Guest: Karima Jaffer
Karima dares herself for a second round on the podcast, to share further developments on her mental well-being journey. She speaks about how she currently manages and copes with her diagnoses of borderline personality disorder and bipolar 1 and her process of daily coping. Karima takes time to share what it’s like identifying as a neurodivergent woman of colour, what tasks, or actions she finds difficult doing, unlearning certain habits, and learning boundary setting within her household as well as out in the world. Karima contended with her identity and feeling like her identity at times was based on how she was seen, or how people in her life who would decide for her if she was sick even if she wasn’t and she shares her process in re-writing her life script. She has been working through tough themes like fear of abandonment and learning its roots, crippling loneliness she felt, emotional work she has put in place to halt her impulses, understanding her triggers and frustrations. Karima spends time discussing how her mixed ethnic background and cultural roots have impacted her in a way where she did not receive the emotional supports from her family that she needed even when there was ample intellectual stimulation. Her key message to the listeners is that: the block or mute buttons are beautiful features and are helpful to regain control of your wellbeing and taking charge of your life; there is always power to choose, and to choose what is best for you in the absence of guilt; take space to breathe; disconnect from screens; take moments to be in nature and reground yourself.
Guest Bio: Karima is an innovator and spark builder, and knowledge enthusiast. She is completing a Master of Social Work (MSW) degree at the University of Toronto(’s). [Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work (FIFSW).] Karima has a business background and hopes to apply the Knowledge learned from her MSW to do effective work around diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). She is currently working as a Research Associate with the University of Toronto, where she focuses on Indigenous child welfare topics. Social work is a part of her DNA and there are multiple reasons why she got drawn to the field.
Outside of her professional experiences, Karima enjoys being near water and nature overall. She is a visual artist and writes poetry. As an individual who self-identifies from a mixed race, ethnic and faith background, Karima has spent the last year embarking on a journey to learn about her ancestors, intergenerational healing, and focusing towards being a borderline personality disorder and bipolar 1 advocate. She loves house music and has a guilty pleasure of going down Spotify music rabbit holes.
Passionate about: Native Child and Family Services of Toronto