Overcoming Social Anxiety And Delivering My First Public Presentation On Comics

Living with a mental health disorder is different for every person. Whether it’s anxiety, depression or bipolar disorder, everyone’s experience is unique to them. Everyone has their own coping mechanisms. As someone who experiences social anxiety, my coping strategies revolve around surrounding myself with pop culture because it’s what I’m passionate about. It’s what makes me happy. It reminds me that there are things worth fighting for.

Comics have played a huge role in improving my mental health. They’ve inspired me so much that I decided to do the worst thing that people with social anxiety can experience: put myself in a room with complete strangers and talk openly. More than that, comics inspired me to take the plunge with my first public presentation at the Doki Doki Festival in Manchester!

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Katana And The Representation Of Female Samurai

Japan is associated with a lot of images, with the samurai being the most famous in my opinion. The image of a noble warrior living by the code of bushido has become a romanticised ideal. Samurai lived and died by their duty, but men weren’t the only people who could take up the sword. Female samurai existed as well. Called onna-bugeisha (female martial artists), they belonged to the same class as male samurai and were allowed to carry weapons to protect their household.

I think the best comic representation of a female samurai is Katana. The character’s backstory is rooted in tragedy and it follows the tropes of family honour, revenge and sacrifice. Katana is a reflection of the fearlessness of the onna-bugeisha, so I’m looking into her importance as a superhero.