{"id":13214,"date":"2018-04-30T09:28:14","date_gmt":"2018-04-30T13:28:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cubesmart.com\/blog\/?p=13214"},"modified":"2023-11-03T15:25:38","modified_gmt":"2023-11-03T19:25:38","slug":"inside-the-changing-stripes-of-vashawn-turner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cubesmart.com\/blog\/real-life\/inside-the-changing-stripes-of-vashawn-turner\/","title":{"rendered":"Inside the Changing Stripes of Vashawn Turner"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"CubeSmart<\/p>\n

This is one of a series of stories we are sharing to show what\u2019s inside CubeSmart. You not only get a peek inside our customer\u2019s storage unit, but also a peek inside what is important to them. Thank you to Vashawn, a customer of our CubeSmart store in Brooklyn, \u00a0for sharing her story with us.<\/em><\/p>\n

From an early age, Vashawn Turner loved to perform, taking on different personalities and identities to entertain an audience. When things were going wrong and her family seemed stressed, she knew instinctively that she could help by making them laugh.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was a class clown. I love to mimic people and acting always made me feel free. I was just born this way\u2014it came natural,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

Vashawn studied at Barbizon acting school and had just graduated two years ago when her plans to go professional were derailed by personal issues.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had a mental breakdown. I suffer from depression, and I realized that I wouldn\u2019t be able to pursue my acting career for a while.\u201d<\/p>\n

These days, Vashawn gives back as a peer counselor, working with mental health patients in New York. She helps remind them to take their medication, see their doctors and set personal recovery goals. The work has been inspiring, both for her own recovery and also for better understanding human nature.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs an actor, it\u2019s important to hear other people\u2019s stories. I found out that a lot of actors and actresses I admire, like Angelina Jolie, have depression or mental health diagnoses like bipolar disorder.\u201d<\/p>\n

The work can be challenging sometimes, she says, especially when it comes to not getting attached to patients. Some of the people she\u2019s met have committed suicide, which has been extremely painful.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome people get better and some are so far gone, so stuck in illness you can only help them cope day by day,\u201d Vashawn says.<\/p>\n

For her own part, Vashawn\u2019s biggest challenge is saying no and remembering to keep the focus on herself.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m a people pleaser, and if I don\u2019t watch out, that can land me where I was, feeling depressed. So I just try to do something small for myself every day. Today that thing was coming here to get clothes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Vashawn, who considers herself a shopaholic\u2014\u201cI got that from my mother\u201d\u2014mainly uses the 945 Atlantic Avenue CubeSmart self-storage facility<\/a> as an extension of her closet. In her unit are boxes and bags of clothes, shoes and accessories, mostly sourced from thrift stores.<\/p>\n

\u201cI live on the Lower East Side, but I had been storing a lot of my things at my cousin\u2019s house. There was a confrontation in her neighborhood and her house was shot at. I didn\u2019t want to go back to her house and she is now staying with a friend so I had to move my stuff here,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

Vashawn swings by whenever she needs to change her look. Today, the weather snapped into cold and she came to unpack her thermals. Fashion and makeup are important to her, she says, another way of expressing herself creatively.<\/p>\n

\u201cI usually like to mix it up. I might wear ripped jeans and boots and a top from H&M one day or a punk or vintage look another day. I\u2019m inspired by Village style. But you can consider me the panther chameleon. I can change and adapt to anything.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

We’d love to hear how self storage has positively impacted your life. Share your #HumansofSelfStorage story in the comments.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\tTake a look as we explore what’s inside the stories of our Customers. Vashawn Turner gives back to those who struggle with mental health. While dealing with her own depression, she finds joy in expressing herself through fashion.\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":13215,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1938],"tags":[135,691,924,232,923],"class_list":["post-13214","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-real-life","tag-brooklyn-self-storage","tag-customer-stories","tag-humansofselfstorage","tag-inside-self-storage","tag-nyc-stories"],"yoast_head":"\r\nInside the Changing Stripes of Vashawn Turner | CubeSmart<\/title>\r\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Take a look as we explore what's inside the stories of our Customers. Vashawn Turner gives back to those who struggle with mental health. 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