Flower Girls Meet

Rooted in Experience: Health Lessons from the Flower Girls

Always listen to what your body needs you to know.

Remember to breathe.

Document what’s working, what you need to do next, and how your body is responding to different products you’re using.

Do something that makes you happy every day.

Drink water. Smile at yourself!

Listen to your body.
Rest when you are feeling exhausted.
Eat what you called to, and take breaks when you need to.

Drink water.
Take time for yourself even if you feel guilty about it. Maybe the guilt is happening because you’re now putting yourself first.

Move your body every day.
Walk, dance, yoga.
Take care of your body and it will take care of you!

Body and mind are connected!

If your doctor isn’t meeting your needs, it’s okay to look for another one.

Give yourself grace. You are doing more than you think. Breathe.

Take your time to grow and develop.

Start talking about your experience with people who feel safe.

Treat yourself like your own loved one.

Get your blood work done.

Pee after sex.

If it feels wrong, get checked out.

Many symptoms mimic each other. Get a second opinion.

There are different interpretations of normal. Trust your gut.

Schedule your screening yearly. Mamo, colon, etc.

Learn how to connect to your mind, body and soul. It’s important!

Don’t feel like you have to be strong all the time.

If a health plan is not working for you, talk to your doctor so adjustments or a solution can be made.

She Figured It Out! Recap

On International Women’s Day, we gathered for a powerful conversation that moved beyond the usual dialogue around pay equity. Instead, we opened space to talk about healthcare equity—how it affects women, especially women of color—and what self-advocacy really means.

Here are a few key takeaways from the day:

1. Know your body, advocate for yourself, and don’t stop until you’re heard.

2. “You are an active collaborator in your [doctor] appointments. You should feel confident in whatever the next steps are going to be for your treatment, because it’s your life and you live with the day to day reality of whatever that health conditioning is.” -Janese Evans [A resource guide from Janese can be found here].

3. “As a provider, help me fix that, instead of just telling me to get rid of an essential part of my body.” -Veronica Appleton, A reminder to always seek out a second or third opinion!

4. It’s literally because of my eating habits (I’ve completely changed that by going vegan) and also being very mindful by exercising, and just taking care of my mental health, and loving myself, making sure that I’m taking herbal stuff, like sea moss and burdock root, drinking teas, doing detoxes and intermittent fasting, that I’ve been able to shrink my fibroids.” -Delilah Martinez

5. “So the solving for me has been an ongoing process. It’s consistent maintenance, you know? And there are days or weeks or months that are great, and then there’s setbacks. It took a lot of effort with me, with my parents’ help in their advocacy, alternative practices like functional medicine, functional nutrition. And last year, I started doing somatic therapy and body work to help with internalized mental trauma that was still in my body that I was having trouble releasing.” -Britt Julious

Thank you to our speakers for leading with such honesty and care, and to everyone who shared their voice in the room.

A special thank you to our sponsors, Daytrip and the Chicago Park District, for helping make this conversation possible.

Flower Girls Meet on ABC 7 Chicago

Vanessa Flowers, founder of Flower Girls Meet talks about the importance of mindfulness and how to incorporate it into our daily lives. Check out the full interview on ABC 7 Chicago!

Flowersgiving Recap

Community is healing! We kicked off the new year by giving ourselves flowers! Thank you Pierra D Brown for facilitating our bouquet-inspired vision boarding with art therapy, Camille Smith for the soothing meditation, Tierra Russell for your powerful message about giving ourselves permission to reinvent ourselves as often as we need, Jasmin Graham on journaling our feelings (and even doing audio recordings) to release stress, and Samantha Tado for sharing how we can incorporate more movement in our daily routines. We had the best time! It’s so therapeutic to be surrounded by community, art, and wisdom, especially in a time that feels increasingly so heavy. Special love to everyone who came out! Photos beautifully captured by K Stewart Photography. Hats off to the Lincoln Park Cultural Center for hosting us again! Stay tuned for more upcoming events! 💐💫

Happy Holidays, Girls!

Tis the season for rest, love, and grace! Here are some amazing activities (indoor and outdoor) you can experience for the next two weeks with the one(s) you love + alone too:

  1. Take a walk outside (yes, even in the cold)! It’ll be a boon for your mental and physical health.
  2. Watch a fun holiday movie like Elf, The Grinch, Jingle Jangle, The Family Stone, and Home Alone!
  3. Watch the sunset every night! It’s stunning and good for your circadian rhythm.
  4. Order a Harry David basket or Bokksu to have snacks around.
  5. Start a new TV series like Somebody Somewhere. So good!
  6. Bake a sugar cookie and involve your friends.
  7. Sip hot cocoa or tea and read a good book.
  8. Visit a museum or your local book store.
  9. Send a virtual holiday greeting.
  10. Give back to a good cause!
  11. Plan your visions for 2025.
  12. Put on some cozy socks.
  13. Journal your thoughts!
  14. Sleep.