Lifestyle
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The Maria Complex Presents: Incredible Women
My next feature in honor of Women’s History Month is the spectacular Katie Schmelzer. I met Katie several years ago, I had just moved to Brooklyn because both of my children were accepted into amazing charter schools. Everyday at my sons pickup, Katie would give my daughter a big hug and let her use the walkie-talkie to call my son down, that always made her day. It wasn’t long until my daughter started calling Katie her best friend, and since then has become another member of our family. Katie is not only an awesome music teacher but also a vocal arts education advocate. Having started her career in 2009, she…
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The Maria Complex Presents: Incredible Women
I met my this Incredible Woman while working in the Aviation industry. With her infectious smile and bubbly spirit we instantly bonded. I listened to her many business stories with awe, as an Afro Latina myself it’s so inspiring to see someone like me impact the world around them. When they talk about Boss Babes she embodies that title; with pose and strength she finds new ways to break glass ceiling’s, in areas where in the past only men were thought to prevail. Meet Hasina Letellier, Founder and CEO of HALE Alliance Consulting Co. She has hit the ground running to make her new social, business venture a success – on multiple Continents. HALE Alliance was…
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The Maria Complex Presents: Incredible Women
Im a firm believer in the law of attraction, we tend to attract people and things based on our inner thoughts. In your journey to healing you may experiment with different methods, some that work and others that don’t. Therapy and medication was a must for me, and though it took a while to connect with some of my therapists eventually the work was breaking through. It’s a patient process, a frustrating one at times. I knew this journey was not going to be easy but I was ready to elevate my way of thinking, from victim to survivor. The biggest thing I realized in life, is that we can’t…
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The Maria Complex Presents: Incredible Women
My third feature in honor of Women’s History Month is Plant Medicine Coach Isa Mendoza. My journey with Isa has been a beautiful one, we both felt like misfits in our previous careers. We bonded over the pains and joys of motherhood and our quest for our true purpose. It’s a painful yet beautiful journey of self discovery that leads you to your higher self. It isn’t easy to be so vulnerable and share such personal struggles with the world, yet by doing so you open your arms to a community of people who share your pain. Throughout the years she has served as a spiritual advisor to me, sharing…
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The Maria Complex Presents: Incredible Women
It’s not everyday you meet a Beauty Queen, luckily for me I became friends with one. My second feature in honor of Women’s History Month is Miss Dominican Republic USA 2020 Karibel Perez. I had the pleasure of meeting Karibel back in 2013 when we both began our journey in the Airline industry. There are certain people who just light up the room when they walk in, and Karibel does just that. Everyone would ask her if she was a model because her beauty was striking. However, what struck me with Karibel was her kind heart. We spent many lunch breaks talking about so many things like our lives, love, and…
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The Maria Complex Presents: Incredible Women
One of the many reasons I started my platform was to help motivate and inspire others. In honor of Women’s History Month, I wanted to feature some amazing & impactful Women in my life. These women have helped inspire me and countless others in many ways, with their success, their art, & endless words of encouragement. There’s something so magical about women supporting women, an energy that comes from it that makes you feel supported. It truly does take a tribe, and here’s an introduction to some of my incredible tribe. During a tour of an art exhibit a couple years ago, I met the charming @fvdgenaste97. Her passionate energy…
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My Love, Hate Relationship With 2020…
I haven’t had the energy or mental capacity to write these last few months, to do anything in general actually; Except for the few moments of celebration like anniversaries or birthdays. It’s the toxic over productivity were programmed with, that has many of us feeling guilty for not doing much during this time. An introverts dream and an extroverts nightmare. It’s the normalization of what I’ve done during my depressive months that gave me a sense of peace; The binge watching nostalgic 90’s shows, rewatching Grey’s anatomy or Frasier for the thousandth time, the staying in bed all day. Life suddenly became less of a competition and time lost its…
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A riot is the language of the unheard.
I sit here in disbelief. The divide in this nation has reached a breaking point, with yet again another viscous murder of an unarmed Black man. I needed to take a break from the news, my heart hurting for this world, bringing me to tears. I decided to document my emotions, including writing this post. Firstly, I would like to clarify something; if you weren’t concerned when white men armed with assault rifles were marching demanding haircuts, then why is it that these riots bother you? We cannot continue on the hamster wheel we’ve been on. It’s clear to see that privilege is so deeply engrained, you no longer care…
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An Awakening: A Nation On Lockdown.
What a difference a few weeks can make, just a few weeks ago I had a full list of events I was dying to get out of. Nowadays a much more surreal experience has our cities shutting down, forcing us to hibernate indoors in fear of this deadly virus. Don’t get me wrong do I think they created mass hysteria instead of making people feel secure? Yes. But as an asthmatic who’s been hospitalized for low oxygen I became alarmed. I allowed myself to feel this emotion, flooding my eyes with news that did more harm than good. It’s important for us to inform ourselves but it’s also important for…
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The Many Faces Of Depression
Let’s face it the number of people suffering from depression seems to be at an all time high. For some people like myself, it’s a chemical imbalance and sometimes can take years to diagnose because it comes in so many forms. For some it’s recovering from trauma and having to take medication to cope, Sometimes it can be seasonal blues or just overthinking. When we’re younger seeking to be older to make our own rules and do what we want seems so liberating; But as we get older the responsibilities prove to be more than we can take at times. Years ago my depression was disguised in many ways; I…
