—
Returning to myself
My Story
I played the good girl,
The perfect daughter.
The one who chose the right path
and ticked all the boxes.
From Paris to Shanghai.
From Hong Kong to Dubai.
I learned to adapt
to very different environments
Without ever truly feeling
like I belonged anywhere.
I tried so hard to fit into the mold,
I forgot I had a voice of my own.
I built this huge armour around me,
secretly hoping I would finally be seen.
And then
my daughter was born
—
Reality hit me hard
during a difficult postpartum period.
She didn’t care about all the boxes I had ticked.
She simply needed me to be fully present with her.
But if I’m being completely honest,
I couldn’t do it, the emptiness inside me was too great.
Little by little,
I began to let go of the beliefs
I had inherited from my cultures,
but never truly felt like mine.
So I could rebuild
on healthier foundations.
I learned again
To be myself instead of pretending.
To truly connect with others
instead of applying a tool.
To love my two daughters deeply
and with all my heart.
—
And sometimes I forget
and fall back into old patterns.
And that’s okay.
I find my way back a little more easily each time.
That’s how So Yiu was born,
connected to myself
aspiring for more.
A space where you can put down your armour.
Breathe.
And slowly find your way back to yourself,
one conversation at a time.
A few fragments of me
A former snobbish Parisian in recovery.
I may look 23, but I’m already discovering the joys of perimenopause.
At home, we celebrate both French and Chinese traditions — somewhat whitewashed along the way.
I don’t speak much.
But every now and then, I say something a little too accurate and, somehow, everyone ends up laughing.
I’m a foodie at heart, bad food makes me grumpy.
People love giving me mugs as gifts… still an unsolved mystery.
One of my favourite rituals is sitting in a café with a good flat white and writing whatever comes to mind with my favorite pen and notebook.
