Heart driven, cancer survivor and a beautiful soul encased in one individual. Christabel Yeboah is no stranger to facing life’s difficulties and using them to propel her to make a positive impact in the world.
The 25 year old soon-to-be law graduate uses her voice as an outlet for her own healing on her blog Cee Belle where she shares her innermost thoughts depicting her journey through life. Her words breathe honesty, as well as strength that emerges from vulnerability that unapologetically spills out onto the page touching on topics such as relationships, heartbreak and self confidence struggles.
On the inspiration behind her blog she shares “Cee Belle was initially for me. I had gotten to that place that I didn’t love myself enough, I didn’t think that I was enough and I hadn’t shared that with anyone.”
On the life lessons it has taught her, she explains “I’m learning that it’s okay not to have everything together, it’s okay to not be perfect. I think for a long time I looked at other people’s life and wished I was living their life. But now I’m really content and really happy with where I am in my life. I’m getting to learn to love the things about myself I didn’t like before and unlearning some things.
I have this thing that I write for myself first, so when I publish a blog post I know that I wrote it first because I had to do it for me then you reading it is just a bonus. I tell myself “You need to do this for you, not to impress others because this is my safe haven.”. Now when other people read it and they feel empowered, they like it or that they can relate to it then I feel like “Wow. I am not this alone, we all are going through the same thing”
She also uses her voice to uplift others through her project Belle Âme (which is currently on hiatus, set to return after she graduates)
The venture shares her namesake meaning ‘beautiful soul’ in French and aims to uplift others going through life struggles. She shares the deeper reason behind why she chose the name “When I was thinking of ways I was going to address readers who were going to read my blog I realised that I wanted to talk to the soul, I want us to change from the inside out so I address them as ‘belle âme’”
“When you walk through life thinking that you’re not enough and that’s what you’ve been told in childhood, you carry that with you throughout your life and think that’s the way it has to be in life”
The project focuses on providing people with the opportunity of having one-to-one appointments via FaceTime, Skype or meeting up face-to-face on anything they were struggling with, needed a rant or to have someone to pray with.
On the purpose of the project, she explains “It was to make people see that they’re more than enough, whatever anyone has said to you before or claimed you are, you need to unlearn everything because that is not what God has spoken over your life or what God has for you. When you walk through life thinking that you’re not enough and that’s what you’ve been told in childhood, you carry that with you throughout your life and think that’s the way it has to be in life. When it comes to working, you’re going to feel you have to be content because you don’t feel enough anyways than realising you deserve more . With relationships you can end up feeling like “You know what, I’m not really enough anyways so I should be happy that someone at least wants me” than “No, I deserve more.””
Belle Âme served as a light that born out of a brokenness for Christabel, she shares how it gave her a sense of purpose in a particularly dark place in her life. Having being diagnosed with breast cancer at 19, she’s no stranger to overcoming life’s unexpected curveballs.
The ordeal taught her about how life’s trials can show you the true colours of those who surround you and how love shines brightest at the darkest of times.
“The biggest lesson I learnt from it was that when you go through times like that you realise who loves you and who doesn’t. During that time there were people I expected to be there for me to support me who didn’t and there was a handful of people who called me up to check up on me and pray on the phone with me.
One of my friends, Jasmine would be on FaceTime with me 24/7 and constantly ask “Are you okay?”, “Have you gone to the hospital?” and “Have you eaten today?” she taught me so much about love and I didn’t see that coming.
When I got the all clear, I decided that certain people are gonna get cut off. So I came back to the UK and I decided to make new friends, friends that I’d known for five, six years had to be put aside. I started all afresh. That’s what this journey allowed me to do.”
“The biggest lesson I learnt from it was that when you go through times like that you realise who loves you and who doesn’t. During that time there were people I expected to be there for me to support me who didn’t and there was a handful of people who called me up to check up on me and pray on the phone with me.”
The experience also brought her closer to her father who she describes as her ‘best friend’ whilst fracturing her relationship with her mother.
“Whilst I was ill, my Mum decided to go on holiday because she couldn’t deal with it which led me to be hurt and I still haven’t forgiven her for it. My Dad would sit by my side, he would hold my hair back whilst I was throwing up and clean up after me. I’ve never seen anything like that, he just had my back.
Moving back (home after receiving the all clear) and starting over again, that’s where I discovered an intimate relationship with God which allowed me to forgive those people and let it go.
Surviving cancer taught me to love and that you never know what someone’s acts of kindness does for somebody. The little acts of kindness meant so much to me and it made me want to do that for somebody else whether it’s just helping you out with something or support you when you need it”
On what defines her independence of spirit, she believes “I think understanding that everyone is just as important but everyone has a different calling in life and that if you’re going to have this calling you should really pursue it with everything inside of you, hoping that if even one person are positively impacted from what I do or what I say or what I write then that’s enough. I’m not trying to change the world, I’m trying to change myself and maybe somebody else out there. That’s what personally drives me.
We’re all equal but equal doesn’t mean we’re not all unique. Everybody is unique in what they do but somebody can be doing the same thing you’re doing but the way you impact other people is not the same way you impact them.
I think that especially when speaking at events when you’re worried someone else is speaking about the same topic you are (e.g, self love or healing) and then you start to feel small because that person has been in the industry way longer than you have, they have a bigger audience/following than you and know more what they’re talking about. But someone told me once “They may talk and impact 60% of the room and you impact the other 40% and that’s your audience because they depend on you and your word.” The way you impact other people is not the same way someone else will and the way you receive is not the same way someone else will receive.”
Espire21 