We all have days when we look in the mirror and hear that self-critical voice in our minds louder than anything else.
Even after years of working hard on improving my self-esteem and healing my relationship with my body, I still have days when my inner-mean-girl gets the better of me.
So for those days when you're not feeling good about yourself, here are some thoughts to consider as you look at your reflection...that help me to reframe my perspective a little, I hope they'll be helpful for you too.
* When you look at your reflection, chances are that you're focusing in on the areas that make you feel the most uncomfortable of all. Could you try to focus your attention on some other areas of your body? Those that you like the most or that bring you the most enjoyment in life perhaps? Instead of criticizing what you don't like about your body, could you take a moment instead to thank it for what it does for you? Think about all of the things that you enjoy, which your body allows you to do and experience....whether its dancing, hiking, hugging your loved ones, appreciating a beautiful sunset, singing in the shower...anything at all that brings you joy in life, just take this moment to appreciate your body for allowing you to experience that.
* Can you take a moment to think about all of the people in your life that you love and admire. Think about all of the reasons that you love and admire those people. Then ask yourself, how many of those reasons had anything to do with that persons physical appearance? I bet not many, right? So if you understand and accept that what makes a person beautiful isn't their appearance, can you appreciate why you might not need to focus so much on what your body looks like? People love you for what's inside.
* Take a moment to look back through some old photographs of yourself, and compare how you felt when the photo was taken to how you actually looked at the time. Granted this may not be the same for everyone, but when I do this - I remember how nervous I felt when the photo was taken and how convinced I was that I looked awful, but now looking back I can see that I looked so much better than I ever thought I did. Chances are....the same thing is probably true now. You will no doubt look back at this time in your life and realize you look so much better than you thought!
* Right here in this moment...you are the youngest you will ever be again. Don't you deserve to enjoy that?
* For every negative thought you have about your body, try to think of a product or service that has been designed and marketed to "cure" that insecurity. I promise you that for every insecurity you have, someone out there is selling a fix - do you really think that's a coincidence? Or do you think that the media have manipulated you to feel the way you do about yourself in order to capitalise on those insecurities? I know that's what I believe and that thought makes me angry....anger is good.
Anger can be channelled ...I choose to channel mine into rebellion, into refusing to give in and waste any more of my life worrying about how "good" I look....because really, who cares?! None of it lasts and I'm wasting precious time in the pursuit of "good enough" when the truth is we were always good enough all along. Nobody else gets to decide that for us.
Our bodies are the keepers of our magic...nothing more, nothing less.
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