BODY IMAGE AND SELF CONFIDENCE

BODY IMAGE AND SELF CONFIDENCE

This blog post is probably going to be a bit of a rant as it's something I feel very passionately about and I just want to get it all out... So, very sorry if I ramble! (which I will)...

Every single day I go on the internet and every single time I see something written about confidence, body issues or "the best body type" - It drives me mental! 

I find it completely bizarre that in this day and age we are STILL debating on what shape or size a woman should be and some of the comments on public pages are absolutely ridiculous.

First of all I want to point out that no matter what shape a woman is (or a man for that matter) if you are HAPPY, that is all that matters. If somebody is overweight, but their weight doesn't bother them, why should they be told to lose weight by complete strangers on social media sites, or by their friends or family for that matter? But at the same time, if somebody is slimmer than the average body shape, again, why should they be told to change themselves? 

The media obviously use slimmer models, and as a larger girl I'm not going to pretend I am offended or try and kick up a fuss about it - obviously we would all want to look like it and I think a lot of the comments people make of models being "too skinny" or "unhealthy" are simply made out of jealously. Obviously there is a difference between being slim and being unhealthy and yes of course sometimes the models we see are actually unhealthy and are too slim. But again, who are we to judge? People often make comments about models starving themselves or having eating disorders, but where is the evidence of this most of the time?

Obviously all these points have been made before and I am not the first one to address such a subject, but recently I have seen so many ridiculous comments, I just wanted to write my own opinion on my own webpage. I am not forcing anybody to read it, I am simply getting this off my chest.

Secondly, I would like to address the "quotes" and certain pictures I see splashed all over the internet. I'm sure I am not the only person who has seen such quotes as "Only dogs go for bones" or pictures of Marilyn Monroe with people commenting on how she is a "real" woman. I see a lot of people referring back to the 50's when obviously curvier women were used, but why does this mean women aren't "real" now?

I've recently seen slimmer girls sticking up for themselves, but not by simply saying that their body shapes are nothing to be ashamed of, but by saying that curvier girls should be ashamed and should lose weight! I think the main issue here is girls. WE NEED TO STOP COMPETING WITH EACH OTHER. We are all in the same boat - everybody is self conscious about something, whether you feel your thighs are too big, your eyes are too close together, or you have a mole you don't like! Nobody is perfect.

I'm not entirely sure what my main point of all this is... I am just writing down a thousands thoughts I have in my head... 

I just want everyone to stop putting so much pressure on other people and themselves about how you should look. I have recently lost 2 stone and although I know I am still overweight, I feel SO much better and I don't feel ashamed about how I look. I went through a stage in my life where I would be embarrassed to see people I hadn't seen in a while and I would HATE the thought of going to a family event because I usually only see my extended family once a year and I would feel under so much pressure. I would even feel embarrassed to see friends even though they would never judge me.

What I'm trying to say is that, if YOU are not happy, then it's time to make a change. If somebody makes a negative comment about you and it genuinely offends you, that means you are not happy with that aspect of your life and you should do something about it. I know how it feels to be constantly targeted about your weight/how you look and how it feels to think it will never change. Well it does. 

I didn't lose weight for other people, I did it for myself because I wasn't happy. Now that I have lost even just a small amount of weight, I feel so much better in myself mentally and physically. I actually enjoy seeing people I haven't seen in a while and I don't dread trying on clothes in shops or going shopping! (I literally used to cry in the changing rooms in shops because I hated myself so much!)

Overall: be happy. If you're happy in yourself, nobody can put you down.

How I used to look (not even my heaviest in that picture) to how I currently look.








Still a long way to go, but you can see a real difference.

(Sorry this was such a ramble, I have been falling asleep all evening) xo