Body Positivity Is Important | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Health and Wellness

Body Positivity Is Important And We Need To Embrace It

Why I am who I am today.

324
Body Positivity Is Important And We Need To Embrace It

Body positivity is a movement that has developed in the last ten years or so. Growing out of the fat liberation movement, it focuses on the idea that no matter how your body looks, you should be able to feel confident in yourself. I first heard of body positivity when I came to college and I found it really inspiring as I was developing my sense of self and growing into who I am today. Having dealt with body shaming in high school, the idea that you should love your body no matter your size was revolutionary for me. A lot of people struggle to love their bodies for a variety of reasons, from being bullied and body shamed to struggling with an eating disorder.

Body positivity has become a safe space for people who have struggled with their body image, allowing them the space to accept their bodies as they are and work on loving themselves even if they have rolls or cellulite. I think this is a necessary cushion and community of people that celebrate all types of bodies in order for us to feel confident and truly ourselves. Body positivity has helped many people with eating disorders go into recovery, as well as exposing the vast amount of photoshopping that goes into ad campaigns that present women as stick thin with perfect skin. Jameela Jamil, an actress on "The Good Place," along with many other famous women, has used her platform and fame to spread the message of body positivity.

While ten years ago you would have been very difficult to find a plus-size model in a magazine anywhere, plus size models such as Ashley Graham and Tess Holliday, have expanded what it means to be a model to include women beyond the sample sizes. I think this is extraordinary and this diversity needs to be incorporated in all aspect of social media. Ashley Graham was even the first plus-size model to be featured in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition back in 2015.

While this movement is still fairly new, it is bringing important attention to the issues that fat people face, as well as encouraging thin women to love their bodies, stretch marks, cellulite, and acne all included. I think we should all hop on the body positivity train and include ALL diverse body shapes, colors, genders, and sizes. No matter who you are, you should have a safe space to be who you are and have a solid community who will support your body positivity actions. Cheers to each and every one of us because we are beautiful just the way we are, and we should embrace what we have! Cheers to us!

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
campus
CampusExplorer

New year, new semester, not the same old thing. This semester will be a semester to redeem all the mistakes made in the previous five months.

1. I will wake up (sorta) on time for class.

Let's face it, last semester you woke up with enough time to brush your teeth and get to class and even then you were about 10 minutes late and rollin' in with some pretty unfortunate bed head. This semester we will set our alarms, wake up with time to get ready, and get to class on time!

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

The 5 Painfully True Stages Of Camping Out At The Library

For those long nights that turn into mornings when the struggle is real.

1369
woman reading a book while sitting on black leather 3-seat couch
Photo by Seven Shooter on Unsplash

And so it begins.

1. Walk in motivated and ready to rock

Camping out at the library is not for the faint of heart. You need to go in as a warrior. You usually have brought supplies (laptop, chargers, and textbooks) and sustenance (water, snacks, and blanket/sweatpants) since the battle will be for an undetermined length of time. Perhaps it is one assignment or perhaps it's four. You are motivated and prepared; you don’t doubt the assignment(s) will take time, but you know it couldn’t be that long.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

The 14 Stages Of The Last Week Of Class

You need sleep, but also have 13 things due in the span of 4 days.

925
black marker on notebook

December... it's full of finals, due dates, Mariah Carey, and the holidays. It's the worst time of the year, but the best because after finals, you get to not think about classes for a month and catch up on all the sleep you lost throughout the semester. But what's worse than finals week is the last week of classes, when all the due dates you've put off can no longer be put off anymore.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

Top 20 Thoughts College Students Have During Finals

The ultimate list and gif guide to a college student's brain during finals.

182
winter

Thanksgiving break is over and Christmas is just around the corner and that means, for most college students, one hellish thing — finals week. It's the one time of year in which the library becomes over populated and mental breakdowns are most frequent. There is no way to avoid it or a cure for the pain that it brings. All we can do is hunker down with our books, order some Dominos, and pray that it will all be over soon. Luckily, we are not alone in this suffering. To prove it, here are just a few of the many deranged thoughts that go through a college student's mind during finals week.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

28 Daily Thoughts of College Students

"I want to thank Google, Wikipedia, and whoever else invented copy and paste. Thank you."

1572
group of people sitting on bench near trees duting daytime

I know every college student has daily thoughts throughout their day. Whether you're walking on campus or attending class, we always have thoughts running a mile a minute through our heads. We may be wondering why we even showed up to class because we'd rather be sleeping, or when the professor announces that we have a test and you have an immediate panic attack.

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments