For as far back as I can remember, I have always struggled with body image issues. In society today, it is very common and expected for young women to have distorted images of what their bodies should look like based upon magazine articles and by following the diet their favorite movie star or singer. It is almost impossible to shield young women from the harshness and the reality of these ads. Seeing these ads as a young girl it made me want to look exactly like them and do everything in my power to make sure I did. Ultimately, I failed at making myself look like the women in the magazines and on the television. Failing to meet those standards my self-confidence soon began to decrease as I found myself becoming depressed over my appearance. On the outside you would never be able to tell how I actually felt about myself because I had such a good way of hiding it. Soon it caught up to me and I began to not care how my body looked and I knew I needed to do something. I started to think about how I could make small changes that would eventually lead to making myself begin to like my body again. I soon realized that I needed to start to love myself again and accept the way I was and that where I was it was not a permanent state. I realized that my friends and family around me supported the way I was and only wanted what was best for me. So take it from me: trying to make yourself look like everyone else never works. In the end, you will feel worse than before if you keep trying to be someone you are not. My point is, at the end of the day you are who you are meant to be. Those around you will love you for you are.