"I used to burn myself with cigarettes, use a eraser to rub my arm until it was raw. Take razor blades and cut myself on my arms and legs for no reason other then to hurt myself. At the age of 15 took a liking to tattoos and my parents wouldn't let me get one so my friends and I would steal ink from the art room and use a safety pin to tattoo our selfs and each other. I ended up having my first child a month after I turned 19, her father was a inspiring tattoo artist so he practiced on me, I was his blank canvas! Within a few short years 2 daughters, numerous stretch marks and 16 tattoos later I finally was starting to feel like I belong in this body.

Today I am 32 I have a man that loves me no matter what and everyday reminds me how beautiful I am, a baby boy, 2 beautiful teenage daughters, a million stretch marks and 16 unfinished tattoos and I still have days that I feel fat or have too many pimples but now when I look in the mirror I think of my girls and how I never want them to experience the pain and hate I had.”

Mandie and I briefly knew each other in high school. What we both didn’t know about each other is that we both struggled with depression as teens. “Get some sunshine.” “Go out and get a job, play some sports.” “Stop feeling sorry for yourself.” Depression is an often overlooked pain. Self harming is that release temporarily for some feeling that dark pain which results in scars that last forever.

This session quickly turned into bonding moment for the both of us. Mandie hopes this inspires her daughters to be comfortable in their own skin as they mature into young women and that they won’t be afraid to ask for help if and when they need it.

-Lindsay Schrader is an ABB Project photographer who interviewed and shot Mandie for this story. She is based in Calgary, Canada and runs Infinite Light Photography. Contact her to learn more and book a shoot.