Anitta: 6 Ways to Heal Your Inner Child & Let Go of Past Trauma
In this episode from the On Purpose podcast, Anitta, a Brazilian singer-songwriter, opens up about her personal growth journey and the challenges she faced in her music career. She shares how embracing her authentic self, incorporating spiritual practices, and letting go of the need for external validation has helped her find inner peace.
Anitta also delves into the obstacles she overcame as a Brazilian artist, navigating new music markets and prioritizing creative freedom over commercial success. The conversation touches on Anitta's efforts to integrate her public and private personas, her views on societal pressures faced by women, and her path to self-acceptance.
This is a preview of the Shortform summary of the Jun 3, 2024 episode of the On Purpose with Jay Shetty
Sign up for Shortform to access the whole episode summary along with additional materials like counterarguments and context.
1-Page Summary
Anitta's spiritual and personal growth journey
Embracing authenticity over pleasing others
Anitta chose to embrace her authentic self, acknowledging her intelligence, talent, and resilience, instead of suppressing qualities like being outspoken to please others, she says. She created her persona "Anita" after being assaulted but now focuses on personal growth beyond appearances.
Spiritual practices for inner peace
Anitta incorporates meditation, yoga, and rituals like eating with her hands to maintain inner peace and alignment, she shares. She rapidly restores balance when disrupted through practices recommended by her shaman.
Letting go of the need for external validation
Anitta realized the insignificance of external validations like followers, she explains. She prioritizes internal happiness and her relationship with herself over others' approval of her beliefs and choices.
Challenges and breakthroughs in Anitta's music career
Overcoming prejudices against Brazilian artists
Reflecting on her roots in favelas where Brazilian funk was marginalized, Anitta faced exclusion. She convinced skeptics that a Brazilian artist could achieve global success, struggling to find management for years.
Navigating new music markets
Anitta highlights the difficulty of entering Spanish-speaking markets due to Brazil's linguistic difference, she says.
Creative freedom over commercial success
Anitta values personal fulfillment over chasing chart success, making music true to herself regardless of commercial reach, she professes.
Authenticity, identity, and self-acceptance
Integrating her personas "Anita" and "Larissa"
Anitta honors her public "Anita" persona's confidence and her private insecure "Larissa" side, she acknowledges. Family therapy helped heal childhood wounds and embrace her full self.
Challenging societal pressures on women
Anitta rejects notions that women need partners or children to be "complete," she reflects. She advocates for balanced views of women's choices without judgment.
1-Page Summary
Additional Materials
Clarifications
- Anitta incorporates practices recommended by her shaman to restore balance, which may include rituals, energy work, or spiritual guidance. Shamans are spiritual practitioners who work with energy and the spiritual realm to promote healing and well-being. These practices often involve connecting with nature, using sacred tools, and tapping into spiritual wisdom to address imbalances. Anitta's use of these practices reflects her belief in holistic well-being and her openness to alternative forms of healing.
- Anitta's roots in favelas highlight her upbringing in low-income neighborhoods in Brazil, known for their social and economic challenges. Brazilian funk music, originating from these areas, faced marginalization due to its association with these communities and stereotypes about its content and audience. Anitta's success in the music industry reflects her journey from these marginalized beginnings to international recognition, breaking stereotypes along the way.
- Anitta faced challenges in finding management for her music career due to prejudices against Brazilian artists and skepticism about their potential for global success. This struggle stemmed from the marginalization of Brazilian funk music and the linguistic differences between Brazil and Spanish-speaking markets. Anitta had to work hard to convince industry professionals of her talent and break into new music markets despite these obstacles.
- Anitta's integration of her personas "Anita" and "Larissa" reflects her acknowledgment of the different facets of her identity, with "Anita" representing her confident public persona and "Larissa" symbolizing her private, more vulnerable side. Through this integration, she embraces both aspects of herself, finding a balance between her public image and her personal struggles. This process involves acknowledging and reconciling the contrasting qualities within her, leading to a more authentic and holistic self-expression. By honoring both personas, Anitta navigates her public and private life with a deeper understanding of herself and her experiences.
- Anitta reflects on societal expectations that suggest women must conform to traditional roles like needing a partner or children to feel complete. She advocates for a broader perspective that respects and validates diverse choices women make in defining their fulfillment and identity.
Counterarguments
- Embracing authenticity can sometimes conflict with professional expectations or cultural norms, which may necessitate a degree of compromise.
- Spiritual practices are subjective and may not yield the same benefits for everyone; some individuals may find inner peace through other means.
- While internal happiness is important, external validation can also play a role in personal and professional development.
- Overcoming prejudices is an ongoing process, and one person's success may not necessarily change systemic issues in the music industry.
- Navigating new markets often requires adaptation and learning, which can be seen as a positive challenge rather than a difficulty.
- Valuing creative freedom over commercial success might not be sustainable for all artists, especially those without established platforms or financial stability.
- Integrating public and private personas can be complex, and not everyone may agree with the approach of merging these identities.
- Challenging societal pressures is important, but advocating for balanced views must also include respect for those who choose traditional paths.
Get access to the context and additional materials
Anitta's spiritual and personal growth journey
Anitta shares her experiences of spiritual and personal growth, emphasizing her shift towards self-acceptance and her realization that external success does not equate to inner happiness.
Anitta's shift towards greater self-acceptance and balance
Embracing her authentic self rather than trying to be "less" to please others
Anitta experienced internal conflict, feeling pressured to be "less" to please others based on criticisms of her personality. She wrote down qualities she thought she should diminish, such as being outspoken and extravagant. However, during a self-reflective moment, she decided she did not want to be less of herself. Instead, she chose to embrace her authenticity, acknowledging her intelligence, talent, and resilience.
Anitta also speaks about creating her strong persona "Anita" after being assaulted as a teenager, but she now focuses on growing in ways that might not be visible to others. She is comfortable scaling back her career to prioritize personal development, asserting that followers who resonate with her will stay, regardless of numbers.
Incorporating various spiritual practices and rituals to maintain inner peace and alignment
Anitta has integrated various spiritual practices to maintain her inner peace. She mentions starting her concert days with meditation and mantras, emphasizing being in a positive state. She practices Kundalini, yoga, and mediation, engaging in rituals such as constellation and using a radionic table with crystals for aura cleansing. When disrupted, she takes immediate steps to restore balance, like performing simple physical exercises recommended by her shaman.
Anitta also mentions participation in a retreat with rituals, therapy, and spiritual activities such as eating with her hands to connect deeply with the preparation of food. She engages in spiritual actions that bring her joy and continuous improvement without anxiety.
Anitta's realization that external success does not necessarily equate to inner happiness
Letting go of the need for constant validation and approval from others
Anitta discusses the moment she realized the insignificance of external validations, like social media followers, in determining her worth. Instead, she emphasizes the value of internal happiness and the importance of a good relationship with oneself, even if that means losing followers or dealing with criticism for her beliefs and choices.
Recognizing that comparing oneself to others is ultimately self-destr ...
Here’s what you’ll find in our full summary
Anitta's spiritual and personal growth journey
Additional Materials
Clarifications
- Anitta's participation in rituals like eating with her hands to connect deeply with the preparation of food is a practice that involves engaging all the senses in the act of eating. This ritual is often associated with mindfulness and being present in the moment, enhancing the dining experience by focusing on the textures, smells, and flavors of the food. It can also symbolize a connection to cultural traditions or a desire to foster a deeper appreciation for the nourishment provided by the meal. Eating with hands is common in various cultures and is believed to create a more intimate and sensory connection with the food being consumed.
- Anitta's reference to a shaman indicates her engagement with spiritual practices that involve seeking guidance and healing from a spiritual leader. The physical exercises recommended by the shaman are likely tailored ...
Counterarguments
- While embracing one's authentic self is important, it's also necessary to adapt and evolve in response to feedback, which can be a catalyst for personal and professional growth.
- Prioritizing personal development is commendable, but maintaining a balance between personal growth and career development can be crucial for long-term success and fulfillment.
- Spiritual practices are personal and subjective; what works for one individual may not work for another, and it's important to find practices that are grounded in one's own beliefs and values.
- Retreats and spiritual activities can be beneficial, but they are not the only way to achieve personal growth and should not be seen as a one-size-fits-all solution.
- While external validations like social media followers are not the sole determinants of worth, they can be reflective of one's impact and can provide valuable feedback and opportunities for engagement.
- Focusing solely on self-acceptance without considering how one's actions affect others could potentially lead to self-centeredness or a lack of accountability.
- Prioritizing peace and intuition is importan ...
Get access to the context and additional materials
Challenges and breakthroughs in Anitta's music career
Anitta, a prominent Brazilian artist, discusses the social and industry prejudices she overcame to achieve success and her approach to creating and releasing her latest album.
Overcoming social and industry prejudices as an artist from the Brazilian favelas
Reflecting on her roots in the favelas, where the local music rhythm of funk was highly marginalized, Anitta experienced exclusion and faced prejudicial treatment. Just as 90s hip-hop in the U.S. was associated with crime and arrests, Brazilian funk faced similar biases, confining it to the favelas.
Convincing record labels, managers, and the public that a Brazilian artist could achieve global success
She struggled to find management, representing herself for many years and directly approaching brands and radio stations to gain exposure. Anitta campaigned for funk music, a genre traditionally barred from radio and public events. Due to skepticism around the viability of Brazilian artists on the global stage, Anitta worked tirelessly to convince labels and teams that her success could extend beyond Brazil. She recalls the difficulties in bringing artists from Spanish markets to Brazil and pushing her own career abroad, citing language barriers and the absence of a market niche for her unique blend of funk.
Navigating the difficulty of breaking into new music markets and finding suitable platforms
Further, Anitta highlights the challenge of entering Spanish-speaking markets due to Brazil's linguistic distinction—Portuguese—which made it more difficult for her to break into Latin music scenes.
Anitta's strategic and spiritual approach to creating and releasing her latest album
Anitta emphasizes creative freedom and authenticity, valuing personal fulfillment above commercial results. She made a conscious choice to create music from a place of contentment rather than solely chasing chart success.
Allowing herself creative freedom and authenticity rather than chasing commercial success
Professing a preference for personal satisfaction in her work over mass popularity, Anitta describes a shift towards a spiritual mindset indifferent to album responses or chart placements. She finds joy in making music true to herself, regardless of its commercial reach.
Relying on spiritual practices to maintain balance and resilience during extensive touring
Throughout her extensive touring, Anitta turns to spiritual practices for solace. Regularly engaging in rituals such as sage burning, candle l ...
Here’s what you’ll find in our full summary
Challenges and breakthroughs in Anitta's music career
Additional Materials
Clarifications
- In Brazilian favelas, funk music, a genre with roots in these communities, faced marginalization due to societal biases associating it with crime and poverty. This led to restrictions on its mainstream exposure, confining it primarily to these marginalized areas. Despite its popularity within the favelas, funk music struggled to gain acceptance and recognition in broader Brazilian society and the music industry. Anitta's journey reflects the challenges of breaking these stereotypes and prejudices to elevate funk music onto a more prominent platform.
- Brazilian artists face challenges breaking into global music markets due to language barriers, cultural differences, and the dominance of English-language music. The global music industry often prioritizes English-language songs, making it harder for artists from non-English-speaking countries to gain international recognition. Additionally, the lack of familiarity with Brazilian music genres like funk outside of Brazil can create hurdles for artists like Anitta trying to establish themselves on a global scale. Overcoming these obstacles requires strategic planning, collaborations with international artists, and a strong marketing and promotional strategy tailored to appeal to diverse audiences worldwide.
- Anitta incorporates spiritual practices like sage burning, candle lighting, and mantras during her tours to find solace and maintain balance amidst the demands of her career. She seeks support from priests and shamans, relying on these rituals to help her cope with the mental strains of extensive touring. These practices serve as a grounding force for Anitta, allowing her to stay connected to her spiritual beliefs and find inner peace while navigating the challenges of her music career.
- Anitta's blend of business acumen and artistic expression showcases her ability to navigate the music industry with strategic decision-making while staying true to her creative vis ...
Counterarguments
...
Related Shortform Content
Get access to the context and additional materials
Authenticity, identity, and self-acceptance
Anitta candidly discusses her ongoing journey towards integrating her public image with her personal identity, confronting societal pressures, and embracing self-acceptance through therapeutic practices and introspection.
Anitta's journey to integrate her public persona "Anita" with her authentic self "Larissa"
Exploring the duality within herself and the importance of honoring both sides
Anitta acknowledges the specialness of being different and the importance of embracing those differences rather than trying to change them. She draws a distinction between her stage persona "Anita" characterized by confidence and fearlessness, and her real-life persona "Larissa," which embodies a more insecure and vulnerable side.
She discusses her internal conflict between ego and soul, revealing her path to self-acceptance involved honoring both her public and private selves. Embracing these dual aspects – the "creature and the creator," referring to Anita and Larissa respectively – was pivotal in shaping her identity.
Using family constellation therapy to heal childhood wounds and embrace her full self
Anitta uses family constellation therapy to bring to light and heal the disparities between her personas. Through therapeutic sessions, she confronts inherited fears and traumas, acknowledging that her mother had during pregnancy affected her development. Heartfelt revelations during therapy helped her appreciate the expressive traits of her childhood and discouraged suppressing them to appease societal standards.
In family constellation therapy, two representatives—one for Anita and one for Larissa—help her navigate the complexities of fame and personal pain stemming from her parents' divorce. Addressing anxieties or issues like self-love through this approach, Anitta leans on celebrating qualities in both her public and private personas and resolves familial traumas that impact her sense of self.
Anitta's perspective on the societal pressures and double standards faced by successful women
Challenging the notion that a woman must have a partner or children to be "complete"
Anitta reflects on societal expectations concerning women’s birth control, attributing an irrational fear of becoming pregnant and losing her financial stability. She discusses shifting birth control methods in response to the imbalance of contraceptive responsibilities, indicating a deeper understanding of societal pressures related to womanhood.
Emphasizing her choices, Anitta rejects the traditional ...
Here’s what you’ll find in our full summary
Authenticity, identity, and self-acceptance
Additional Materials
Clarifications
- Family constellation therapy is a therapeutic approach that aims to uncover and address hidden family dynamics and traumas that may be affecting an individual's current life. It involves setting up a physical representation of the client's family system to explore and resolve underlying issues. The method suggests that unresolved traumas or conflicts from past generations can impact an individual's well-being, and by acknowledging and accepting these dynamics, healing can occur. This therapy is based on the idea that understanding and honoring family connections can lead to personal growth and healing.
- Anitta uses the personas "Anita" and "Larissa" to represent different aspects of herself. "Anita" symbolizes her confident and fearless public image, while "Larissa" embodies her more vulnerable and insecure private self. By acknowledging and integrating both personas, Anitta navigates her identity and strives for self-acceptance. These personas help her explore the duality within herself and honor the different sides of her personality.
- Societal pressures related to women's birth control encompass expectations and judgments placed on women regarding their reproductive choices, including the responsibility for contraception and the fear of unintended pregnancies. These pressures can stem from traditional gender roles, cultural norms, and societal beliefs about women's roles in relationships and society. Women often face scrutiny and criticism for their decisions regarding birth control methods, family planning, and the timing of having children. The discourse around women's birth control can reflect broader issues of autonomy, agency, and gender equality in society.
- LGBTQ rights encompass the rights and protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer individuals, advocating for equality, non-discrimination, and acceptance in society. Women's right to pleasure advoc ...
Counterarguments
...
Related Shortform Content
Get access to the context and additional materials
Create Summaries for anything on the web
Download the Shortform Chrome extension for your browser
