Be Yourself: A Young Girl's Journey to Self-Confidence!  

This is a story about a young girl's journey battling and overcoming social anxiety. "Social anxiety is a discomfort or a fear when a person is in a social interaction that involves a concern of being judged or evaluated by others." 

From the words of a mother:

“Since Kennedy was a baby/toddler she has dealt with social anxiety.  It was so bad she couldn’t interact with anyone outside of our immediate family.  Her own grandparents would cause her to go into a fit.  She would literally crawl up her dad and I and hide in our shirts.  She was enrolled in public preschool with an IEP for socialization.  She couldn’t make eye contact with her teachers or ask to go to the bathroom when she first began.  She was very fortunate to have awesome teachers along the way and others encouraging her to be herself and really come out of her shell and develop her confidence.  She also had an amazing friend who would do anything and Kennedy wanted to be like her.  Whatever Sophie did, she wanted to do.  Sophie cheered, Kennedy cheered.  Sophie did pageants; Kennedy did pageants.  Kennedy has done four pageants and with each one you can see her confidence build.  When she started modeling for Karen, she was a nervous wreck she didn’t know what to expect or how things would go.  It didn’t last long.  She loves it and you can tell when she is in front of the camera.  She is very self-confident.”

From Kennedy

“I never liked to do anything out of my comfort zone like presenting in front of my class, or just talking in a large group of people. When I decided to do a pageant with my best friend, I was not confident in what I had to say. But, every pageant I did, I got more and more self-confident. When I did my first modeling gig with Karen, I didn’t know how to pose or what expression I should use. I was super nervous, and I wasn’t sure how the photo shoot was going to go. I’m glad that I went out of my comfort zone and tried new things to boost my confidence. I am so proud of that fact that I sprouted into my confident self I am now.

From Karen (Spirit & Soul Photography)

“When I first worked with Kennedy at our first shoot last October, she was so uncomfortable, shy and unsure of herself. Her posture exhibited all the features of someone with low self-esteem. Honestly, I just didn’t know. One picture, I remember she was posing on a fence with her best friend for our Country Chic shoot. Kennedy tried to position herself on the fence, she kept falling off saying she couldn’t do it. I channeled Tyra Banks and said come on Kennedy “push through” Sophie, Kennedy’s friend sat next to her, ready in her pose…all of a sudden Kennedy struck a pose out of no where! I couldn’t believe it. My camera moved immediately to focus on Kennedy. This young lady who started with bent over shoulders, neck lowered struck a pose of confidence right before my eyes. On that same shoot, Kennedy still moved in and out of confidence some times exhibiting confidence other times lowered chin and shoulders…low self esteem. But this was only our first shoot. 

 Our second shoot, I had a make up artist, my business partner Tiffany Anderson do the girl's makeup for our Winter Shoot. The girls loved it. But, Kennedy literally transformed. It was like a Tyra Banks Top Model moment what Tyra sees begins to unfold to the general eye.  Kennedy’s natural beauty and confidence shined through. 

She transformed and blossomed into what reminds me of a ‘young Lauren Bacall.’ 

When I began editing the images from our Winter shoot, I came across this one and was mesmerized by her natural beauty, and began to tear as she was stunning. Simultaneously, I knew this was my calling and this was the Truth! Days later when I learned of Kennedy's story (see how below); it resonated with me as I was taunted and called names, and even as an older woman I, unfortunately still carry that baggage of being judged, and criticized.  I knew this story. I sometimes still live this story. 

Being yourself despite what others think is a journey of courage. You need good friends, family and something you are passionate about. And if you believe in God, like I do. God has to be there. 

I didn't find out about Kennedy until some days after the shoot when one of my tween mothers told me. It all made sense. Her story confirmed in my spirit the reason for my passionate desire and need to work with tween girls through my love for photography and fashion. 

This story is about a young girl's journey to self-confidence, and the courage to be brave!

Note: "Social anxiety is a discomfort or a fear when a person is in a social interaction that involves a concern of being judged or evaluated by others. It is typically characterized by an intense fear of what others are thinking about them (specifically fear of embarrassment or humiliation, criticism, or rejection), which results in the individual feeling insecure and not good enough for other people, and/or the assumption that peers will automatically reject them."

Always be yourself and your passion and purpose will shine through!