By Holly • 10 Comments
You're a sweetie who would never criticize her friends for their body shape or the clothes they wear. However, you won't hesitate to think some pretty nasty things about yourself, will you? Well, that needs to come to an end right now. There's no reason for you to treat yourself worse than you'd treat anyone else you'd come across. Here are a few ways you're degrading yourself without even realizing it:
We compare ourselves to others without even realizing it. When we see someone with big breasts, we consider them lucky. When we see someone who's naturally thin, we wish we could say the same. However, wanting to be more like other girls is unhealthy. You're perfect just the way you are. Even though you wish you had one of her traits, she's probably looking at you wishing she had one of your traits.
When you start a new workout regimen or decide to eat more fruits and veggies, you should do so in order to get healthy. However, most people do those things in order to become skinny. While it's perfectly fine to work toward your ideal body shape, you should still try to focus more on your health than your weight.
There's a difference between avoiding the mirror because you couldn't care less what you look like and doing it because it causes you emotional pain to look at your own reflection. If you hate what you look like, you need to face your fear by looking at yourself and naming all the things you love about what you see. You can't hide from yourself forever.
Don't consider yourself "pretty for a chubby girl." It's incredibly unhealthy to give yourself backhanded compliments. Think positively about yourself! It's not cocky to love your looks. It's called confidence, and more women need it!
Some women absolutely hate to have their pictures taken, because they're worried about what they'll look like when the photo is developed. However, it's unhealthy to think that way. If a friend wants to take a snapshot of you at a party, you should let her so that you have a keepsake from the event. Don't let your looks get in the way of your fun.
Have you ever forced yourself to stay far away from your crush because you assumed there was no way he'd ever like someone who looked like you? Well, you can't do that to yourself. He'd be lucky to have you.
Even if you dislike what your body looks like on the outside, you should appreciate what it does for you on the inside. Your body is always working hard to keep your blood pumping so you can enjoy your life. So stop criticizing it and start thanking it!
If you can put a stop to these harmful activities, then you'll start to feel a whole lot happier with yourself. While you're at it, you should stop your friends if you see them engaging in these behaviors as well. Do you notice yourself doing any of these things on a daily basis?