Victoria Garrick is a major.
She recently signed to Dear Media with her podcast called Real Pods. It’s so good, millennials are loving it. She recently had me on her show & I was really impressed with the depth of the questions she asked. You have to check it out and subscribe, it’s very impactful.
She was recently on TSC HIM & HER audio files talk about body dysmorphia, self-esteem, self-love and more. She’s making space for a serious change in the social media game so I wanted to interview you here on the blog.
If you haven’t heard of Victoria, she went viral when she posted a bikini video showing different poses, tummy tucks, photo shoots and all sorts of things that can make you look completely different. She is an author, TED speaker, mental health advocate, podcast host & former athlete.
With that, let’s welcome Victoria.
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♡ Introduce yourself to the audience of The Skinny Confidential. We want your whole story.
Victoria Garrick: Hello beautiful TSC readers – it’s an honor. My name is Victoria & depending on who you ask, I can get a lot of things! TED Talk Speaker, Former DI Athlete, Founder, Podcaster. But if you ask me, I’m just someone who is constantly outspoken to the world about her experiences in life. (That’s really how it all started!)
I was a freshman on the University of Southern California volleyball team, living my dream and thinking life would be perfect. Little did I know, the pressure I was about to be under as a Division I athlete exceeded anything I had ever experienced before.
I’ve been on a five-hour block six days a week, training and lifting like an Olympic athlete – pushing my body to the limit it’s never come close to – I’m also mass balancing class, starting as a freshman, oh & we’re the number 1 team in the country… Sounds interesting right..?!
I quickly began to develop more anxiety than ever before. I’m constantly working to make sure I don’t make any mistakes or forget my scouting reports/class assignments, and I can never get rid of negativity or imposter syndrome. from the head! On top of that, I was very insecure about my growing figure. This new lifestyle makes me eat more than before and I gain more muscle than ever. At that point, I hated myself and thought I had to do whatever I could to lose weight. This is where things really change…
The anxiety and stress that melted away along with my budding determination to limit intake and count calories led to a devastating backfire: I began to develop bulimia. I started turning to comfort eating and dealing with all the stress in my life and disgust with my body.
As my mental health problems continued to pile up, I found myself falling into a major depressive episode into my sophomore year. At first, I felt so ashamed of all that I had been secretly going through and didn’t want anyone to know. I posted perfect photos (all edited) and moments in my life that seemed great but weren’t. I’m preparing and acting. But when I finally sought help, I realized that what I was going through was actually quite normal, and that it was nothing to be ashamed of in my struggles with mental health.
I delivered a TEDxTalk That spring and that was the first time I shared what happened and found my voice. I am also committed to staying authentic on social media, starting my #RealPost movement. I don’t know what comes next, but I’m so glad I finally got REAL because it led me here today!
♡ You have done an incredible job, influencing young women in a positive way. How did this happen?
VG: The talk gained so much attention that I started building a small online community of people who wanted to hear more. Posting through each post, I realized that not only did I have more to share, but other people out there were involved and felt helped by my site.
For the first two years, I mostly just shared about Instagram & YouTubeuntil 2020 when I start TikTok that things are really improving at a rapid rate and I can reach more people.
♡ If you were the president of Instagram and social media, what and how would you suggest changing?
VG: Oh how interesting this is going to be!! *laughs hysterically to myself* My first business would be a public offense if I posted anything filtered, edited, or masked without a notable “brand”. So let’s say someone decides to retouch their body to make their waist smaller and their butt bigger (that’s fine… people can do whatever they want with their photo. them) but there must be some kind of label or marking on the image so that consumers will know what they are seeing is not real.
One of the biggest problems on Instagram and social media today is that consumers can’t tell what’s real and what’s fake. I want to prevent people from consuming images, body types and faces, especially unrealistic standards of beauty.
♡ What do you do to prepare your morning for success?
VG: Prepare yourselves, what you’re about to read isn’t worthy of the TSC blog, but it’s true my #RealPost…
I woke up reluctantly to my 7:15am alarm, immediately checked my phone and started replying to texts/emails in bed. Then I rolled out from under the sheets to the bathroom, where I brushed my teeth and splashed water on my face before bed, headed to my desk to start working from home in the pajamas I’d slept in. (Lauryn is shivering in her boots right now. I’m sorry queen!)
I want a much more productive and engaging morning routine and I’m working on breaking the habit of snapping my phone right away, but this is my reality right now.
However, I will say, what has helped me succeed is to write down my plan and to-do list for the next day the night before. This way, I wake up and can get right to what’s going on, as opposed to wasting THAT DAY time figuring out THAT day.
♡ What are some things that keep you optimistic?
VG: Something:
+ The people in my life that I hold dear! (When you find people who make you shine with more frequency and feel like the best version of yourself, don’t leave them.)
+ Take care of yourself: I like the moment of good hibernation, aka full MIA transfer so that no one can contact me and I am not near my phone.
Therapy: Loved a good therapy session where I could talk through my problems and gain a better understanding of my life.
Gratitude: Going back to the blessings we have & what’s going GOOD always gives me grounding and perspective.
♡ What is your advice to girls who want to find their passion?
VG: Try not to get bogged down in “what would it mean” or “what would your brand and color scheme be like” or “what would people think”… it’s not about that – yet.
Instead, grab a pen & paper and think BASIC – write down what brings you joy, makes you happy, and keeps you motivated. Are those things you could do more of? Does your current job reflect those? How can you incorporate more of those things into your life? Baby steps build empires!
♡ How would you recommend someone grow on Instagram in 2022?
VG: Scrolls, rolls and many more reels!! Create trending content on TikTok – IMO is the BEST platform you can use to grow – (seriously, create a Tiktok) then post it on IG as a reel. Now you have 2 products delivered from 1 piece and both pushed to the most discoverable algorithms.
♡ What value does the book, podcast, or resource you recommend bring to you?
VG: No emotional eating by Geneen Roth.
♡ Where can people find you? Go out on your own!
VG: If you want to find a corner of the internet that doesn’t use filters… like, EVER… not even Paris filters on IG stories (yes, I know it’s a fan favorite) – follow me @victoriagarrick. You can also listen to my podcast, Real Podswhere I interviewed Lauryn & get all her juicy unfiltered tea.
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Here you have it. Be sure to follow Victoria on Instagram, TikTok & her podcast for MAIN practicality. You will love it.
x, lauryn
+ follow my latest pregnancy rituals this.
++ test top life lessons I learned from over 400 podcasts.
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