What is Body Shaming?
What is body shaming?
The action or practice of humiliating someone by making mocking or critical comments about their body shape or size.
That could be towards someone else.
Either behind their back - or to their face.
And. We do it to ourselves.
We compare ourselves to others.
Or we criticize our own appearance.
We are all victims of this.
And most of us are guilty of it to some degree.
It is becoming the norm to judge or be judged on our physical features.
Instead of who we actually are as a person.
As a woman.
Women get body shamed for being over weight.
Or because they just don't 'fit' into the idyllic image of 'thin and beautiful'.
But did you know 'skinny shaming' is a thing too?!
Whether it be out of hurt or jealousy (or whatever reason) - petite women are mocked and judged too.
Seriously. We either need to eat another sandwich or put the cookies down! Ugh!
We also get judged for undergoing plastic surgery,
For wearing high heels,
Or not wearing makeup.
Body shaming has become so 'normal' that half the time - we don't even know it's happening.
By body shaming ourselves - we can be indirectly body shaming others.
For example. If I say that I am fat and need to lose weight - and I say that in the presence of someone who is bigger than me...
What are they going to think??
That I think they are fat too!
This humiliating practice can lead to depression, anxiety and any number of eating disorders.
Beauty is more than what we see - in ourselves and others.
It's skin deep.
Beauty is humour, compassion, intelligence, selflessness...
The list goes on.
Next time you look in the mirror - I want you to STOP and actually look at yourself.
We are too busy glancing over ourselves.
Spend the time and actually SEE your beauty.
But see those amazing internal and personal attributes too.
See your beauty on the outside and in...
It is there!