Sophia San Filippo

Managing Editor & SEO Lead

Based in New York City, Sophia San Filippo has worked with Love What Matters as a lead editor and content curator since early 2019 and has acted as Managing Editor since early 2021. She is a Summa Cum Laude graduate of Binghamton University who holds a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature, Creative Writing, and Women, Gender, & Sexuality Studies. She is passionate about personal storytelling and creating a positive space in media to better the lives of others. On a typical day you can find her rocking out at her local concert venue, admiring nature, or baking her latest kitchen experiment.

‘I was offered a ‘fashion model’ job. Naive, I took it. It was a false company ran by dead people in other states.’: Human trafficking survivor speaks out, ‘I never thought it would happen to me’

“I was a junior in college who’d just lost my scholarship. I needed money to pay my tuition, so I took the job. I was a small town girl, self-absorbed in my own world. Maybe I was too young, or too naive. I thought it was a ‘black or hispanic problem’ in the urban city. Over the course of a few months, my life came to an abrupt halt. This was anything but a modeling agency.”

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‘My anxiety and depression can make me a sh*tty friend, but I’m not sorry.’: Woman thankful for friends who stick around despite mental health struggles

“I don’t choose to struggle with this. I don’t choose to have my thoughts racing all day. I don’t choose to have a war with my mind every day. I don’t choose any of this. For the friends who have stuck around while I cancel plans, go radio silent, and patiently wait until I’m ready to talk, you’re the real ones.”

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‘My son chooses to wear makeup, dresses. ‘But…what if he catches The Gay?’ Well, then I’ll have a gay son. Simple as that. It’s a non-issue.’: Mom embraces son’s fluid gender expression, ‘It’s their body, their choice’

“My son has had autonomy since he was a toddler. As he grows, he makes as many decisions about his own body as possible. Our only limits are safety and hygiene. We often hear, ‘…But..but…but…it’s PINK!’ ‘Why don’t you just cut your hair like a boy?!’ ‘That’s for girls, you don’t want that!’ He informs them with absolute integrity, ‘No, it’s for PEOPLE!’”

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‘I shouted to my husband, ‘I think I’m having a heart attack!’ There I was, lying naked on the table as they announced my weight. ‘249 pounds.’: Mom of 3 loses ‘whopping 125 pounds’ after nearly fatal heart attack

“I remember feeling the most horrendous pain shoot up my left arm. ‘Please, God, don’t let me die. My three children still need me.’ An overwhelming sense of doom came over me. All I could see were the dark eyes of my doctor hovered over the rail of that hospital bed. He told me, ‘This is a wake up call, Adrienne.’ I was alone, naked, vulnerable, and helpless. The only thing I could do was pray.”

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‘Let go of the expectations. Enjoy the lights, do away with the to-do lists, breathe, and hold on to the people you love.’: Woman reminds us to cherish time with loved ones this Christmas

“Why does this holiday season feel so weird? Maybe it’s because all I want to do is sit around and watch Christmas movies, but there’s always somewhere to be. Or maybe it’s because I’m so busy buying the things the stores are telling me I need to be busy buying that I’m not looking at the gifts right in front of me. Can we just…oh, I don’t know…stop? And breathe. And enjoy. And be with each other. THAT is where the holiday lives.”

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‘My baby was at ‘high risk’ of having Down syndrome. I mourned the baby I thought I was going to have, what she would look like, if I would be able to look after her.’: Couple ‘mentally prepares’ after Down syndrome diagnosis

“The sonographer saw a tiny little egg. It turned out that tiny egg was the one that was going to make me a mum. The very next day, I had a phone call, telling me my baby was at ‘high risk’ of having Down syndrome. Until she was born, it was easier to pretend everything was normal, so we did just that.”

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‘Mama, you’ve been chosen!’ I met my baby for the first time in someone else’s house. My heart raced.’: Young couple adopt baby with Down syndome, ‘He is the light of our lives!’

“I was 19 when I decided I was going to adopt a baby. My husband shrugged, smiled, and said, ‘Sounds good to me!’ We had 4 days to do…everything. We laid in bed, trying to fathom the idea this would be our last night alone. When the day came, the grief rocked me to the core. While we were gaining a son, his first family was losing a son.”

Published by Sophia San Filippo -
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