Hello loyal and fellow readers. I hope you are preparing for your week long vacation (Spring Break) or if you work, it’ll just be a normal week, sorry! With Spring Break comes: intoxicated college and sometimes high school students, partying on the beach (weather permitting) and plenty of people showing off their Spring Break bods.

While I am here for body positivity and showing off your ‘gains’ will inadvertently give those that don’t have the same body a higher expectation of what they are supposed to look like. If you don’t have a skinny stomach, muscles, abs, perfect skin or straight blonde hair, does this mean you aren’t beautiful? That you don’t fit in because you don’t look like everyone else?

This week, I want to talk about learning how to love yourself for who you are, body and all.

It is 2019 and we are still body shaming each other! This needs to stop. There is enough hate in the world already, why do we need to add to it? When you shame someone, you make them feel insecure about themselves which could lead to depression, bulimia, body dysmorphia and in some cases, suicide.

Just because I’m gordo and dark skinned with stretch marks, doesn’t make me any less beautiful and it doesn’t mean that I don’t deserve love. I’ve had people send me hateful messages on social media and dating apps; people tell me to lay off the tortillas and that I’m too fat for anyone.

With all these hateful messages, you think I would be a mess but no, I make a mental middle finger in my mind and tell them to screw off. Because I know my worth and I love myself, curves and all.

I understand learning to accept and love yourself is hard. With such high expectations of beauty standards spread across social media, it is difficult to stay away from the status quo. So with that in mind, how do you love yourself in a world that holds such high standards?

There is one thing I always remember when I’m feeling down: you are unique. There are 7.5 billion people on this planet, not everyone is going to look alike; if we did, there would not be anything unique about anyone.

Everyone’s personal beliefs may differ, but I believe you are made for a reason. The way you look, the way you look is all for a purpose. No matter what anyone says, you are beautiful. You may not see it when you post a selfie or see yourself in the mirror, but you are beautiful.

Loving yourself is the most liberating thing you can do. You will break from the chains of beauty standards. You will deflect what anyone says about you. You will understand that you are unique, and there is no one like you.

So, forget everyone; the only opinion that matters is your owns. Embrace your skin: white, brown, black, vitiligo, etc. Embrace your curves and stretch marks. Embrace your stomach, no matter what size it is. Embrace your abs and flabs. Embrace your straight hair, your afro, your red hair, etc.

You are all beautiful, remember to love yourselves everyday, even on the days when you don’t.

Until next week,

AJ

(P.S. I won’t be publishing again until after Spring Break, so be on the lookout!)