“I cursed new and old stretch marks. ‘Only women who are a size 2 can truly be successful.’ My body image dictated how I spoke to myself, even while my daughter was listening.”
‘I would point women out, ‘Am I skinnier or fatter than her?’ Then I heard my daughter saying similar things. It was sick.’: Mom ‘changes the narrative’ for daughter after wake-up call
‘YUK.’ You had some rolls on your back showing and your double chin was showing. That’s problematic.’: Woman reminds us, ‘Beauty has nothing to do with what’s on the outside’
“Truthfully, when I didn’t have the rolls, I still questioned if I was ever whole, or worthy, or enough. I’ve got something to say. *AHEM*.”
‘Oh no… a fat girl in your feed. A bigger girl shouldn’t show her body. It’s gross!’: Woman shares why a ‘fat girl’ should be in your feed more often
“If she does, it must be because she has a message. Maybe it’s about the stretch marks on her butt or boobs, that grew from puberty. Maybe she learned to love her body. Which is odd. Because it IS normal.”
‘My chin looks dumb when I smile.’ Your baby girl compares herself to the cheerleader who got a date.’: Mom preaches body positive parenting, ‘You MUST talk to them’
“’I’m so fat.’ ‘I hate this outfit.’ The word ‘thigh gap’ will enter your daughter’s hemisphere. Every billboard, commercial, random dude, social media post, and Hollywood movie will talk to her about her body. Let that fight START WITH YOU.”
‘I don’t look like your stereotypical pregnant woman. I won’t have that little bump. This isn’t the body I envisioned myself carrying in, but it so worthy.’: Expecting mom ‘thankful’ for unplanned pregnancy, ‘My weight stopped me from happiness’
“I used to think I would allow myself to get pregnant once I had lost all this weight. I blackmailed myself against the one thing I truly wanted in life. All my life, I’ve written off happiness because I wasn’t the ‘correct’ size.”
‘My thighs touch. No matter what, they stick together like glue. I never wear shorts, not even in hot as heck Florida.’: Mom urges self-love, ‘These imperfections are the least interesting thing about me’
“Whether I’m sitting, standing, walking, running, my thighs touch. I don’t have eyebrow hair. At my height of 5’3″, my BMI is in the ‘overweight’ range. I never wear shorts anymore. You see, I’ve always been body-conscious.”
‘You look great now, but you’d look even better at 102 lbs.’ I’m terrified of my sweet, innocent little girl hearing the lies I’ve heard.’: Woman reinvents 10-year challenge, ‘Your body is a gift’
“I sent a message to the friend who had to deal with my food and weight issues up close and personal for years. ‘Thank you for all you did for me, and stickking with me.’ She simply responded, ‘Your weight has always been the least interesting thing about you.'”
‘Pregnant at 18, I heard, ‘You’re young, you’ll bounce back!’ It became etched in my mind. Stretch marks and loose skin? BAD.’: Mom learns to cherish postpartum body, ‘This body is my home’
“I tried all of the creams. For years, I wore only high-rise pants and would turn away from friends when we were getting dressed. I hated what I saw in the mirror. But one day, I looked down at my tummy and saw the ripples, the marks, the stretched belly button. And I smiled. This body is my home.”
‘Hey sister, wear the shorts. You see dimples, cellulite. I see a woman who deserves to feel beautiful in whatever she chooses.’: Woman urges ‘confidence looks beautiful on you’
“Confidence looks beautiful on you, sis. Wear it proudly.”
‘I watched more than a few of my friends commenting negatively on how they look now. Girl, stop glorifying your past self just for being skinnier.’: Woman reminds us ‘comparison is the thief of joy’
“Maybe your waistline grew this past decade (GUILTY, FRIEND), but so did your family. I fear for a time when my daughter would choose to comment only on her WEIGHT in her joyful photos. People preach about the importance of self-love and ignore the elephant in the room.”
