The Secret to Loving Your Body

What fuels your hatred for your body? Sadly, there are lots of answers to this question. Every day, men and women suffer from insecurities, fueled by innate self-loathing, and social media. You may be insecure about your relationships, your intelligence, or how you look. I am here to tell you how you can knock out the bad thoughts with good ones!

Which part of your body is your least favorite?  Why do you dislike this part of your body? Is it your thighs? Your stomach? What about your arms? Look at it this way - all of these parts are necessary for your body to function. Having arms enables you to lift things other people may not be able to lift. The thighs support your legs, and help you squat and move as you wish. You use your stomach for digestion and carrying babies. These things are essential to your functioning, and to human life. When you choose to look at your body negatively, you should consider these amazing attributes.  It's so easy to want what others have. We sit around on social media, wanting bodies that aren't ours, but should be content with the bodies we have.

You deserve to feel comfortable in your own skin. We often desire someone else's body shape, while they desire someone else’s life, in an endless cycle that leaves no winners. Rather than hating your body, you should start practicing ways to love it. Each of us was created differently. Nobody should look or be shaped like another person. Having struggled for years wanting a body that wasn't mine, I realized I shouldn’t be suffering to force my body to appear a certain way. For a certain body shape or look, people are willing to practically kill themselves. Make sure you are practical about weight loss if you desire to lose weight. Don't starve yourself to achieve this false emblem of "perfection".

We are not bound by our insecurities, which come from within. They can be fought and destroyed. Look in the mirror and smile at yourself. Do you know why you are smiling? You are smiling because you are worthy, and deserved to feel it. You should love yourself as much as others do. Happiness comes from loving yourself. Many people get it wrong and think they need to be with someone in order to be happy.  Knowing who you are and what you deserve is the most important thing you can do. No one would be unique or stand out from the crowd if our bodies looked the same. We were born to be different. Our differences were made for a reason.

Social media is primarily a fantasy, which is what you must keep in mind throughout all of this! There are no words to describe how important this is. Magazines, posters, billboards - all of this can be entirely misleading. They want you to believe that your appearance is somehow flawed. Sadly, this is the type of experience many women and men all over the world have to endure. Most women believe that they need a flat stomach and slender body in order to look attractive. Men believe that they must have six-packs and buff arms. There is no need for any of this! You are who you are! Do not let people or the internet tell you there is something wrong with the way you look. This is a trap we can all fall into, and it's not right.

It doesn't matter whether I have a flat stomach, or if you have a skinny body. The two of us are different. We were all created differently. That's what makes us special. There would be no love and no beauty behind someone's character if we were all created the same. Please remember that your physical appearance does not define who you are. You are so much more than flesh and bones. 

Written by: Audre Arnett 

Instagram: @infinityaudreee