Growing up I believed I was a pretty girl but as most young ladies do, I expressed some insecurities. I had a nice shape, long hair, and boys always wanted to date me but I also had acne prone skin and wore head gear for a while. So I was about 13 when I started to wear foundation to cover my skin. My mother really didn't wear that much makeup but she owned some, so I started out by sneaking into hers...I think I used it all up. It came to a point that in my early twenties I wouldn't really even go anywhere without a full face, I mean Fashion Fair was my best friend! I was also the girl that kept the latest nail designs; weaves or braided hairstyles wore brown contacts, fake lashes and always had my lil fashion swag. There was nothing necessarily wrong with that picture, I was well put together even as I gained weight I stayed fly.

As I got into fitness, a couple of things changed for me. Working out every day I just had absolutely no time for the makeup and hair thing. I had to prioritize my life and what was really most important to me. Do I want to be a big girl with laid hair? Unhealthy with a face beat to death? Naw, I chose to get healthy. See as a black woman I have always been perplexed by my sisters who are so afraid to sweat, have fun, and workout because they don't want to get their hair wet. I mean I understand not dealing with that everyday...but there are many who NEVER do it. In my opinion it is really a problem because women adopt these sedentary lifestyles for such shallow reasons and end up paying the price of their health amongst other things. Slowly but surely the makeup applications became few and far in between and the hair got the big chop. I had to find my PHYT!

Now four years into my Sisterlocks sometimes I smile to myself at how far I have come. I realized that covering my skin and hair was insecurity. Even tho I had length to my tresses it didn't measure up. So what I have a good body, bright eyes and this beautiful smile (thank you headgear!), my skin made me so sad. While becoming more PHYT though, I also grew this security that I never had before. It went from not doing a damn thang without wearing makeup; to hating makeup on my face and really loving the way my natural skin feels! Ditching the MAC counter and investing in skin care products which remain to be trial and error, but I'm cool with that. Boy I adored my weaves, had a standing Friday hair appointment for many years, and spent at least two or three hundred dollars a month on my hair. SMH. Thank God I got that monkey off my back! It feels good to run my fingers through my hair and really be running my fingers through my hair~ LOL! It's a whole other life experience going through the growth stages and experimenting with the different styles. I feel as black women we have been blessed with the versatility of our locks and I am embracing that. Overall I still got my style and poise. But finding my PHYT also helped my find the confidence I needed to be happy with just being good old me. Now by far am I Plain Jane, I like to stay jazzy. I still wear mascara and gloss daily, and I stay in my hair braiding or twisting it one way or another. Going to the spa is my favorite pass time and I pamper myself with massages and facials instead of being a slave to hair and makeup, which is more beneficial to my overall health. But I'm not dependent on any of those things. I'm not using crutches to be good anymore. ..I'm PHYT, I'm Free, I'm NATURAL, and I just feel GREAT about ME!