Social media is a big part of all of our lives, and while it is a great way to stay connected with others and be an avenue for expressing yourself, with it also comes a lot of pressure. Without media literacy, it’s easy to fall into the deep depths of social media, which could impact body image and affect one’s self-esteem. And that’s where art-based non-profit, Breaking the Chains Foundation (BTCF) comes in. This remarkable foundation, founded by the brilliant Debra Hopkins, has been working tirelessly to prevent body-focused and mental well-being stigma through artistic programs aimed at increasing self-compassion and self-acceptance.

Celebrities, Breaking the Chains board-members, and supporters of the foundation gathered together for a very special day celebrating self-love at the non-profit’s How to Love YourSelfie live event, which took place on March 25 in Downtown Los Angeles, California. The event was inspired off of BTCF’s online evidence-based media literacy program, How to Love YourSelfie (HTLYS), founded by actress Jillian Rose Reed.

According to the press release, “How to Love YourSelfie goals focus on challenging the idea that there is an ideal body, increasing media literacy by bringing awareness of the negative impact of higher engagement and photo manipulation, identifying how social media habits impact body image, reducing perfectionism (a risk factor for developing an eating disorder) by increasing self-compassion, optimism, and building resilience by increasing body appreciation and maintaining good relationships.”

The How to Love YourSelfie event had an abundance of fantastic activities that supported BTCF’s mission of fostering a positive and uplifting environment. Guests at the event were treated to a “7 Chairs” dance performance created by choreographer Alex Little, live performances from musicians Serena Laurel and Adil C, and interactive “selfie” stations. Attendees were also able to get up and active with a yoga lesson from wellness / fitness advocate and Lululemon ambassador Natalie Leon and enjoy creative play and movement with celebrity author / fitness expert, Krista Stryker. There also was a mouth-watering cooking demo by Chef Gason.

Jillian Rose Reed, Mallory James Mahoney, Rueby Wood, Kayden Muller-Janssen, Kelsi Davies, Reagan To, Terrell Ransom Jr., Emma Norton, GG Townson, and many more had a spectacular time showing their support towards the stellar event.

It’s truly awe-inspiring to see Debra Hopkins, the Breaking the Chains Foundation team, and Jillian Rose Reed’s work continue to grow and make a difference in a countless amount of lives more and more as the days go by.

“Jillian is unique,” said BTCF founder, Debra Hopkins in her interview with AlexisJoyVIPAccess. “She’s special, and I’m just like, ‘we need to find your wheelhouse. What is your wheelhouse?’ and her wheelhouse is social media. She’s a very positive influence. She has a positive influence on people, so we talked about what that means, like self-love, so I said, ‘come up with five something, I don’t know what that is, that has to do with self-love.’ So, it was love yourselfie, be yourselfie, cherish yourselfie, explore yourselfie, all of that, and we started developing this whole thing about living your best life on and offline, because social media can be so impactful, especially today, to all of us really, let alone to youth…”

The How to Love YourSelfie program is something we truly need, especially in today’s day and age where majority of us are always online.

AlexisJoyVIPAccess had an exceptional time covering Breaking the Chains Foundation’s How to Love YourSelfie event and had a marvelous time interviewing BTCF’s very own, the phenomenal Debra Hopkins. Hopkins talked all about what it was like for her being at the magnificent event (which had been in the works for over two years!), how the How to Love YourSelfie program came to be with Jillian Rose Reed, and so much more only in our VIPAccessEXCLUSIVE interview. The outstanding Debra Hopkins also shared her number one advice on how you can love your… selfie! – hear what she had to say in our VIPAccessEXCLUSIVE interview.