
You never get used to the things you cannot internalize.
They rejected “the real me.” I don’t know if you also write about those who lost the struggle, but today I am one of them. My name does not belong to me, neither the life I live nor the appearance I have. I am 22,

It was as if it was putting me in a mold.
I grew up in a conservative family. On the summer vacation of my 15th year, my father said, “All your friends are veiled, when will you veil?” Just one sentence, he said nothing else. Consequently, I veiled the next day. Nobody would force me if

Could wearing a burqa be a 12-year-old child’s own wish?
It was staggering to see that a platform like this exists and how many women experienced it. I was touched. I thought we were the minority, if not alone. Let me tell you my story, but it was not a success, and it couldn’t finish.

I have faced the things that I couldn’t face before.
Hello. I’m a woman who has her hair covered for 15 years. I grew up in a conservative family. Even though no one from my family pressured me, one day, I thought about an outfit that my grandmother once gave me, “This is for covered

Was just some hair so important?
My story is a bit complicated. I think I’ve been wronged, and I’m thankful for it. It’s because even if it took years away from me and stole the good things I might have lived, there are some good things I learned as well. There

What I do for my loved ones does not help me with my loneliness.
Last night, I realized so much. If I were to summarize it in one sentence, I realized that my father considered me worthless. I resisted this thought; I tried a lot to think otherwise, but, in the end, I couldn’t make him love me. I

Even very simple things, take your free will away when applied systematically.
Unlike most women here, my problem is not about being covered or uncovered. I grew up in a seemingly civilized, non-conservative environment with strong social relations when looking from outside. My mother doesn’t wear a headscarf, but she does her prayers, as she always used

My father would kill me if I told him, so I wanted to kill myself to escape.
Hello, I’m writing at 05:30 in the morning, I hope I’m not bothering you. Let me cut it short and talk about my problem. I’m 15 years old. Last year, I was forced by my father to get in the hijab. This process began in

The issue is not being freer, the freest, very free or not; it’s about the most basic activities being banned.
I’m 19 years old; I was 14 when I started wearing a headscarf and 7 when I was told I should do my prayers. I remember my first prayers clearly. The eagerly performed prayers with my sister and the happiness when our mother gifted us

My mother wasn’t saying anything because she had trouble like me in her own time.
Hello there. I am 23 years old, I graduated from the university and can stand on my own feet, gained financial power. When I saw people like me here and read what they shared, I wanted to write. I grew up in a partly conservative

I can’t wait to turn 18.
First, I’d like to clarify this; it might take some time to tell my story that I’ve been keeping to myself for a long time, so; pardon me. My family is conservative, too, just like the rest of the families in the other letters. They

I wish to be a good scientist and prevent my siblings from crushing under this ignorance.
Every time I fell, I stood up, holding on to these ideas. My story is similar to so many others written here. Similar pains, alike families… I find myself in most of the stories here. I wish we were not talking or writing these. Before

I want to play the violin, but my father broke the violin that I bought with the money I secretly saved.
Hi, I also want to tell my story. I’m 15 years old. Where I live, people are extremely conservative and homophobic. When I was six, my sister reacted to the cartoon I watched as “this is a boys cartoon.” I was always mature for my

It was about what I wanted when I was wearing a hijab, but it wasn’t when I decided to took it off?
I don’t know. I really don’t know how to start my life’s story. My story is not a salvation story. It’s a story of a little girl’s dreams shattered with a hammer. That girl never had the chance to collect pieces of her dreams. She

I developed a psychological disorder called “trichotillomania” when I was eight years old.
Whenever I feel bad, you are the first thing that comes to my mind. I was physically alone, but I had close friends whom I’ve never seen, that I whispered my secrets to, sometimes felt closer than myself that are kilometers away. My only purpose

Would I want my daughter to make this sacrifice for her husband?
I write to encourage others. Like everyone else, I grew up in a conservative family. Even though I did not experience any pressure to wear a headscarf, I had a lot of pressure on a disguise. University is over, and I started working life. When

I haven’t intentionally worn the hijab for nine years, even for a moment.
Nine years… I don’t know where to start. Let me put it this way. I began to wear the hijab when I was eight years old because my older sister and my mother were with the hijab, then I regretted it. When I brought up

At least I would belong to one side, and they wouldn’t question my clothes.
What I see in the mirror makes me unhappy. Unfortunately, what I’m going to write is not a success story. I’m 20 years old, and I’ve already left behind perhaps the most beautiful and crazy years of adolescence that I could have spent in my

I was going downstairs for the first time without the hijab and I was happier than ever.
Hello. Earlier, I sent another letter here before, and when I sent that letter, I thought that there is no way out; I was torturing myself with my thoughts. But I understood that it is not hard to achieve that if I believe in myself,

If I go to university, I will take my headscarf off.
Hello, I’m a 17 years old high school senior. Like everyone, who shared their stories here, I covered my hair without thinking ahead. I was only 9 when first covered my hair; it was the summer break of 4th grade I remember. My mother

While I was wearing a hijab, I realized that it did not prevent harassment or social segregation.
Hello. Whoever you are, I want to tell you about myself today because I have many things that are not disclosed. If you feel close to me, I will be happy to have a heart-to-heart talk with you, so please mention it in the comments.

The shallow mindedness of those who approach me because I am veiled and the ones who run away from me for the very same reason is always the same.
Hello, first of all, I must say that I grew up in a wonderful family, far from all the coercion and oppression. My family is like a carpet with many different colours and patterns. My mom and dad are people who have different political views

No religion, no idea, no pressure can be superior to your child’s happiness.
Browsing this site can mean many things. It may be to wonder others’ stories, find a piece of yourself, and hate, but to wonder. I used to stand silently and read one by one to reach my inner world in others’ stories, or with the

I got awful reactions when I was a hijabi, and when I took it off; but I never stopped being myself.
I haven’t opened this subject to anyone before; I lived whatever I wanted, without consulting anyone, but now I intend to convey something to the people here. My father’s family was very oppressive and all the girls in his family are wearing a headscarf. I

I will give myself the best gift.
I began questioning my life. Everything and everyone in my life. Maybe, I was afraid that they will judge me if I don’t wear headscarf. I’m angry at myself for wasting the best times of my life unhappy and in desperation, and for making such

In any case, that day would come, and I will have worn a headscarf.
I was going to an Imam Hatip School1 when I was in middle school, which was the only reason I wore a headscarf. I was influenced by the people I met there. I covered my hair for the first time when I was in the

I should wear my headscarf for God, but I am doing it for my father. Isn’t it a sin?
Hi! I am 17, and I am wearing my headscarf because of my family’s insistence. After I finished the 8th grade, they started to tell me that I should wear a headscarf. Since there was too much pressure on me, I said that I would

We followed YouTube channels like Sözler Köşkü, Hayalhanem during our veiling period.
Hello everyone! Actually, my story goes back to my childhood like most people here. My father is a devout muslim, so much that he reads Quran, performs salat in his free time. My mother only performs the mandatory religious duties and is a more optimistic

I was treated as if I was invisible.
Hello, I saw your page from a comment on YouTube. I’ve read many of your posts. In fact, there are many people whose story is similar to me. In my story, now I want you to help me and guide me. I saw a headscarf