The story behind THRIVE...
FOUNDER OF THRIVE
Hi! My name is Alexandra, but everyone calls me Alex. My passion lies in educating women that they don't need to do crazy diets or over exercise, in order to be confident in their own skin. I am here to show you and educate you on all the amazing ways to take care of your body and feel in tune and at peace with yourself.
Lets go back in time
2008
I grew up in a household, where calories were never ever mentioned, where I always ate what and how much I wanted. Food was something that brought me and my mom together at the end of the day. We cherished making meals together and had Ben & Jerrys ice cream after dinner, whilst watching Friends every Monday – our small tradition. I had an amazing relationship with food and exercise. I played tennis for 8 years and danced up until high school. I was an active kid, who absolutely loveeeed to eat!
2020
In 2020, at the beginning of lockdown, I felt kind of lost. As someone who has loved sports since I can remember, I felt like a part of me was missing. What started out as a small goal of wanting to move my body more again, ended up with me losing a lot of weight, getting extremely restrictive and obsessive with my eating and over exercising. Everything started revolving around how much I was eating and the number I saw on the scale each morning. I had a constant desire to be smaller. I was also in a relationship that took a toll on my confidence and the only thing I knew how to control was the food I was eating and the exercise I was doing.
2021
I didn't realise how much I was actually struggling, before seeing my friends for the first time after quarantine. The first time in months, where I couldn't control what was on the table. I was faced with a lot of snacks and treats and I had my first ever binge that night. I had controlled every bite I took for 3 months and that night I felt completely uncontrollable around food. I went home and cried my eyes out, not understanding what had happened. This was the first night of many to come. I was stuck in the binge-restrict cycle for a year, trying to recover and relapsing time after time again.
2022
I “recovered” aka my binge eating stopped in July of 2021. I put recovered in air quotes because at that point I was still quite anxious around food and depended on my routine a lot. I wasn’t bingeing anymore, but my mind wasn’t recovered – I was still quite stuck on calories and afraid that any minor change to my routine or food would make me binge again. In order to heal from binge eating you have to break the binge-restrict cycle. Its not an overnight fix but once you start giving your body the food it needs day in and day out, slowly but surely your body starts to trust you again and the binges start to get less frequent, until they go away completely. I had to make my own voice louder than the voice of fear. I started challenging myself with everything to actually feel comfortable around food again.
2023
2023 started out amazingly. I had made a lot of progress on my own journey and was also coaching girls to feel their best as well. In April I went through a breakup and completely lost myself. I didn't realise how much my mood and self worth depended on other people. I had to learn to love my own company again. In the midst of all of this, I turned to the only thing I knew how to control – my body and food. My appetite went out the window and I was exercising a lot to distract myself. I lost quite a lot of weight, quickly. It wasn't intentional, but it did highlight a lot of unhealed parts of me. I knew I had a journey ahead, but I was actually excited for it, because for the first time in years, I was doing something for me and me only. To feel content, to feel healthy, to feel like myself.
2024
2023 and 2024 have been the most transformative years of my life. I feel like I have grown a lot and healed parts of me, that I didn't even know needed healing. I have made peace with my body, eat intuitively and have the most amazing relationships in my life. I also graduated from university, which 19 year old me would not believe. There was a time I thought I wouldn't even finish high school, let alone university. Thats how much binge eating controlled my life. 2024 was also the year I delve deep into studying about hormonal health and got diagnosed with hypothalamic amenorrhea. I got my period back naturally in 4 months after not having a cycle for 4 years.
Which brings me to THRIVE. I have never felt more purpose in my life than I do now. I want to help and I want to be there for anyone, who feels like they can’t do it by themselves. Whether you want to feel your best, want guidance on your journey, are struggling with your hormonal health, want to heal from binge eating or just want someone to be in your corner, cheering you on – let me and let THRIVE be that for you. You will not regret it.
Love, Alex <3
Knowledge:
Bachelors in journalism (Tallinn University). Thesis subject – “The role of journalism and social media in the coverage of eating disorders”
Certified level 3 personal trainer (Estonian Olympic Committee)
L1 Nutrition Coach (Precision Nutrition)
Hormone health practitioner (Institute for Integrative Nutrition)