Today we’d like to introduce you to Sammy Jo.
Sammy, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I grew up with a single mom who was always excited by change, so I feel as though I’m from so many different places. I was born in Massachusetts, moved to the San Fransisco Bay Area at eight years old where I attended Oakland School for the Arts, onto Orange County at 16 where I began to work and finished high school from home because of severe anxiety, and now here I am on my fifth year in the greater Los Angeles area. When I first arrived here, I was sure that I wanted to be an artist and absolutely nothing else… but my journey since then has expanded my outlook on my life and future. Since moving to LA, I’ve experienced two incredibly severe car accidents only a few years apart, struggled with mental illness, I’ve had to cut ties with family members, and I’m currently a senior out of school trying to figure out what degree to return and graduate with…. but since I’ve moved to LA, I’ve also met the love of my life, been given many incredible creative opportunities, established my independence and I can honestly say that my life has never been this exciting before! I’ve always been an incredibly empathetic person, and I find a lot of joy in helping other people, but I never thought I’d be able to do it the way I do now.
Last year, my personal Instagram started to gain a lot of attention as I found myself becoming part of the body positive community online. I find the movement to be incredibly liberating and empowering and I spent many nights looking for plus size women to follow and be inspired by. I had never felt so comfortable in my skin and proud of who I was. Before I knew it, I was posting the kind of content that I’d seen and been inspired by. The messages I’ve received from other plus size women have made it all so meaningful. I was just having fun at first, loving the skin I’m in for the first time in my life and enjoying the journey… but to know that anything I’ve said or done has helped anyone with their own journey is all I could ever ask for. It’s all so exciting to me because I use my platform to be creative and to visually tell the story of my self-acceptance journey, but I’ve been able to use my voice, too. Art is definitely still and will always be a passion of mine, so I hope that whatever path I end up choosing, I am always able to be creative. Right now, I’m not too sure exactly what the future holds. I know that I’m writing my first book, I know that I’m going back to school in the spring, and I know that I want to make an impact on other young women. What happens in-between is up to the universe, and I’m excited for all of it.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It’s not been a smooth road at all. I’ve struggled with chronic depression and anxiety from a young age, and it was only about a year ago that I finally began to accept professional help and work on confronting my demons. I hated myself for as long as I can remember. I spent my younger years drowning in self-deprecation and I remember this thing I’d do where I’d stand in front of my mirror and pick apart every single little thing I wish I could change about myself. I’d bawl about how my face was too round, my nose was too big, my teeth were too crooked, my figure was too large, and I was too ugly. My journey of self-acceptance didn’t even begin until I was 18 or 19 years old and I’m still very much on it… but when I look back at how far I’ve come, I can’t help but smile. There are a lot of things I’d tell myself or other young women who are just beginning their journey. The first thing I’d tell them is that beauty is so much more than our physical appearance. Beauty is kindness, empathy, confidence, passion, happiness, etc. I’d tell them that society’s beauty standards are irrelevant and the sooner they learn that, the easier it’ll be to love themselves for exactly who they are. Wear what makes you feel beautiful, be create and let yourself experiment and have fun with your look, and be proud of the features that make you different from everyone else because while you’re wishing you looked like someone else, there’s someone out there who wishes they looked like you. As cheesy as it sounds, you’re the only you that exists in this world, and that should make you feel pretty damn special. A lot of people are going to underestimate you or tell you that something can’t be done, but don’t let anyone stop you from a dream or goal you have. This life you’re living is the only one you’ve got and you can’t let others hold you back. You are capable of so much more than you could ever imagine.
Please tell us more about your work, what you are currently focused on and most proud of.
When it comes to my day to day job, I work in social media management. It’s a world where I get to combine my passion for art and design with my passion for social media and branding. I’ve been doing it for a few years for other companies but it wasn’t until last year that I started applying those same tools and techniques to my own social media. Since then, my Instagram has grown, and I’ve started to build a community of body positive friends. In my bio it says “Empowered women empower women” and that message is what I want my personal brand to represent. I want my vulnerability and honesty online to empower other women. I want to create content that is inspiring and uplifting. I want to support other women around me and continue to build a strong and growing community where women feel safe and like they can truly be themselves.
Do you feel like there was something about the experiences you had growing up that played an outsized role in setting you up for success later in life?
Again, I was raised by a single mom. She is a minister and life coach and had her own non-denominational church while I was growing up. Spirituality was heavily incorporated into my life from a very young age. Empowerment and independence were strongly encouraged and my mother has always helped me (and still helps me) achieve success in every area of my life. She’s supportive and loving but she’s also honest and always keeps it real with me. I wouldn’t be who I am if it weren’t for her.
Contact Info:
- Email: sammyjodesign@gmail.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/sammy.jooo
Image Credit:
Sabrina Chaco & Giovanni Barrios
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