See the human Inside

"human INSIDE is an anti-discrimination campaign which aims to raise awareness of discrimination and hopefully reduce discrimination as much as possible.

Instead of using people, inanimate objects became the subjects of the photo essays. Each essay tells a story that relates to results of discrimination or how it unfolds." 

Through these powerful images and quotes, Faheema Patel demonstrates discrimination that surrounds and affects us all. 

Racial Discrimination

In 2012, 51 percent of Americans expressed anti-black sentiments in a poll; a 3 percent increase from 2008.

"99.9% of the DNA of every person in the world is identical.” – The Human Genome Project

(Faheema Patel)

Body Image

80% of children who are 10 years old are afraid of being fat.

“Man is the only critter who feels the need to label things as flowers or weeds.” – Unknown

(Faheema Patel)

Disability Discrimination 

Just over 1 in 4 of today's 20 year-olds will become disabled before they retire. No one is immune, only resilient.  

Differently abled not disabled (Faheema Patel)

Bystander Effect

In 54% of cases, bystanders reinforced the bully by watching but not joining in. 

“Our thoughts are unseen hands shaping the people we meet. Whatever we truly think them to

 be that’s what they’ll become for us.” – Richard Cowper 

(Faheema Patel)

Violence Against Women

“6 out of every 10 women worldwide experience violence in their lifetime.” – UNIFEM

(Faheema Patel)

Most dating violence incidents are never reported.

Help change the facts. Speak up, speak out, and make a difference for victims of dating violence.

Religious Discrimination 

Nearly 50 percent of countries increased their religious discrimination between 2009 and 2010, and only 32 percent saw decreases.

If religion is not a crime then why are we treated like criminals? (Faheema Patel)

Freedom

"WE ALL DESERVE

...a life of peace

...a life of freedom" (Faheema Patel)

Teen Link believes in freedom. We provide a place for young people to talk about their struggles with people their own age. We believe that through talking it out there can be healing. 

Teen Link is an anonymous support line, open everyday 6pm-10pm. We have online chat and a phone line open to everyone ages 13-21. You can reach Teen Link at; 

(866)-833-6546 or www.866teenlink.org

To find more information on the human Inside project visit: http://www.behance.net/gallery/human-Inside/1421483

All pictures and quotes belong to Faheema Patel and the human Inside project. 

How To Fall In Love With Yourself: The Me Challenge

“Your task is not to seek for Love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it.” -Rumi

“You are fat”.

Three words that came out of nowhere. Three words that were said without an after-thought. Three words that had irreparable consequences on me.

From that day, I was haunted by those three words as they represented my biggest insecurity: my body.

Whenever I slipped on a pair of jeans I wondered if they made my bum look bigger. Whenever I slipped on a skirt I would always tug it down to cover my jiggly thighs.

“You are fat”.

Three words that made me love winter because summer meant shorts, dresses and bikinis.

Clothes that didn’t really work on my body.

Or at least that was what I thought until I learnt how to love the rolls of fat around my sides, how to love my legs, how to love my body and in essence how to love myself.

I know it sounds cheesy. Trust me, I have read all those blogs and magazines. I have heard all those inspirational speeches. I have scrolled through endless Tumblr and Instagram pages filled with motivational quotes. And I have thought to myself how useless they were because at the end of the day I was still “fat”.

But then I tried to follow some steps, to really learn to embrace myself, to let go of those petty criticisms and suddenly “you are fat” became meaningless to me. All the power those words held over me was suddenly lost and they returned to simply being three, small words.

So here is some advice that worked for me. That will work whether you are worried about your race, religion, sexual orientation, the acne on your face, your shyness (or in fact just about anything that can make you hate yourself).

1.    Don’t try to be Perfect

Perfection is an illusion and is unattainable. While you should always do your best, even if it is not “perfect” do not consider what you do a failure. As warm and fuzzy (and cliché) as it sounds perfection is just the way you are and the way you do things.

2.    Don’t compare yourself to others

Nothing good comes from comparing yourself to others. In fact studies show that through comparison, your self-esteem is lowered and therefore emotions like depression, envy and jealousy are more likely to develop. Instead of comparing yourself focus on your own strengths and realize that you are in fact awesome.

3.    Say “NO!”

If someone wants to do something you do not feel like doing: say no! You do not always need to agree with what other people want to do or ask you do to. Your friends will not hate you if you say “no” and if they do then that means they were not really your “true” friends. Do what you want to do- what you feel comfortable in doing. If you feel like you are doing something just to please someone, then you should not be doing it.

4.    Treat yourself like you treat others

The kindness, trust, love and appreciation you show toward your best friends and family should be the same kindness, trust, love and appreciation you show towards yourself. According to research presented in The New York Times, people who treat themselves like they treat others score higher on self-compassion tests in comparison to people who do not. This suggests that accepting our imperfections can be the first step to better health.

5.    Look at yourself in the mirror

This may sound silly to you but try to look at yourself in the mirror every day and admire yourself. Compliment yourself on how you look and give yourself time to take in all of you instead of always trying to hide who you are. By doing this you prevent the image created by others to manifest you. If you believe in yourself, the person in the mirror will believe in himself or herself.

Learning to love yourself is similar to learning to walk. We start by taking a couple of small steps and then we fall back down to the ground. But then we get back up because that moment when we were standing on our own two feet felt so incredible that you would be crazy not to want to experience it again. Once we get back up we learn to know ourselves and know our limits. When we finally learn to run, walking seems so easy. We realize that no greater power can be found than the power that we find in ourselves through loving, listening and respecting who we are.   

On the road of self-love we can encounter many bumps. In these moments

a friendly face or voice can always come in handy. Talk it out with someone you care about and who cares about you.

And remember organizations like Teen Link (866-833-6546) are always ready to lend a friendly ear.

So I challenge you to start showing some love to yourself and to realize that you are a very special human being. 

Singin' the Winter Blues

It was the week of finals, and I could find no place to study. The library was packed solid; the coffee shops were noisy and distracting. My room was no longer an option – I just could not focus on studying when my desk was a mess, but I had no time to clean because I had finals to cram for. In the scheme of life’s problems, this was not life or death.

But, in that moment, it was enough to unhinge me a bit.  Or at least put me on edge.  Fortunately, I was able to find a quiet and dimly lit place to study (I have weird study preferences) and thankfully managed to keep my anxiety and restlessness under control.

This month is Health and Wellness Month, which makes it a fitting time to talk about challenges young people face when at college. At this point you may want to ask, “But Nina, what do health and wellness even mean?” Good Question! According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, health is defined as “ the condition of being sound in body, mind, or soul; freedom from physical disease or pain.” Wellness is defined as “the quality or state of being in good health.” Our bodies, our thoughts and our emotions all influence each other greatly. There is never one without the other. Even in their definitions, they relate.

The logical question to follow, then, is what are the biggest hazards to health and wellness in college.

Healthline News addressed this issue with an article titled “5 Biggest Dangers Facing College Freshmen” which you can access here. According to this article the most significant obstacles to wellbeing among college students: stress, prescription drug use, STDs, Alcohol-Related Injuries, and Poor Nutrition and Lack of Exercise. Who knew we had so many issues! I feel like the stress and poor nutrition/exercise thing is something that I can definitely see.

According to “5 Biggest Dangers Facing College Freshmen,” 80% of college freshmen do not exercise regularly. Of course, there is the “freshman 15” phenomena. There have even been a few cases of scurvy, the disease caused by a vitamin C deficient diet that used to afflict sailors and pirates. It is of utmost importance for people to develop good eating and lifestyle habits in college – not only to maintain good sleep habits and grades, but for our physical and emotional well-being here and now.

In many ways, I have felt the stresses of college life first hand. Before freshmen year, I moved from sunny and arid Arizona to Seattle. You can probably image how much of an adjustment that has been for me! A new climate, a new political atmosphere, and many, many people I had never met before. And I absolutely love it! However, with the academic rigor of pursuing a nursing degree, and my personal tendency to take on more than I can handle- I can definitely empathize with the stress that plagues so many college students.

            As easy as it is to get in a rut and feel overwhelmed, I have found in my life that it sometimes the smallest steps taken that help to pull me out. Lately, that has looked like me going into one on of my friend’s dorm rooms and lying on the comfy rug she has on the ground. Not saying anything. Not doing anything. But the thing is, it actually helps! For you, it probably looks different: music, enjoying the great outdoors, even filing papers at work – it can all make a difference.

There are times when these little tricks to deal with stress don’t work, when life builds up and collides and it seems too much. It is OKAY to ask for help. It does not have to be anything large or life changing. I have gone through this many times, and have had good people come alongside me and help support me. You can as well. These small steps may not save lives, not immediately. However, they help us live each minute, each day.

If you feel like you might need someone to talk to about the little or the big things, Teen Link is a convenient and ready resource for you. Teen Link’s number is 1866-833-6546. The cool thing about Teen Link is that it is answered by high schoolers and college students so you get to talk to someone who knows what it is like to go through all of this stuff.