Before I start, let me clarify a few things:

1. All body types are beautiful. If you're confident and comfortable, that's all that matters.

2. I am in no way trying to shame people who are thin, this is just my personal feelings and the reasons behind my weight gain journey.

3. This article may be triggering for some people, so please be aware of that when reading and sharing it.

So here it goes...since I was young, I've been thin. I've been hovering around the bottom 5 percent of the weight class for my age and height for as long as I can remember. As I've talked about before, I suffer from a genetic illness that, in some people, can cause difficulty in gaining and keeping on weight. I have also been vegetarian since I was 9 years old, meaning I don't get nearly as much protein as people who eat meat.

Because of these things combined with my active lifestyle, I have struggled to stay a healthy weight for years. In the past few years, however, I have been making a conscious effort to keep track of my weight and trying to gain enough to put me in a place where I feel more comfortable and more confident in my body.

When I tell people that I am trying to gain weight, I'm often questioned. "Why would you give up your body? You're a perfect size," "But you look exactly like those girls on Instagram," or "I wish I looked like you. Why would you change that?" and the answer is simple: I'm not as confident in my body as I know I could be.

It seems like in recent times there's been this pull to look one of two ways: tall and slim, or shorter and curvier, and nothing outside of those two body types is acceptable. I decided that while I am tall and thin and fit the "ideal" body type standard, and I have no issue with my current body type, I would be more confident in another one.

Body dysmorphia is a huge issue in modern society, and more and more often we see women standing up against the standards. I wouldn't say that its a problem that's dying off, but it is certainly being looked at with intention to change. While I personally don't suffer from it anymore, I know several people who do, I firmly believe that my efforts to gain weight and find confidence in doing so will help to inspire others around me to seek that confidence as well, whether it be in a body other than the one they currently have or another one.

I am gaining weight for myself. There is no reason apart from finding more confidence and being as comfortable with me as I can be, with no thought of what those around me in real life or the digital world have to say. And, in my journey, I hope that others recognize this and are inspired to find their confidence as well.