Nov 28

Nov 28 The Personal Journey of Model and Mom Zuzanna Von Salm

Zuzanna Von Salm Talks How Integrating Mindfulness Changed Her Life

At Wilhelmina, I had the opportunity to work and meet many international models who’ve spent most of their grown up lives traveling the world. I’ve interviewed quite a lot here on the site, but recently I wanted to start a series specific to the topic of motherhood so I’m very excited to introduce the following beauty, who truly glows like a ray of sun and I want to thank her for sharing her personal stories and journey with us.

Zuzanna was born and raised in the small town of Srem, Poland and from a young age, she knew her passion was to travel. She was a synchronized swimmer for five years before signing her first modeling contract, which marked the beginning of a truly remarkable and exciting modeling career.

Highlights Zuzanna ?

Booking an exclusive contract with Prada, walking for Versace, and shooting for Vogue.
Also working with Harpers Bazaar, Helmut Lang, DVF, Victorias Secret, Cartier, L'Oreal and many others.

I loved being part of the creative process but modeling, unfortunately also has a dark side. At the beginning of my career my body was "too athletic" for the industry so I was advised to lose muscle mass and become thinner (by not eating and not exercising). I followed that advice and soon developed eating disorders which I struggled with for many years. This led to a mild depression and eventually panic attacks so one day I decided that I'd had enough and got help. I started looking into mindfulness techniques and I found myself on a spiritual journey that led me to meditation, yoga, energy work, sound healing, plant medicines and many more modalities. All of my efforts resulted in me learning how to manage my disorders, improving my mental and physical health and completely changing my life.

In 2016 through an online video and an essay about my struggles I suddenly found myself being a mentor and advocate for change in the field of eating disorders in the fashion industry. Around the same time I started my training in becoming a meditation teacher. I love sharing the tools that helped me improve my life with others and I am constantly looking for more opportunities that will allow me to inspire people to love themselves more and live life in a more mindful way.

I am based in idyllic Southampton, NY with my husband and daughter and offer my teachings under Ceremonia Meditation. I am currently working on directing a short documentary about motherhood, teaching meditation and developing my wellness brand.

What was your first response to finding out you were becoming a mother?

Since my pregnancy was unplanned my very first response was shock, tears, panic. My partner and I hadn’t been dating for that long and I had just committed to a month-long India trip. Life had a different plan for me.. Ludi really showed up as a man who was ready to start a family, and instead of going to India I ended up moving from New York to Southampton to get ready to welcome a child. After the initial reaction, I eased into excitement for becoming a mother.

Can you share with us some amazing tips that were wonderful for you during your pregnancy?
During my pregnancy I had an urge to move as much as possible. It really feels like light workouts : long walks with light weights and prenatal yoga, kept me sane in the storm of hormonesI I also remembered to listen to my body and rest whenever I felt uncomfortable and care for myself with frequent prenatal massages. I already had a strong meditation practice before getting pregnant but I allowed myself to meditate more when pregnant.

Diid your diet change a lot?

Not really. I am vegan, so in my pregnancy I just had to be very adamant about providing my body and my baby all the nutrients that we needed.

I ate a bit more that usual and added extra plant-based protein to my diet. I was also avoiding junk food and any kind of toxins (from chemicals in food, cosmetics and environment to energetic toxicity- negative people, violent movies and anything that would make me feel uneasy).

Once you had your baby girl what was the most challenging part of getting into the transition to motherhood, challenges, biggest joys? etc.

The hardest part for me was slowing down and just BEING a mom. I like a fast-paced lifestyle and getting things done and suddenly I had to put everything on hold and be home with my daughter. Switching to the slow "baby time" (the long nursing sessions, the endless household chores that never get fully done, the distracted mind etc) took me a while. Motherhood also brought out some anger in me, an emotion that I never had a real issue with, so I am learning how to deal with it.

There are too many elements of parenthood that bring joy to discuss here, but two of the most obvious ones for me are : exploring the new level of love that I'm experiencing and trying to see the world as a child again in order to understand my daughter.

What are the most important lessons you want to teach your children

This is a big question... Some key lessons I would like her to learn are:

To know that we are all one despite our differences.
To treat other people, animals and the planet with respect and kindness.
To be grateful and not take things for granted. To live a mindful and balanced life.
To be curious and never stop exploring.
To love herself.
To live with a value system and know how to defend it respectfully.
I have many more but this would be a good start.

A lot of people talk about all these fads and trends in giving birth, what do you think about this?

The way a woman gives birth is such an individual choice. I wouldn't want to comment on anybody else's choice because I think that, as long as it was their decision and what they thought was best for them and the baby, it was the right one.

We had an unmedicated, home birth with two midwifes and a doula and even though it was a long (23 hours) and difficult labor, we wouldn't have done it any other way.

We used the HypnoBirthing method which made things less intense for us. We had our entire family present at birth and it was a very sacred experience for everyone.

Favourite websites, publications or social media handles?

HeyMama- a mom network I couldn't live without,
Minimalist Baker- where I get all of my vegan and gluten free recipes for the whole family,
Vogue- whenever I miss my fashion days,
Pinterest- for everything I do,
@thewildfeminine - for daily spiritual inspiration
@newearth.mama- parenting and lifestyle inspiration
@doctorshefali- conscious parenting inspiration