Sanne
“Being a woman in two typical male worlds: tattooing and diving, makes me so proud. For me as a woman, I want to be seen as equal to men. I want to show people that we can do the same if we believe we can.”
Sanne is driven to transform her fears into feats. After years of being afraid of open water, not knowing what loomed beneath her, she decided to fully submerge herself in her discomfort and try out diving; she soon discovered her love for being below the surface. Whether it is exploring new depths under water or expanding her skills in the tattoo industry, her optimism and ambition have allowed her to solidify her place in these male-dominated spheres. Meet Sanne. This is her story.
K: Please introduce yourself!
S: Hi, my name is Sanne. I am an (almost, in one week!) 30 year old woman living in Belgium. I am a professional tattoo artist and passionate about technical diving.
K: Describe yourself in your own words
S: I am the one who is always positive. Easy going person who adapts to every situation. I am the one who hates hard and loves harder. This can be seen in my passion: diving, more specific cave diving. When I love something, I give it my all.
K: What is your favourite thing about yourself?
S: Staying positive even when everything fails.
K: Tell us a story. Have you had an experience that’s defined you or made you stronger?
S: I was afraid of the ocean, rivers and lakes. Not knowing what was underneath scared the hell out of me. In the most extreme form that I never enter the water.
One day I told myself: we need to fix this.
I saw a couple of people go for a dive and pushed myself to do a try dive.
With a little and scared heart I went under and what happened then was pure love at first sight.
I immediately booked my first diving course.
Now, almost 3 years later I have almost 500 dives and I do technical cave diving.
I turned my fear into a passion and became a better version of myself.
K: What is one piece of advice you’d give to your younger self?
S: Stop caring about ‘body goals’.
The moment I stopped comparing my body to other girls or models. I finally found peace. And I can look at myself in the mirror and call out loud: guuuurl you look good!
K: What does being a woman mean to you?
S: Being a woman in two typical male worlds: tattooing and diving, makes me so proud.
For me as a woman, I want to be seen as equal to men. I want to show people that we can do the same if we believe we can. We need to say ‘bye’ to stereotypes.
I am so thankful that in my close environment (tattoo and diving), men accept me as a woman and understand that I am as talented as them.
Every woman deserves this!
K: Who is one woman that inspires you? What would you say to her if she were here now?
S: Jill Heinerth. Of course I would pick a strong diving woman. 😅
She is such a great cave explorer and I look up to her. Powerful woman in a men’s world!
I would say: Can I please come along and carry your bottles 😂
I would just say thank you for being her strong self. For showing me and other girls that ‘we can!’
