When I was first given the opportunity to write for this esteemed paper, I promised myself two things and that was to 1) write what I know and 2) always be true to myself. And since I started writing for The Manila Times in 2009 when I was barely 21 years old, my truth has obviously evolved and have gone through my own inner work so that I can grow from who I was and hopefully become better than from when I started this column.

In the past three months, I have found myself 'cancelled' by a certain group of influential people that threatened my reputation. The accusations were harmless so I decided to shove it under the rug. With my people pleasing personality still ingrained in me, I refused to speak about it and simply accepted all the faults as my own. And because I was not true to myself, I found myself ridden in anxiety — one that I thought I dispelled through therapy, the Emotional Freedom Technique, and spiritual healing sessions. That's when I realized that I was doing a disservice to my teachers and to myself by not owning up, facing the situation, and finally standing up for myself.