Fe(male) Wo(man) (Lad)ies

Women are born with one strike against. The are immediately categorized and subjected to a certain role at birth just by being a female. Mindy Kaling is quoted stating, "I always get asked, 'Where do you get your confidence from?' I think people are well meaning but it's pretty insulting. Because what it means to me is, 'You, Mindy Kaling, have all the trappings of a very marginalized person. You are not skinny, you are not white, you're a woman. Why on earth would you feel you're worth anything?". I, like all women, have faced these strikes immediately pushed up against me.
My gender has everything to do with the person I've become.



Growing up in a strictly conservative family of traditional parents I was constantly thrown expectations because of my gender. I had to be polite and perfectly kept like award winning horse. I was to be thin but never get rid of my Mexican curves so that I wouldn't end up alone. I was to be meek and submissive to seem pleasing to the public. I was to understand my goal in life was only to please a man, Mexican of course, and to produce him with a house full of children. I was to attempt to keep my skin fair with a light hint of my inherited mocha skin to assimilate into my new country.

Because I was meant to be polite I became outspoken and bold. Because they wanted me thin I learned to love my body fat and all. Because I was to be submissive I became a leader. Because I was to only date Mexican men I dated a variety of men. Because my set goal was to get married and have children I pushed to get a chance to go to college.



I challenge every single one of my family's sexist, racist, and homophobic beliefs. I was given a set of expectations and rules for being female and because of those expectations and rules I pushed past my parents pressured beliefs to find my own. I am a proud feminist although to my parents that statements translates into I am a lesbian. I am blind to race although to my aunts it makes me trash. I believe in equality for every single person LBGTQ or not although that makes me a sinner in many eyes.

My gender has given me difficulties but it has given me strength .

How To Fly with Acrophobia

Acrophobia is the extreme or irrational fear of heights. Most people who have acrophobia also fear contraptions that go high off the ground like roller coasters, ladders, and planes. However through personal experience I've found there is a way to get someone with acrophobia on a plane. There are a few different method or tactics to accomplish this goal.

First there's the traditional method: drugs. A shot of relaxing or sleeping medicine will subdue the person. Once the person is subdued their fear will also have lowered making it easier for them to board a plane. However this does not work for everyone. Sometimes the persons fear is so great that their hypothalamus (the fight or flight instinct) is activated although under the influence of prescribed drugs.


Another practical tactic is the protection of power. Researching the safety of airplanes will reduce the irrational side of their fear. The person will be less reluctant to board a plane is they know they're more likely to die in a car then in a plane. Research will also prepare you for any possible occurrence during your plane ride. This will allow you to  identify what is going on during your flight like turbulence.

Another tactic that can help people with acrophobia fly is distraction. Personally this method of the three helps me the most. Since I fly every year at least once a year I've gotten distraction down to an art. Flight attendance are strict about allowing you to bring electrical devices onto the plane. Studies show that the most fear part of a plane ride is the take off which is when all passenger are asked to turn off their devices. Therefore I recommend a distraction like reading, writing, drawing, talking, humming, ect. I personally prefer to write as after a while I'm so absorbed by my work that I forget I'm on a plane. However my writing choices are a bit morbid. I like to distract myself by writing my goodbye letters as if I were to die on the plane ride.