Meet Anna Tkachuk, the CONFIDENT WOMAN campaign participant
“The CONFIDENT WOMAN campaign” is a photography project aimed to boost confidence through self-acceptance and self-love, to create a platform to inspire and support women in achieving the life they want. It is limited to 25 participants. Reserve your spot now:
Hello Anna! Thank you so much for participating in a Confident Woman campaign.
Can you please tell a few words about yourself ?
My name is Anna. I am from Ukraine. I moved to US in 2009 and that's when I started my family and my journey in the United States. In Ukraine I graduated from medical school and became a doctor in psychology. And when I moved to New York, I felt lost. I didn't have many friends or anybody who could support me. I started the process to get local qualifications to become a Doctor but got pregnant with the first baby. And it's really hard to be a doctor and a mom, so I chose to be a mom. Right now I'm 37, I have two kids (9 and 5 years old). And I felt lost again. I felt like I needed some change. So now I am a premed student at Wingate University in Charlotte.
At what point of life did you realize that you needed to do something more and to continue education?
I felt like I'm just a mom but not a woman. I was lost in my kids. They speak and write in both languages: Russian and English. They're perfect swimmers. They have a lot of friends and know a lot of stuff. But I didn’t like myself as a woman. I stopped taking care of myself. And I felt like I had a lot of potential inside me that I wanted to realize. I like to help people and to be around people, I like to dress up nicely. I didn’t want to keep asking my husband for money. I wanted to do what I wanted, not what other people told me to do.
I think a lot of women can relate to this story of being lost in a motherhood…
So hard to find a balance to be a mom and to be a woman. At some point I realized I struggled to find time to take a shower, my hair were dirty and arranged in a quick pony tail. I was looking at my nails and thought “ oh my God, what is it?” And I am raising two girls who look up at me. This was another reason why I had to make a change and become a good example for them.
Where did you find courage to make the first step?
At first, I became a massage therapist. And then I decided to make huge decision and to get separated with my husband. At this point to be a massage therapist wasn't enough for me. That’s why I decided to take the next step and to get a medical degree. I thank people who were around me and were telling me that I was good enough to do what I wanted and that I could become a doctor here in the United States.
What is a confident woman for you?
Confident woman knows her boundaries and she is not afraid to build her boundaries with others. People always want to press on you and to do whatever they want, but it's not always what you want. So step back sometimes to just feel and think about yourself. What do YOU want? What do YOU think?
You're not a candy, so everybody likes you. Somebody will like you. Somebody will dislike you. Just like yourself.
How do you see yourself in future? What do you wish for yourself?
I want to finally enjoy life. I have a lot of dreams. I want to be independent and confident about myself, my dreams and what I want.
Could you please share feedback about your photo shoot experience with me?
It was really hard to choose the perfect picture because all pictures were perfect and nice. And it's not just because of me and makeup or dresses. It's also because of the photographer who was behind the camera. Sometimes photographers look around, but don’t see the model. But Oxana was focusing on a subject.
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