***In honor of reaching 100 followers, the authors of Simply Femme will each be choosing a favorite post that they have made, to share again with you. Think of it as Simply Femme repeats for the week ;) we appreciate each and every one of you for taking interest in what we have to say. Enjoy!***My favorite post on Simply Femme, Women and Self Esteem:
These days, is it any wonder that a good percentage of women have low self esteem? Every magazine is graced with a stick thin model. Some major department stores don't even carry designer brands in sizes larger than 10. The models in fashion catalogues look like they could float away at a slight gust of wind.
But who decides that these women are the norm? Sure, we'd all like to drop a few (or more) pounds, but don't you like to eat a burger or a big juicy piece of chicken now and then? Why has society led us to believe that if you're not thin, you're not beautiful?
I have to admit, that the face is the first thing I notice on a woman. I don't notice if she is heavy or thin, I notice her face. After all, it says a lot about her. The wrinkles by her eyes, from many sleepless nights worrying about her children and family. Maybe she was up all night rocking a crying newborn, and her eyes are red from crying silently with him/her. The lines around her mouth, from many years of laughter. The sparkle in her eyes, that shows love and life. Wisdom. These are the things that make a woman beautiful to me. A positive attitude and a kind word, are more important than a pair of size 2 jeans.
Don't get me wrong. Before I had kids, I was a size 4, and I desperately miss those days of being able to pull something off the rack and know that it would look great on me. I've never, until now, actually heard a sales lady say "That's the biggest size we sell it in". It's been a long, hard journey to love the body that I have now, and I'm still nowhere near satisfied with it.
But I know that deep down, I am still beautiful, and most importantly- no matter what happens to my body,
it won't change my soul;
it won't change who I am.
Only I can control that, and each day I aspire to be a good person. Those are things that I think make a woman beautiful. What kind of person you are, after all, is what counts the most.
So when I saw this picture below, I knew I HAD to share it with you. This is an article from Glamour.com about loving who you are, being comfortable in your own skin. At first glance, I didn't understand what the big deal was. What was the big fuss about this beautiful girl, why is everyone so happy about
this article? Until I saw it. Her slight stretch marks, her bigger thighs, her slightly sagging stomach, and then I realized that she was
real. She really looks like that, and is quite proud of it. Why shouldn't she be? She's gorgeous! I
really applaud Glamour for putting such a normal, beautiful woman in their magazine.
See, we as women do not have to look like a Victoria's Secret model to be beautiful. Our life and our accomplishments are what make us beautiful. If you have stretch marks from pregnancy, embrace them for what they are- scars from the joy of a child that you created, that you birthed. Do you have cellulite? Look around, the majority of other women do too. The sacrifices that we as women make to raise our kids, or be a wife or girlfriend or partner, or work full time, are the things that have made us who we are. And a few wrinkles and saggy skin along the way is just a way to remember our accomplishments and how far we've come.
We here at Simply Femme give 10 million stars to Glamour for featuring a real woman on the page. Am I saying that if you're naturally skinny, you aren't a real woman? Absolutely not. But it's rare that you see a woman like this in a magazine. It's nice to know that beauty is seen in someone who looks beautiful just as she is. Even people like Kelly Clarkson, who has embraced a fuller figure, are victims of
airbrushing to make a cover look better (click on the link, the differences are quite obvious in her pictures!). Isn't it a sad day when a woman embraces her own body, and yet mainstream media still airbrush her, for fear of how it comes across to the viewers? When you learn to love yourself, and people still knock you down, is it any wonder women are turning to plastic surgery more and more? Anything in moderation is good, but someone with low self esteem may turn to multiple surgeries and eventually look nothing like when they started. Sometimes, it's a bad thing.
Low self esteem can lead to something known as
Body Dysmorphic Disorder- an actual recognized, mental condition, in which a woman sees fat (or ugly, or other bad things) no matter what she is told, or what the scale says. This can lead to anorexia, bulimia, and a number of many other problems. BDD can be very serious if it spirals out of control, due to the impulsive behavior that it may cause.
Does it hurt, to look in the mirror everyday and tell yourself that you're beautiful? Didn't think so ;)
Embrace who you are. If you are bigger, it doesn't make you ugly. The best thing you can do for your body is to eat a healthy diet, and get regular exercise. But if you do that and you're still bigger than your friends, it doesn't make you any less of a person. If we all looked alike, what kind of planet would this be? We are all different, but we are all still beautiful (to quote one of my favorite movies, Bridget Jones' Diary)....just the way we are. :)
Would you like to share with us, what makes you love your body? What parts would you change? How do you feel about your level of self- esteem? Do skinny models on magazine covers make you more likely to buy the products, or are you just as happy with the pictures above, and models like the
Dove Campaign for beauty? What makes a woman beautiful, to you?
