Q+A with Erika, model, designer and business owner from Sweden, living in Los Angeles.

  

How would you describe yourself to someone who has never met you?

Friendly, funny, even bubbly, a little quirky and weird.

 

What does the “right to choose” mean to you?

To speak your truth. To be sovereign and to stand in your sovereignty. Stand your ground and put the boundaries you need in place. You should make the choices that make you feel amazing and the strongest you can be.

How have you owned choice as a woman?

The most powerful thing I’ve ever done was leave my ex who was abusive. It was such a huge shift from going from seeking relationships to be loved to what do I love. What do I want that works for me? What is important to me? And for that, this person I would love will love all of me instead of trying to chang me. After the relationship, I pieced myself back together and built myself up from scratch with the low self-esteem to feel good about myself again. And you know what, if I meet a man sure he may like me, he may love me, but do I need to love him back? Maybe yes and maybe no, but it is up to me to decide.

Even in Sweden there’s still these things we need to battle with. It’s cool that a man walked up and says “you are pretty”, but the more important part is what do I think is pretty. I’m not here to serve. I’m here to make this world an amazing place by just my presence, by inspiring others with whatever it is that I have going for me. I feel like as a woman, there’s just so many things we’re not really allowed. But I get to say to myself that I’m amazing.

  

What does normalizing masturbation/sexual pleasure mean to you?

 I’ve seen females in Sweden that don’t masturbate, and they think it’s yucky. Which is mind blowing to me. I think masturbation is supernatural. I think it’s important specifically for women to get in there and figure your shit out. Because a man, you can figure him out, it’s not that difficult. You need to figure your shit out. Tell your partner what to do and how it works, because every woman is different. And I think it’s so important to normalize that. Why is it yucky when a woman masturbates? Not a guy? Why are our boobs out? When sex is ok conversation, but when it comes to breastfeeding a baby, which is life, then that’s disgusting?

It's about being female, the female energy. You have a female organ as well, which is an inward female energy that you’re manifesting, you’re drawing things into you. You’re that person that pulls things in. And things are shifting even more, which is a world of awakening of feminine energies. And with the trans community that’s just blossoming now, suddenly we’re all female. I enhance my feminine side because I’m very masculine, just in general. I work on balancing myself and accepting this half boy, girl, dude. 

What are your hopes for the next generation of women? What would be your approach to teaching self-love and sex education to your children, should you choose to have them?

I would say, when I get children, I’m going to introduce them to meditation ASAP! I think every child should be meditating. For them I want them to understand how beautiful it is to just be in the process of growing to understand yourself and why you are the way you are and love every aspect of it.

I actually had a conversation with a friend of mine not too long ago – I had this idea of wanting to go to schools and discuss self-love and how important it is. It’s so important to feed our children with this idea. I just look at every single life is on this earth for a purpose and a reason, with lessons to be learned and things to be taught. And everyone is an inspiration for anyone else who cares to listen. And really what it is, is just children just wanting to be loved. And through meditation, that’s where you get your love. To love themselves and understand the world and they have the right choose, that they have choices. To love themselves and to see that the world is a beautiful place. Yeah.