Irina González, MSW Student

Therapist-in-Training, Former Journalist, Founder of Unmasking Therapy

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August 2018 Writer’s Life: Worst month of the year [#yearofwriting]

Posted on August 31, 2018February 22, 2019 by Irina Gonzalez

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Well, remember how my June was pretty good and my July was even better? August, unfortunately, pales in comparison. In fact, it’s officially one of my worst months of the year — and that’s all because of the house that my husband and I just bought.

Now, I don’t want to blame everything on the house because, ultimately, I know that it’s a good thing. But the truth of the matter also is that I did not do very well during the whole house renovation-packing-moving process. We moved just over a week ago and I’m still kind of recovering from the chaos of it all. Most of this month was all about house stuff (and house-related stress), so it made it almost impossible to work. Hence, my not making that much money.

How much I made: $2282

In comparison, I made $4,095 more last month (yikes!) and $318 more in February (my other lowest-month this year), which officially makes August my worst income year yet… However, considering that I was still in the midst of physical therapy and was so overwhelmed by house stuff that I could barely think, it’s practically a miracle that I made anything at all.

You’ll see how my income correlates to the amount of writing I got done, though. It’s pretty obvious from my published list, below, that I just didn’t do much. However, I do want to point you towards two pieces that I am particularly proud of: My sexually manipulated essay for them. (which I published back in February and FINALLY saw it live this month!) and my Demi Lovato follow-up essay for Glamour (a piece that was actually commissioned because the editor saw my Marie Claire essay from last month). All in all, despite the financial set backs, I had two pretty huge wins this year. And that’s something to celebrate! Well, along with finally moving into our house, that is.

What was published: 

  • Why It Took Me 7 Years to Realize I Was Sexually Manipulated [them.]
  • How Demi Lovato Is Changing the Conversation About Addiction in Hollywood [Glamour]
  • 22 Amazing Airbnb Listings For Your Next Trip to Latin America [mitú]

Fierce by mitú, specifically: 

  • 20 Awkward School Photos That We All Remember Taking
  • 21 Weird College Majors We Wish We Would Have Known About While Still In School

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Irina Gonzalez is a journalist, editor, and sober bisexual Latina mom with ADHD. She is the author of the Parenting in Hard Mode newsletter—for those of us who are raising social justice-minded families and getting real about mental health for parents navigating life on the difficult setting. She is also working on an upcoming book on impactful Latinx Americans with The Quarto Publishing Group.

©2025 Irina González, MSW Student