When asked the question... do you love yourself? What would you really say? Could you say yes honestly and whole heartedly or are there parts of yourself you just choose not to share with the world and pretend that they don't matter to you? Do you hide? Or do you really celebrate who you are?
Here is one beautiful women who decided to stop hating herself for what she saw and started loving herself for who she is.
L s a born and raised North Dakota girl. She Is a hair stylist, makeup artist, salon owner, sister, daughter, dogmom, wife and an amazing friend. You would never question by the way her eyes light up when she smiles if she loved herself or not.
She says that she has had a love/hate relationship with my body and weight her entire life. In her twenties is when the weight became out of control, it was also when they diagnosed her with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome and Diabetes at that time and started aggressive medication that made her sick all the time. Feeling like that, Seeing herself like that made it hard to 'love' herself.
When i asked her how she changed the way she saw herself her response was nothing but genuine "I feel like I will be a 'work in progress' for the rest of my life, and thats ok! I'm striving for progress, not perfection these days. it takes a while to learn that but I have managed to lower my blood sugar AND weight by simply cutting out sugar, processed foods and reminding myself constantly that "I've got this!". I can almost see her smiling at me as she says this. Being your own cheerleader is always the first sign that you are for sure falling in love with yourself if you ask me.
I asked her to stand in front of a full length mirror and tell me what she sees in herself today vs maybe five or ten years ago "Hmmm... When I stand in front of a full length mirror I see a lot of progress. Today vs 5-10 years ago: I have not taken care of myself and body for probably the past 8 years. I see the damage that has been left behind from me just not caring about my health at all. But on the upside, I DO care now, finally. So I know I am striving for progress, not perfection. I'll always be a work in progress and just being able to look in a full length mirror without cringing or avoiding it all together is amazing in itself. "
When you are plus size and battle your weight, fashion isn't always your friend. Sometimes you learn how to hide parts of your body you don't even realize that you are doing it. Lindsay said she Absolutely does this "I think I will always dress to hide my stomach. With PCOS comes a lot of hormonal weight gain and you carry that in your stomach primarily. For the past 2+ years I have dressed to hide everything- the baggier the better to hide my stomach, thighs, arms, etc. I have since lost 60lbs. and counting with a major lifestyle change and focusing 100% on how and what I eat. Now that I am getting more energetic and slowly more comfortable in my own skin, I have noticed that my arms don't bother me nearly as much but I still dress to hide my stomach. I love the small victories though, like fitting back into jeans after 3 or more years of wearing yoga pants and leggings only." Those little victories are the best if you ask me!
Mean people suck, and yes fat shaming is a thing. It happens everyday. Some people are genuinely grossed out by peoples sizes just as much as they are of finding 10 week old leftover pasta covered in mold in their fridges. Learning that what they say isn't your business is #lifegoals. This beauty learned that lesson and this statement makes her HER. I asked her if anyone has said anything mean about her weight and she responded with "Yes, it was incredibly hurtful at the time. I eventually had to tell myself that I control my own happiness, not everyone is going to like you or even be nice to you for that matter. But that doesn't mean that I can't be happy, healthy and love myself while still being kind to others."
I figured at this point we should probably get to know her better, in doing so i found out that this creative warm soul loves to spend time with her hubby and two dogs, read, write and play piano. Proving that women all over the map in all shapes and sizes and walks of life really are just like everyone else.. her weight and physical appearance had nothing to do with her interests.
I was also pleased to find out that she wouldn't change a damn thing about her or her life because anything worth having in life doesn't come easily and It hasn't always been easy, but man is it ever worth it to her. Do you ever wonder what people see when they look at you? I'm sure you have, don't lie. we all do at some point. For her she said "I feel that when people look at me, they see someone that may be a little rough around the edges. Once you're past that, you realize I'm just a good ole friendly, sarcastic asshole." Your heard it from her own lips folk.. L is a Sasshole!
