Self-help guru, I am not. My name is Jawaun aka Self Care La Flare and I’m merely another passenger on this journey to sustainable mental health. Through personal stories and uncensored life experiences, I hope to share with my followers my continuing path to excellence, while hopefully assisting others looking for similar end goals. 

Life has a way of bringing even the strongest individuals down. Rejection, loss, and even regular day to day activities can constantly drag on a person’s mental state. I was, unfortunately, falling into this pit of despair after two consecutive knee surgeries repairing my left ACL and Meniscus. First, let me Preface this situation with a little explaining of who I am. I’ve always been a very competitive person, anything from scholastics to athletics and I’ve been incessantly infatuated with the goal of “being #1”. While scholastically this may be an issue, Athletically things were working 100% in my favor. I worked to be the, as my favorite sports hero Brian Dawkins would say, “Baddest man on the field”. The majority of my personal pride was allocated into my athletic achievements, which is why April 6, 2019, will forever be a date synonymous with a shockwave to my personal self-image. 

That’s the day an unprovoked cheap shot by a competitive rival ended my sports career. We’ll… unprovoked may be a small stretch. I was good, and admittedly I felt like everyone should know it. Honestly, I love talking trash, mostly in jest, but if I beat you on a play. You’re going to have to hear about it for the rest of the game, and in the very personal, very violent sport of rugby, tempers were bound to flare up. Going in for a simple tackle turned into moments of shock and agony. My opposing rival decided to clip my leg at an awkward angle ending my game, and definitely my season. Anger, frustration, and even bleakness were the only feelings I was capable of conjuring for the next few months. I was struggling with the realistic feeling that I was no longer the big dawg on the team. Instead, merely another voice rooting from the sidelines. I couldn’t stand seeing the weak, broken former athlete starring back at me in the mirrors. I couldn’t take having to stay alone, bed locked with nothing but Netflix to do. Until one day I read a book from an interesting author. 

Charlemagne The God, an oftentimes loudmouth, hilarious host of the nationally syndicated radio show, The Breakfast Club, is my personal savant when it comes to improving mental health. His best-selling novel Black Privilege Opportunity Comes to Those Who Create It taught me to accept who I am, and hope to better myself. This alternative mindset allowed me to begin the process of redeveloping my mental make-up and placed me on my current mission of personal growth. 

Thanks for checking in guys, check back next week for more of my journey

-Stay Golden 

Jay 

“The more time you spend contemplating what you should have done… you lose valuable time planning what you can and will do.” 

-Lil Wayne

This is the first post on my new blog. I’m just getting this new blog going, so stay tuned for more. Subscribe below to get notified when I post new updates.