“Another Me” Jia’s Story 

For many years, I lived what looked like a stable life. I was an associate professor at a university in China and taught there for almost 16 years. My days followed the same pattern: wake up, go to work, go home, repeat. It was predictable and respectable, and for a long time I didn’t question it. But underneath that routine, I felt myself slowly disappearing. I wasn’t thinking about my own purpose or even what freedom meant. I was in a bad marriage, overweight, and overwhelmed. I was living through a quiet, invisible crisis that I couldn’t yet put into words, but I felt it every day. 

In 2021, something changed. I began a PhD programme at the University of Wales Trinity Saint David and moved to Swansea. I didn’t just come to a new country. I stepped into a different life, and more importantly, I met another version of myself. 

Wales was quiet in a way that allowed me to hear myself again. 

I am studying art and design, focusing on traditional Chinese paper cutting, not only as cultural heritage but as a way to support wellbeing. My research explores how cross-cultural artistic practices can enhance cognitive health in Welsh communities. Through workshops and case studies, I saw how something as delicate as paper could unlock creativity, memory, and connection in others. It also unlocked something in me. 

This is not just a story about research. It is about returning to something I once forgot. 

I grew up in a small town in northern China, where my parents practised qigong and tai chi every day. It was part of everyday life, as ordinary as making tea. As a young person, I took it for granted and was eager to leave my roots behind. In doing so, I lost touch with something that had quietly sustained me for years. 

Living in Swansea, I began to turn inward again. I started practising tai chi seriously, not out of obligation but as rediscovery. Slowly, I felt my mind and body realigning, as if I were being rebuilt. The traditions I once dismissed were no longer outdated. They were powerful. 

One of my proudest moments was applying to become a practitioner at the Swansea Wellbeing Centre. For the first time, I didn’t wait for permission. I reached out, offered a demonstration class, and they said yes. That yes was more than an opportunity. It was validation and possibility. 

For much of my life, I had felt boxed in by duty, fear, and routine. Now, in my forties, I was starting again, not dramatically, but in the most important way. I was choosing to live on my own terms. 

There are things I miss deeply, especially my two children who are still in China. I hold onto the hope that one day I will be able to say, “My children are at school.” That sentence is my vision. 

Despite uncertainty about visas and the future, I remain grounded in purpose. I walked away from a secure career and the titles that once defined me. Now, I define myself. 

If there is one thing I hope people take from my story, it is this: transformation is not only for the young. It is for the willing. 

Wales is my place of rebirth. And step by step, I am walking toward a life that is truly my own.