Think of how many times you look in the mirror every day, whether it's just in passing or you're brushing your teeth. Think of how often you stop and stare at your reflection and pick out the things you hate about yourself: your freckles, your nose, your teeth, the way your arms look, I could go on all day. Now, think about how common it is for someone to criticize their appearance, to shoot down a compliment, to push away a plate of food calling themselves fat, to discuss their newest diet. The very ugly truth of the matter is that we have been raised to hate our bodies. It is far more common for someone to make degrading remarks than for someone to openly express feeling good about themselves. We have been taught that feeling good about yourself is just a sign of arrogance.

We live in a culture obsessed with dieting, obsessed with meeting certain standards we have set for our bodies, but when and if we ever meet them, we just find something new to hate; it will never be enough.

The number of people suffering from eating disorders is higher than any estimated number online can report, because the truth is that a lot of people aren't fully aware that they have eating disorders. We are a society that glamorizes disorder habits and calls them some catchy diet name. In many ways, this isn't some secret epidemic that is spreading. It very real, and it's very in our faces; we have just decided to ignore it or name it something different. We associate weight loss with happiness; the ultimate happiness can only be achieved by having the ideal body, right? Once you are thin, you are happy, right? We look toward weight loss commercials where paid actors smile proudly saying that losing weight has made their lives so much better. Has it really?

Now with all this said, eating healthy and exercising has been proven to help improve your mood, but we aren't being fed propaganda about that; we are being fed propaganda about how important it is to lose weight. Restricting and overexercising like most "diets" recommend is not the key to this happiness everyone seems so desperate for.

How do we stop this?

It starts with you. Whoever is reading this, wherever you are sitting, it starts right there. It starts with checking in with yourself — how are you doing? Are you eating enough? When is the last time you had a glass of water? You are being watched everyday by the people around you, whether it be a younger sibling or the kid next door, you are an example in the life of many, and by deciding to not feed into this diet culture, you make the first move. And it isn't easy. It seems easier to slip into bad habits, to skip a meal or two and tell yourself it's just to drop a few pounds. It's easy not to love yourself when there is so much to love because the idea has been reinforced time and time again.

As I write this article, I think of my baby cousin who turned 3 this year. When I look at her, I see this beautiful kid full of energy, sass and intelligence, and I reflect back on the first time I realized I hated my body, and I cringe because she isn't that far away from the same age. And all I can do to help shield her from all the negativity that magazines and television and other people will feed her is by being a good example. By trying my hardest to love myself and not speak negatively of myself or others in front of her (I really shouldn't do either at all, tiny steps here).

I want to wrap this up by saying that regardless of your weight or the things you see as flaws, you are beautiful. You are beautiful in every sense of the world. You are beautiful, you are strong, you are brave and I hope you find it within yourself to see how incredible you are, inside and out. I hope you find out that no physical change will ever help you reach true happiness; that's something you find yourself and the people around you.