Body Image and Self Confidence

Hello lovelies,

Today I wanted to talk about something quite close to my heart, and something that has fascinated, shocked and even affected me through out my teenage years. Today in class we were researching issues that make our society what it is today, and what came up a lot was the idea of how body image, espescially weight has played a large part in how we act today. A statistic that shocked me when researching was the fact that 1/3 of Kindergarten Children (age 4/5), when asked to state their ideal body shape, chose one smaller than what they already were. Now this is exceptionally young to be aware of how 'large' or 'small' you are, and I still find it sad thinking about the amount of tears I shed as an 11/ 12 year old about my weight and how I looked.

I was one of those girls who hit puberty hard and fast with weight increase, a growth spurt and outburst of spot and blemishes, very close and consecutively to each other. This was before all the other girls, who all seemed to stayed at a cute, small height, skinny and perfect baby skin. To put it bluntly, I felt ugly. I felt out of place from everyone else, and I would constantly pour over images of celebrities that I looked up to such as Selena Gomez and Miley Cyrus, wishing myself to be as 'perfect' as them.

Of course at that age, I thought that I was the only person to be going through this. Now at the age of 18, I'm glad to say that I have grown up to gain perspective. I've realised things like, a smile and warm personality are the most beautiful things that a person can own. That everybody is so wrapped up in how they look, that they don't give a second thought to what you or anybody else looks like. That going outside, experiencing the world, listening to good music and spending time with your friends and family, is more exhilarating and will make you feel more alive than 'looking perfect' ever will. That make up and beauty products are fun to experiment with, but going completely bare faced feels incredible.

Now I'm not suggesting that when you're in this mind set, these things are easy to realise and that they will make you feel completely secure in your self.. I still have down days wear I just don't feel comfortable in myself. But I just think, will I care about this at the end of my life? and for most people, the answer will be no. We will value our experiences and relationships and how positively we affected the world.

If you're in a stage where you're feeling down about your looks, and just want a chat please feel free to message me! Or if you feel like body weight is making you depressed or is taking over your life maybe contact one of these sites.
- www.b-eat.co.uk
- eating-disorders.org.uk

What are your thoughts on body image? How do you cope on a down day?
Yasmin xxxx