"once you said,
i love you.
then you slapped me,
you punched me,
you shouted at me,
you called me bitch.
you said,
i want to kill you.
i cried.
what is love?
i asked."
trailer: do you love yourself?
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Do you love yourself?
written and performed by Loredana Denicola
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Do you love yourself? is a 9-minute monologue, a part of the love, sex and relationships video-photographic documentation project.
I wrote this monologue during a love relationship with my ex-boyfriend, which eventually turned violent, evolving into psychological and emotional abuse. It emerged from a place of confusion, despair, anxiety, and the overwhelming sense of helplessness I felt in the situation I was living. My mind was filled with unanswered questions.
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The monologue explores how we shape our perception of reality and unconsciously create false illusions that we don’t need, causing us unnecessary suffering and pain. Often, we are unaware of the psychological and emotional structures we’ve built over the years. We may have grown up with violent or flawed parents who instilled false beliefs in us, leaving us feeling unloved.
We grow up craving love, but not always in a healthy way, which can lead to emotional dependency. However, it is possible to take control of our lives. It begins with us – by learning to love and respect ourselves.
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Photographs have power, stories have power.
Special thanks to Riccardo Sai for his assistance with video production (https://www.mistersai.uk) and to Luca Previtali for the exceptional video editing (https://www.lucaprevitali.com).
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