Body image in today’s society is a constant battle between being too thin and having too many curves. In one way or another, the end result is always the same: body shaming of a single body type. It began with praising extremely thin, “healthy” looking girls. Thigh-gaps were the trend, with a pair of flat stomachs and defined hip bones to match. Curves have since replaced this time period of “model-esque” body types. Curvy hips, butt, thighs, etc. have become the ideal woman. Though trends come and go, the body shaming that goes along with it seems to never go out of style.

The media and expectations for women have continued to dictate a woman’s lifestyle for centuries. It starts with advertisements of women as nothing but a body for the taking, followed by the popularity of fad diets, which is then backed up by photo shopped celebrities all over the front page. The idea that a woman’s appearances are the most important facet of her being becomes commonplace, yet the real woman seems to never be enough.

Self-love is almost impossible in a society with unobtainable expectations and ridiculous rules for what is beautiful. Beauty is not the size of your jeans or the color of lipstick you put on in the morning. Beauty is confidence and pride in the way you look. Beauty is voicing your opinions in a room full of people disagreeing with you. Beauty is finishing off that pint of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream at the end of the night. Beauty is you, the woman who is strong, healthy, and completely free of editing. Society may portray beauty as a certain prototype, but the real beauty lies in the individuality of women everywhere. So skip the fad diets and eat the cake because why waste your time worrying about what is “in” when you could be spending your time licking the spoon.