The above photo was taken my sophomore year of undergrad in 2008. I was in East Texas and was having the time of my life, but behind my smile hid a dark secret. I hated my body. I’m considered plus sized and when I was younger I thought that meant I needed to be in jeans or pants with layered shirts to cover myself. I have a cute shape, I’ve actually been told that by numerous people. I have ample hips, a nice round bum, curves in the right places but it didn’t matter. I preferred to cover myself in layers upon layers because that’s what I thought I was supposed to do. I didn’t like my big legs and didn’t think other people wanted to see them. I didn’t like the extra flab on my arms so I made sure that they were covered by at least 2 shirts.
I dated during this time, I was even intimate with them, I received no complaints from them but still didn’t love my body. I wore my hair straight and even wore contacts (those are other issues for another time) and continued to throw layer and layer on while in this warm Texas weather.
I know some might say that the easy answer is just to lose weight, and while that is one answer it’s not always the easy one. I’ve lost and gained weight over the years, but it wasn’t until working with my therapist these past few years that I realized I’m beautiful.
Every curve, every inch of my skin. My closet, which used to only consist of shirts and pants, is now bursting at the seams with skirts and dresses!
I used to only wear slacks and nice tops to work, and now I’m wearing bright hi-low dresses and cute skirts. I’ve embraced by big legs and have even ventured past wearing knee and shin-length dresses to wearing shorter ones. I’m even venturing out and buying a bikini for my upcoming cruise!
How cute is the pattern on that high-waist bikini and the fringe on the one-piece!? I can’t wait to pair these with cute cover ups while I’m on the boat and off exploring in April and regularly wearing them this summer. I’m so happy that I’m at a point now where I love my body, all of it and I’m no longer afraid to show it off to the world.
I love this post.
I'm one that believes if you don't love yourself when you're plus-sized, you wouldn't love yourself thin either. You have to love and accept yourself for who you are, regardless of what size you wear!
I love this post as well! I'm still trying to work through my issues. I'm glad that you grew to love your body! I'm hoping I get to that point soon!