Latest news with #self-esteem
Daily Mail
6 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE I hit rock bottom after spending $300,000 on booze, designer bags, shoes and so-called 'friends'. Here's how I turned my life around
An Aussie woman has recalled the horrifying cycle of abuse that landed her in $300,000 of debt and how she finally broke her destructive spending habits. Liz Porter, 54, hit rock bottom after seven years of spending her $4,000-a-month income on partying, clothes and designer bags while failing to pay her bills and sinking further into crippling debt. Ms Porter turned to spending as a way to cope with the abuse she suffered at the hands of boyfriends as well as being conned out of money by so-called friends. Today, Ms Porter is an IT manager in Australia's health sector and a proud home owner in Melbourne 's Docklands, an achievement which seemed impossible when she was declared bankrupt at the age of 28. The 54-year-old explained how her problems spiralled because she had low self-esteem, which began while she was at school. 'I was made to feel stupid, I even had teachers tell me that I will never amount to anything so I spent a lot of my younger years believing I was stupid and that everything I did was my fault,' she told Daily Mail Australia. 'When you feel bad about yourself you attract people that are not good for you and I had relationships that were abusive. They used to tell me I was fat, ugly, disgusting.' When the abuse turned violent, Ms Porter turned to spending. 'The only way I could ever feel good was buying frivolous stuff to make myself feel good,' she said. The 54-year-old admitted periods of spending coincided with moments in her life where she felt worthless. She recalled a horrifying incident with an ex-boyfriend who pushed her down the stairs and then accused her of being 'clumsy'. 'Even old school friends would come into my life and they'd rip me off, take advantage of me and get money out of me,' she said. In one such incident, Ms Porter's friend tricked her into signing a lease for a three-bedroom property and then refused to pay her share. At her lowest, Ms Porter was spending her $4,000-a-month income on clothes, shoes and bags, admitting she now has 'nothing to show for it'. She turned to alcohol and food for comfort, and ended up weighing 130kg at her heaviest. Over the course of seven years, Ms Porter's spending racked up to over $300,000. 'I would spend, spend, spend and then think "I haven't got money for rent",' she said. Ms Porter struggled to tell her family her spiralling debts as she feared her loved ones would think she was 'stupid'. After being sexually and violently assaulted, Ms Porter finally opened up to her family who advised her to speak to a counsellor. 'When I spoke to a counsellor about the abuse it was like opening a can of worms and initially my spending habits worsened because I was so upset and I needed to feel better about myself,' Ms Porter said. The counsellor suggested she see a financial advisor and she was subsequently declared bankrupt at the age of 28. With $40,000 worth of debt, she first entered into a Part IX debt agreement, which is an alternative to bankruptcy for individuals struggling to repay their debts. After paying back $10,000, Ms Porter's counsellor said her debts were taking too great a toll on her mental health. They advised the 'broken' Melbourne local to file for bankruptcy, a legal process where you're declared unable to pay back your debts. In Victoria, bankruptcy typically lasts three years and one day. Credit reporting agencies keep a record for five years from the date of bankruptcy or two years after your discharge, whichever is later. Ms Porter said her counsellor's belief in her completely changed her mindset. She rebuilt her life and landed a job as an IT supervisor at Telstra, where she quickly rose through the ranks. Years later, she took voluntary redundancy and used the money to enroll in a financial management course. After believing she would rent for the rest of her life, Ms Porter was shocked to learn that her consistent rental history, strong income, and savings from the redundancy made her an ideal candidate for a mortgage. Ms Porter went on to get a new job and bought a unit in Melbourne Docklands, the same area where she had rented for 13 years. The 54-year-old is now looking to the future and hopes to retire early, something that would have seemed impossible when she was younger. She stressed the importance of being kind to yourself during hardships and 'learning to love yourself' and realising 'you're stronger than you think you are'.
Washington Post
25-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Washington Post
Am I hot or not? People are asking ChatGPT for the harsh truth.
Ania Rucinski was feeling down on herself. She's fine-looking, she says, but friends are quick to imply that she doesn't measure up to her boyfriend — a 'godlike' hottie. Those same people would never tell her what she could do to look more attractive, she adds. So Rucinski, 32, turned to a unconventional source for the cold, hard truth: ChatGPT.
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Emma Raducanu Admits Difficulty in Separating On-Court and Off-Court Personalities
After a disappointing loss to Coco Gauff at the Italian Open, British tennis star Emma Raducanu offered a candid reflection on how she has finds it difficult to have two personalities. The 2021 US Open champion opened up about how deeply intertwined her identity as a tennis player is with her personal sense of self. 'Yeah, big-time,' Raducanu said during her press conference at the Italian Open. 'I think I'm a player who is very much- a feeling person. I find it very difficult to separate between the person that I am on the court and off the court.' Advertisement For Raducanu, the connection between performance and personal well-being is very much interdependent. She acknowledged that how she feels off the court, in terms of confidence, self-esteem, and mental clarity, directly influences how she competes. Coco Gauff of the United States embraces Emma Raducanu of Great Britain© Mike Frey-Imagn Images 'I try to make sure off the court everything is in a good way and I'm feeling I have like good self-esteem, I feel confident in myself, my abilities and my depth of knowledge and everything,' she explained. 'I think I'm just growing off the court, then that gives me confidence when I walk around. When I'm on-site, I'm like, hey, I'm not just necessarily just here to play tennis. I can go and rely on other things,' added Raducanu. Advertisement Her comments suggest a maturing mindset- one that recognizes that instead of separating her professional and personal lives she can integrate and compliment them. 'I'm growing, I'm learning in this aspect of my life, as well,' she added. 'Just cultivating a better version of myself, which I'm enjoying.' While the loss to Gauff was another tough result in a season of ups and downs, Raducanu seemed to take the positives of finding her rhythm on clay, before heading to Roland Garros. Related: Emma Raducanu Takes a Cheeky Jab at Tennis Commentators After Rome Open Victory
Daily Mail
10-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Sopranos vet Lorraine Bracco reveals the cruel insult from 6th grade that has 'stuck' with her 'for life'
Despite Lorraine Bracco's amazing career with multiple accolades, including an Oscar nomination, cruel words from childhood bullies have continued to haunt her. The Sopranos star, 70, wrote about the incident that happened when she was in sixth grade in an essay for the Wall Street Journal. She wrote: 'One day, kids on the school bus told me something that stuck with me for life. They said they had voted me the ugliest girl in sixth grade.' Lorraine continued: 'Can you imagine? I was in shock. It was horrible and devastating - a deep wound. 'I went home and sobbed and sobbed and sobbed.' It was her father who offered words of comfort to the devastated tween. Lorraine said he 'sat me on his lap, put his hands on my face and made me look in his eyes. He said, "I don't care about them. You're the most beautiful girl in the world to me."' The Screen Actors Guild award winner said she found school 'challenging socially,' but her love of performing in school plays helped provide 'an expression and an outlet for me.' After graduating high school, Lorraine was signed with Wilhelmina models and moved to Paris where she lived for a decade and was a favorite of designer Jean Paul Gaultier, according to her IMDB profile. And even though she was booking modelling jobs, the words still remained in the back of her mind. She wrote: 'As for that childhood insult, it stuck with me for a long time. Lorraine continued: 'Early in my modeling career, when Revlon offered me a campaign, I said to myself, "I can't do this. I was the ugliest girl in sixth grade."' After being cast in French films and television shows in the late 1970s and early 1980s, Lorraine returned to the U.S., where she was cast in films such as the thriller Someone To Watch Over Me, and The Dream Team. Her breakout role came as the wife of the late Ray Liotta's wife in the 1990 mob drama Goodfellas, for which she received a Best Supporting Actress nomination. She later received Golden Globe and Emmy nominations for her portrayal of therapist Dr Jennifer Melfi in The Sopranos. The currently single Lorraine told AARP that after breaking up with her former partner Harvey Keitel, 85, after 11 years together, she 'lost a year of my life to depression.' She added: 'My advice to anyone going through it is get a good doctor, get diagnosed, and know that pharmacology works - don't be afraid of it. 'The stigma of it stopped me at first. Stupid. And talk therapy is major. You're worth it, you're worth having a good day, every day.' With her life in order and her new movie, Nonnas, doing well on Netflix, the star says she ready to raise the curtain on love again. Lorraine said: 'I believe in love. What do I look for in a man? A sense of humor is extremely important. And I like a guy who's sure of himself. I'm sure of myself, so I want him to be rock steady.'
Daily Mail
09-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Sopranos vet Lorraine Bracco, 70, reveals the cruel insult from 6th grade has 'stuck' with her 'for life'
Lorraine Bracco, 70, has had an amazing career with multiple accolades, including an Oscar nomination, but the cruel words from childhood bullies have continued to haunt her. The Sopranos star, who recently revealed the late James Gandolfini's reaction to the series finale, wrote about the incident that happened when she was in sixth grade in an essay for the Wall Street Journal. 'One day, kids on the school bus told me something that stuck with me for life. They said they had voted me the ugliest girl in sixth grade,' the former 'tall and gawky kid' revealed. 'Can you imagine? I was in shock. It was horrible and devastating — a deep wound,' the Brooklyn born actress relayed. 'I went home and sobbed and sobbed and sobbed.' It was her father who offered words of comfort to the devastated tween. He 'sat me on his lap, put his hands on my face and made me look in his eyes. He said, "I don't care about them. You're the most beautiful girl in the world to me."' The Screen Actors Guild award winner said she found school 'challenging socially,' but her love of performing in school plays helped provide 'an expression and an outlet for me.' After graduating high school, Bracco was signed with Wilhelmina models and moved to Paris where she lived for a decade and was a favorite of designer Jean Paul Gaultier, according to her IMDB profile. And even though she was booking jobs, the words still remained in the back of her mind. 'As for that childhood insult, it stuck with me for a long time,' she told readers. 'Early in my modeling career, when Revlon offered me a campaign, I said to myself, "I can't do this. I was the ugliest girl in sixth grade."' After being cast in French films and television shows in the late 1970s and early 1980s, Bracco returned to the US, where she was cast in films such as the thriller Someone to Watch Over Me, and The Dream Team. Her breakout role came as the wife of the late Ray Liotta's wife in the 1990 mob drama Goodfellas for which she received a Best Supporting Actress nomination. She later received Golden Globe and Emmy nominations for her portrayal of therapist Dr. Jennifer Melfi in The Sopranos. The actress later received Golden Globe and Emmy nominations for her portrayal of therapist Dr. Jennifer Melfi in The Sopranos. The currently single Bracco told AARP that after breaking up with former partner Harvey Keitel, 85, after 11 years together, she 'lost a year of my life to depression.' 'My advice to anyone going through it is get a good doctor, get diagnosed, and know that pharmacology works — don't be afraid of it,' she admonished. 'The stigma of it stopped me at first. Stupid. And talk therapy is major. You're worth it, you're worth having a good day, every day.' With her life in order and her now movie, Nonnas, doing well on Netflix, the star says she ready to raise the curtain on love again. 'I believe in love. What do I look for in a man? A sense of humor is extremely important. And I like a guy who's sure of himself. I'm sure of myself, so I want him to be rock steady.' she said.
