Image Source: Anna Przy
Anna Przy is most recognizable for her TikTok videos involving a bathrobe, her front yard, and no shoes. They feature Przy barefoot and in a bathrobe looking skyward and politely but firmly requesting a break from whatever higher power she might be listening to. In a recent videoshe says “I have to be honest with you, I really don’t want to do today in othershe says, “I don’t have the time, energy, or patience for any shenanigans this week, so let’s keep it cool, cool, and casual, okay?”
The videos vary, but each one ends with Przy walking purposefully off screen and snapping: “it’s called manifestingsearch it!”
These TikToks are a near perfect snapshot of who Przy is and what he stands for. Living in Ann Arbor, MI, the sweet-toned Midwesterner’s account aims to promote a depletion free zonewhere being kind to yourself matters much more than how productive you are.
Address fear of the unknown bustling culture myth, body image, and a variety of other mental health topics. She tells POPSUGAR that she calls her content “mental health comedy”. And with more than 450k followers between Instagram and TikTok, she has found an audience that appreciates her realistic and light-hearted shots, and her commitment to honesty and being true to herself, no matter what.
@akprzy Ahh yes, no. #thisismyweek #Maybe the next time #out of stockmillennial #sellamamanifest
Przy on how “Hiting a Wall” pushed her to find her voice
Przy began posting videos during the COVID-19 pandemic when she was temporarily laid off. It took that forced time away from work for her to realize just how extreme her exhaustion was. It was the product of a “go, go, go” attitude she’s had for years, she says. “It was like she was hitting a wall at 150 miles an hour,” she says. “I’ve been recovering ever since.”
At the same time, the the pandemic was causing a great emotional upheaval. “Basically, all the wounds in my life opened up again,” recalls Przy. Searching for a way out, Przy found TikTok, “the first time I ever got into a social media platform,” and just started talking. “I just needed to talk to someone besides the [other] person in my house,” she says. Her audience growth was a surprise. “All I was really saying was exactly what was going on, and that’s all I’ve ever done.”
However, Przy’s personal mental health journey began long before those first TikToks. At 19, he says he sought hospitalization treatment for anorexia, forcing her to see a therapist and a psychiatrist. After growing up in a household where mental health was highly stigmatized, she felt like “this big jump into the world of mental health,” she says. Over the years, her mental health focus shifted from eating disorders (Ella Przy says she’s now in recovery) to dealing with things. like depression and exhaustion.
“I had all my personal value tied up in what I did,” says Przy of his earlier views on work and productivity. “My value was that I’m managing everything and keeping my job afloat and keeping my house afloat and my marriage alive… That’s a huge thing, decoupling my self-esteem from my productivity and linking it to, ‘Who am I?’ That’s it. You are valuable just by existing.”
Burnout is a big topic in Przy’s content for a reason. He wants to tell people the things he wishes they had told him about mental health and dispel widespread myths about work culture and self-esteem. “I want to be who I would like to have for myself,” she says.
Przy on Check-Ins, Manifesting and “Keep it up cutie, I’m proud of you”
Przy makes his videos completely improvised and in the moment. What he says is whatever he is feeling, at that moment, right there. “I literally sit down and say, ‘What’s going on right now? What are you feeling? How’s your day?'” It is a valuable way of check with herself and give space to your emotions.
The TikToker admits, however, that it can be scary when she feels down for days at a time. “Sometimes… you just want to put your emotions and all your feelings on the back burner,” she says. “I’m like, ‘No, I really have to think about this and maybe write something.'”
Due to his own experiences with burnout and depression, much of Przy’s content revolves around self pity. One of her signature lines is “Keep it up babe, I’m proud of you”, which she usually blurts out at the end of a video. “It’s something I wish someone would tell me,” she says. “People say, ‘When you call me cute, that’s the best part of my day.'” It is also the phrase that people have said to her when they recognize her in public. “This is a great and positive thing that we’re doing together,” she says.
Przy occasionally posts about body image or opens up about her eating disorder, but says she finds it difficult to talk about it due to internalized stigmas. “A lot of people with eating disorders don’t get help because they don’t see themselves as someone with an eating disorder,” she says. “Even when she was very sick, no one considered me underweightso it took me a long time to get help.” On days when she’s feeling brave, she says, “I talk about it because it’s important to see people of all sizes, dealing with the things that everyone deals with.”
@akprzy Why oh why did my brain choose THIS OF ALL WEEKS to fixate on ‘WHAT ARE YOU DOING WITH YOUR LIFE?’ #keepupcutie #are you here #dogoodthings #Do what makes you happy
However, the “Keep it up, cutie” content creator is committed to being 100 percent authentic in her content. Some days, all that energy, joy, and humor is really how you feel. But other days, her TikToks reflect low energy. “I’m never going to force something to say something I don’t feel in the moment,” says Przy. She thinks that’s what people love about her content: her commitment to honesty, no matter what she’s going through. “I’m trying my hardest to be myself, and that’s hard,” says Przy, “but I don’t think people can always see that every day: who someone is.” [really] it is.”
For her, it’s not about being perfectly optimistic and positive. It’s not really about being perfect, period. Those videos where you wear a bathrobe and scream into the void? She films them rain or shine, no matter how cold her feet are after her. In fact, “it’s better when it’s snowing,” Przy says cheerfully. Going outside in freezing weather is a “shock to the system … it’s always going to change your day,” she notes. “One day it was raining and I thought, ‘This is an opportunity. I better do it.'” It doesn’t even matter if she isn’t manifesting “correctly” as some people have told her. It’s not the point. “I’m saying things to the universe that I want or don’t want, and I think I’m still doing something right,” she says. Also, “if you go out there and scream, no matter what happens, your day will get better.”
Image Source: Anna Przy
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