As an entrepreneur in the female beauty space, I feel it’s my responsibility to open up and talk about mental health. To me, beauty is how you feel on the inside that radiates to the outside. As 80% of my followers are women, I know that 25% of you will or are experiencing a form of mental disorder. I’m part of that 25%.

The people that are close to me, know that I have suffered for over 15 years from depression. Since the age of 15, I have fought this disease and it impacted every aspect of my life. I didn’t have dreams because I felt I wasn’t worthy of any. Over the years I tried to get up and would fall back over and over again.

At the age of 30, I gave myself 2 options: to end my life or take full responsibility for my own happiness. That sounds extreme, but when you’re suffering from a heavy depression, it can feel like there’s no way out. Because of my beautiful son, giving up was not an option. I decided to take full accountability for my own life. I started mindfulness meditation and watched (and practiced) hundreds of YouTube videos about positive affirmations, self-love, the law of attraction, and mindset. In the following years, I changed my thought patterns, improved my self-esteem, and most importantly learned to truly respect myself.

The biggest lesson I learned is that your outer world is a result from your inner world. Not the other way around. When you’re in a position where you feel imprisoned in your own thoughts and feelings, know that taking accountability for your own life is your path to change. By no longer being a victim of everything that happens, but to use your own inner power to grow. Change doesn’t come overnight and it’s also not linear. It’s a process that takes years, devotion, and discipline. I'm still in this process and will be for the rest of my life. But I can now truly say that I’m worthy of this investment.

Investing in your mental health and mindset is the biggest gift you can give yourself, your career, and the people around you. The root of a lot of mental illnesses is your self-esteem. It’s your own belief system that is creating your thoughts and feelings. And that impacts everything that comes back to you. My wish for everybody is to put their focus on loving themselves more in 2023. You are always worth it. 

🧡🧡🧡

Manouk de Vries 
Found & CEO Supercilium