Our society is obsessed with beauty. Our culture determines self-worth by our appearance. It's no surprise then that 91 percent of women are unhappy with their bodies, that by the age of seven, 70 percent of girls want to be "thinner." On college campuses, 58 percent of girls feel pressured to be a certain weight, 40 percent of female college students have eating disorders, and 91 percent of female college students resort to dieting.
Magazine covers, celebrities, ads — the pressure of diet culture is everywhere. But you know what's more important than your weight? Literally every. Single. Thing.
The media defines beauty by a certain size, by looking a certain way and fitting a specific mold. It's up to us declare that we are beautiful for our hearts, our brains, our abilities, our passions and our joy. The plot twist is that we are also beautiful because of the curve of our hips, because our thighs may touch, because there are rolls on our stomachs and because we choose self-acceptance and love. Embracing our imperfections will make us more confident and radiant than trying to hide or change them ever will.
You know what the world doesn’t need? Another empty, hollow body that exists purely to shrink and suffer and starve into fitting a society’s skewed sense of "beauty."
You know what the world needs? More authentic, sweet souls who are not defined by numbers or sizes, but focus their energy on changing lives and healing hearts to fix society’s brokenness.
You know what will not be remembered? Your BMI, lowest weight, daily calorie intake, calories burned, jean size, food eaten and not eaten, hours spent at the gym, waist measurement, thigh circumference, presence or lack of stomach rolls.
You know what will be remembered? Your passions, your confidence, your radiance, the memories you made, the places you visited, the people you invested in, the mountains you scaled, the depths you survived, the purpose of your existence.
The world will never be happy with you, so don't waste away trying to please it. We deserve lives outside of calories and nutritional facts, outside of numbers and sizes. You will be happier embracing yourself than you ever will be at a size 0. Eating less will not solve any of your problems. You are so much more than your body shape or the food you eat.
Travel the world, fall in love, build relationships, continue your education, start a meaningful career, advocate for your passions, make a genuine difference in other people’s lives, and — most of all — love yourself.
