Hi, I'm Nini! Some days I'm Shani, and very few Talathia likes to make a surprise appearance; but Nini, she's always there, even if she's just taking a back seat to the other two ladies shenanigans. A Chef by day, Peer Support Specialist by night- and somewhere in the messy middle, I'm just simply trying to find my way back to myself.
On July 8, 2014, my life shifted for what I thought was the worst, but in reality put me onto my path of no longer ignoring my trauma; no longer hiding the very parts of myself that I secretly hated. After years of emotional storms, quiet suffering, and surviving two near-fatal suicide attempts, I received a dual diagnosis of Bipolar Disorder, Borderline Personality Disorder, and a later diagnosis of PTSD stemming from Childhood abuse. For a long time I tried to outrun the pain. To tuck it away in silence. In service. In survival. But my story, like so many others, refused to stay quiet.
For the past 11 years, I've been walking a deeply personal journey of learning how to live with my mental health disorders, how to love myself through it, and how to challenge the shame and silence wrapped around it. I've learned how to forgive myself on days that I simply just don't give a damn. As a Chef I've learned how to repair my cognitive function through ingredients, but most importantly, I've learned how important community healing means after connecting with so many others who seemed lost like myself.
As a wanderer still trying to figure out, I understand what it means to feel adrift. To feel so little, but so much at the same time. To constantly wonder what your purpose is. To feel forgotten. Isolated.
Consider me a Hope Dealer. Healing Alchemist. A Safe Space for messing up along the way and knowing it's ok. A soft place to land for the heavy hearted.
Here, I share what lives in the shadows. The bumps and bruises along the journey. The moments of starting over for the 100th time, but still refusing to give up. The parts of the journey that don't always look the best: the grief, the beauty, the rage, the resilience. Through reflection, ritual, and total honesty, I turn my wounds to wisdom. My truth into medicine. I write for the misfits, the feelers, the forgotten ones. The ones still trying to find their way back home to themselves.
Our stories, no matter how scarred they are, are sacred. This space is part diary, part altar, part mirror. Sharing messages of hope and resilience; recipes for mental wellness, journal prompts, and all the warm stuff in between. If you've ever felt like your pain was too loud, too much, or just simply misunderstood- you're not alone here.
So come on in. Kick back. Make yourself some tea (don't worry I got recipes coming soon lol) and enjoy the space.
Glad to have you here.