthy for goals to change, morph or expand. What goals have gone through metamorphosis?
What goals have completely changed direction?
I had a goal to place TSIB guides in schools and doctors offices. I was going to do this, but a few things happened. When I visited CSUN’s counseling department to see if I could have it in the waiting room, I was invalidated. They did not think TSIB could be helpful because I’m not a certified therapist so clearly I can offer no help. Alternative self-help and my 500 hours of yoga training was rejected. At doctors offices, I rethought it because the only doctor I wanted to give it to moved, and he would have recommended it to patients who had questions about mind obstacles. I also rethought it because I realized many young people go to the doctor with their parents or don’t even look at the magazines at the doctor’s office. I realized I need to keep TSIB as an alternative space until I could figure out an organized plan to spread it into traditional areas such as schools and doctors offices.
What goals have morphed shape?
I had a goal of creating more IRL hangouts for TSIB but I realized many people with mind obstacles – including myself – have trouble getting out of the house so I tried this Self-Care Gift Exchange this December 2016 and it was a success and clear indicator that I should focus more on online hangouts and an online community. Also because the Self-Care Gift Exchange participants were from a ton of different states and even in Canada which means having hangouts solely in LA wouldn’t be including the whole community.
What goals have grown and expanded?
Goal-wise, I’m seeing the bigger picture of TSIB for my future. TSIB is something I want to do for a long time so my goal for TSIB has expanded into wanting it to be my career path. I think the two biggest goals that have grown are to eventually develop and implement a mental health education program in schools from K-12, speak at schools, tour and have more interactive events and to make TSIB a non-profit or some sort of business that can eventually hire people with mind obstacles or who are disabled. That brings to light why I’m working hard to make higher quality interviews in the sense of improved journalism that has more research. The 158 people who signed up for the Self-Care Gift Exchange was just another reminder that TSIB is necessary and needed and I will keep working hard for TSIB to continue to grow and offer opportunities.
What goals did I try that didn’t work?
Community Essential Oil Study for Mind Obstacles
A lot of people and friends I know LOVE essential oils and say it helps a lot with their anxiety and other mind obstacles. It hasn’t helped me too much, but I started to post about it from their perspectives. I wanted to learn more for myself and just happened to get a ton of sample essential oils from a friend – about 30 tiny tubes. I made a post on Instagram to see if anyone would want to test it out and journal about their experience. I got a few responses, but only sent out one package if I’m remembering correctly because that’s was the only person that filled out the initial survey. I never heard back from them LOL. And so I have yet to fully promote essential oils – also because they can be very pricey and I am a low-budget student so I don’t like to promote things that are expensive unless I feel they are extremely helpful in the long run. Unless I get another free load of samples, I don’t think I’ll be trying this again in the future.
Yoga & My Story
When I first created The Strange is Beautiful in 2014, I was promoting “Me & My Story” where people can submit their experiences with mind obstacles and “Yoga & My Story” for yoga practitioners who have mind obstacles to reveal how yoga helps them. “Me & My Story” was pretty rocky, I didn’t get many submissions, which is understandable because it’s scary to tell your story! But “Yoga & My Story” only received one submission besides myself. I feel this goes hand in hand with the yoga community problem that yoga instructors believe they must be happy and zen all the time! As a yoga instructor myself, I can sympathize with this image branding choice because I have experienced many shocked eyes from students who look at me in disbelief when I revealed that I was struggling with anxiety or depression or something because they believed that since I teach yoga, I must have healed myself of all inner and external wounds and therefore am the perfect person with the perfect body. I hope to relaunch this idea in the future. The intention behind this is to encourage others struggling to try yoga and to spread awareness that yoga is not just aching wrists in a sweaty vinyasa flow class in LA with booty shorts, but can be catered to anyone of all bodies using variations and props.
Other things that happened to The Strange is Beautiful that were unexpected?
October 15, 2016
I and The Strange is Beautiful were featured on HerCampus !!!
October 19, 2016
Started a new idea for The Strange is Beautiful: video interviews on YouTube. The first ones were of Chingona Fire :)
November 29, 2016
We were also featured on Fringe Music Fix!
Sending you ++posi vibes++
Shannen (Shay)
Founding Editor-in-Chief
The Strange is Beautiful
