Today we’d like to introduce you to Jazzmyne Taylor.
Hi Jazzmyne, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
Where I would like my story to start is my freshman year of college. I was academically disqualified for not going to class, but due to God blessing me to pass all my finals with a grade of 90% or higher, I was allowed entry back into the institution. Shortly after, I became pregnant with my son and was diagnosed with postpartum depression two weeks after he was born. I was prescribed anti-depressants, but due to my spiritual beliefs- and partly my anxiety, I couldn’t bring myself to swallow any pills. Instead, I began to slowly spiral out of control emotionally and lost sight of who I was as a person completely. I became almost robot-like and my only personality was my “son’s mother”.
By the time my son turned one, I made the decision to move over one thousand miles from any blood relative to take a leap of faith and move with my new immediate family to Orlando Florida from Muncie Indiana. Also by this time, I convinced myself maybe 4 or 5 times over that I’ve cured my postpartum and was “on to better days”. For the next year it was a back and forth battle between my mental begging to get better, and my depression trying to get the best of me. During the meantime, I was able to get my phlebotomy license, earned my criminal justice degree from Ball State University, and became a registered behavior therapist. On paper, my life looked amazing and I was making steady progress, but internally, I felt like wasn’t enough and I would have to keep trying harder to keep the interest of certain individuals in my life- who I thought at the time, meant the world to me. One month after my son turned 2, my immediate family made the ultimate decision to go our separate ways for good- which in turn threw me into another tornado of depression and depressive thoughts/behaviors.
The entire first half of the year 2021, I was forcing myself to believe the lie that I wasn’t hurt or impacted by traveling so far from my family just to end up “family-less”. By August of 2021, I began to fill my time with days of activities that I never knew I would enjoy and spent my nights listening to self-love and self-empowerment podcast. By the end of August, I was invited to participate in my first photoshoot (from a modeling contract I’ve gained in the midst of my postpartum so I wasn’t exactly too thrilled when I first signed) and as opposed to declining like I’ve done so far, I went. I truly believe that was a turning point in my current chapter in life. The adrenaline I felt from being nervous to the joy I felt for having people genuinely believe in my beauty inside and out. I was given a feeling that I have been screaming to feel for the past three years, and these were complete strangers.
After the first photoshoot, I was booked every other weekend for a project and even began to be booked for music videos as the leading lady. With that newfound confidence in my social life, I began to look other places in my life to strengthen my skills. I began looking into women’s reproductive health, I’ve joined “Keep Orlando Clean” and plan to clean/adopt N Hiawassee rd, I’ve become a certified meditation instructor, I’ve became a cheer coach with Fierce Athletics, I’ve become an employee for one of the most amazing behavioral centers in central Florida, “Fataj Transition and learning, and I have been accepted into Ball State for the second time to pursue my degree in applied behavioral analysis to become a behavior analyst. In my free time, I enjoy meditating through dance and encouraging others to be the best versions of themselves, because it’s never too late to be who you want to be.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
As I mention prior, getting academically disqualified my first year in college, getting pregnant my second year of college, and finishing my last two with Postpartum were surly challenges that had me convinced I wasn’t destined for such a successful path. But God always has the last say. And those obstacles gave me character and an amazing sense of humor.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Traditionally, I am an outdoors nature model, so anything celebrating nature or cultures are my current favorite type of projects to be in.
We’d be interested to hear your thoughts on luck and what role, if any, you feel it’s played for you?
I don’t believe in luck, since I’ve had my fair share of both. I do believe in karma however. Spread good intentions and move out into the world, and the universe would have no choice but to return it. We do in fact, create our own reality.
Contact Info:
- Email: JazzmyneTaylor3@gmail.com
- Website: Pushmodels.com/jazzmyneTaylor
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/allll_that_jaz?utm_medium=copy_link
Image Credits
Aj360 Photography
Creative Don Photography
