Why Can't I Be Beautiful?

Love Your Body as You Are Beautiful Just The Way You Are

I stare at the mirror. I have been standing there for the past hour. Just staring and brooding. I don't like what I see. In fact it is not just not liking ... it is actually hating what I see. I am too big and I feel so helpless because I have been dieting for months now and the person I see in the mirror has not changed. I have been weighing myself several times a day too but there has been no result and no change. I feel exasperated. Why can't I be beautiful and perfect? Why do I have to live in this ugly body that will never change even though I starve myself on a daily basis? I hate every single part of my body. There is nothing I feel remotely comfortable with. I hate going out among people and I hate going to the beach. Everywhere I look I see beautiful people. Each one of them seems like they’re stepping out of a magazine. I feel like I need to hide. I wish I could just vanish. So I just stay home, in my bed, because that is the best place to be when you are the owner of such a disgusting body.

The above is a classic example of thought processes of people having body image issues. This is widespread among both men and women and the pain they go through on every day basis is indescribable. The messages regarding our bodies that we receive stick to us like glue and we grow up thinking that our body image defines who we are. Unfortunately, body shaming has become very common from a very tender age. Sometimes it is the crux of severe bullying. Some people are stigmatized while others become outcasts. These people suffer in total silence. They try to take it but it simply breaks them inside and they spiral into depression. Due to this a lot of people develop eating disorders at a very young age. Some try to starve themselves while others go to the opposite end of the scale and over eat. What they all have in common is a distorted body image of themselves and distorted thought processes regarding how they look or how they should look.

Unfortunately, these distorted thought processes are visible also in very young children. Young children are already aware of how they should look or weigh in order not to be an outcast or be bullied. Some young people believe that if they do not weigh a certain weight, than they are overweight because that is what their friends told them. It's heartbreaking to see this trend kicking in at such a vulnerable stage. It can be so destructive to the child's self esteem and self image. It can destroy self worth and young people start to define themselves by the number on the weighing scales. So parents, teachers, guardians, teach young people to love their bodies from when they are young, no matter the shape and size. Tell them that they are beautiful and loved on a regular basis. Do not body shame or constantly criticize what they eat. Teach them that balance is the key and that food is good. It only needs to be consumed in a healthy balanced way. For those who wish to make a change in lifestyle, there is nothing wrong with working out at the gym or with a trained professional. Ultimately we all strive to make ourselves better. There is no shame in that. Every child, teenager and adult is beautiful in his or her own way. Teach them to celebrate their beauty and embrace their uniqueness and help them develop a sense of pride in who they are and who they will become. You are beautiful. You are unique. You are loved. If only you can see yourself in the same way as I see you.If only you could be happy with who you are regardless the number on the scale. Just look in the mirror, smile and embrace the person who is smiling back at you.