thesandyedit

 Nostalgia is a dirty liar.   As are most of us. I remember growing up I would always think about the future and what I wanted to do. I also remember my dad constantly telling me that one day I’d regret not living in the moment and I’d want nothing more than to turn back time. Like always he was right. Except this isn’t just limited to me or even my friends. It seems like everyone I know or my friends know around my age feel the same. From #throwbackthursday to 00s nights we seem to be obsessed with the past. Whether it’s casual conversations or the only thing to talk about on a first date - we’re the generation stuck in nostalgia.  But surely we’re too young to be stuck in the past? In fact my dad would argue we have very little past to be stuck in. A part of me feels like the pandemic has a part to play in not giving us a chance to make new memories but also part of me feels like it’s an easy excuse.   When I meet new people in this post pandemic world I find that ...

Lockdown learning isn't just for kids.  I love this photo because I feel it really shows the narrative I’ve been trying to work through since moving back in with my parents. Me, ‘grown up’ as an (almost) fully realised adult, trying to fit back into my parents world - or in this case their bathtub. It’s something so many of us have had to face since Boris decided to lock us up and unexpectedly throw away the key for a year. Moving back in with your parents in either panic last March or a caught in the crossfire in December. A lot of us have ended up here. To add some complexity to it, those of us from ethnic backgrounds and particularly those of us who are female from said backgrounds - moving back in with your parents holds a different kind of weight. I should pause and affirm that, as I have always said, I’m very lucky 1) being an only child and 2) my parents have definitely grown as I have. However, that does not mean we are ready to audition for a re-make of happy families. I v...

The D word. Covers a multitude of sins and topics. But there is one specific one I want to focus on. Depression.    When I first wrote my D Word post just over a year ago; I did not think that a) it would resonate as much as it did and b) that I would be writing this during a global pandemic. Yet, I feel this is the most important time to follow it up. Entering the sixth week of lockdown in the UK and very much still in the midst of the storm of this virus; I can't help but notice the decline in not only my own mental health only with those around me, but also the posts I'm seeing on social media. I am happy that people feel comfortable to talk about issues that have been taboo for many years, but I also see a lot of cries for help. During this time it is hard to see us coming out the other side and, whether it's people dealing with mental health issues for the first time or those of us who feel us fighting old demons, I wanted to write this to show that regardless...

The D word. Covers a multitude of sins and topics. But there is one specific one I want to focus on. Depression. Now as someone of South Asian descent and being a woman; it has been incredibly difficult to decide to write this post. The notions around mental health within the South Asian community and, separately but also intertwined, the notions around women and mental health deserve their own post in order to understand the complexity and issues surrounding both topics. However, this is not that post. Depression is not confined to one gender, faith, race, sexual orientation or anyone. WHO (World Health Organisation) estimate that around 300 million people, globally, suffer from depression. And I would be one out of those 300 million. For years I have talked openly about my battle with anxiety, which I have suffered with for around 6 years, but the last year and a half have been a far more testing time for my mental health. Often those who suffer with anxiety find themse...

Our lives are made of experiences and from these we learn, change and grow. Since starting this blog I have undergone many changes, like most leaving schools, univeristy, puberty, make ups and break ups, but also less common things such as losing my grandad, who raised me, battling with anxiety, mild depression, acne and psoriasis. Yet, it has taken me until now to realise that not only were all of these experiences necessary, but that I need to focus on growing and my own growth. Although I will probably write other posts about individual issues or events that have happened in my break from blogging; a defining moment within recent months which made me realise that I had been suppressing my own growth was the ending of a dominant relationship in my life for the past two years. I won't go into detail about the nature of the relationship, but if you take anything from this post; hindsight is a beautiful thing. In the last two months I have reflected a lot on the person I had b...

Since I've started my job I very rarely get time off to spend with my friends, so when myself and 5 friends headed down to London for the day it was a welcome escape. First, of course, my outfit details. I wore a dress from Topshop, which was £12 in the sale, black tights from Primark, black suede boots from H&M, which were £18 in the sale and my black ASOS coat, which was £25.00 in the sale. In short I wore all my new clothes that I got in the sale.  The plan of action was to get into London, go for breakfast in Soho, go to Oxford Street for a bit of shopping and then head to the Ambassador's Bloomsbury Hotel for Afternoon Tea. However, knowing us it didn't quite go to plan. We got into Paddington a bit later than expected and made our way to Soho, in hopes of heading towards The Breakfast Club for breakfast. At this point I thought I was going to have some really cute, tumblr photos for my Instagram. Wrong. We finally found The Breakfast Club, but onl...