Kaylie Donahue

While it may be hard to find self-love, every person deserves it. No matter what size you are, skinny or fat, tall or small; you should be happy with what you have. Every body is beautiful because it’s yours.  

Whether it’s your skin, height, weight, or even just your shoe size, everybody has something they would like to change about themselves. While insecurity is a normal part of being human, a lot of teenagers and adults forget that they can love themselves even if they are not totally happy with themselves. 

While it may be hard to find self-love, every person deserves it. No matter what size you are, skinny or fat, tall or small; you should be happy with what you have. Every body is beautiful because it’s yours.  

Self-confidence is a hard thing to come by at any age, but especially during the most hormonal stages of a teen’s life in high school. Wondering if the jeans you wore look awkward on your body shape or if the shoes you picked don’t match right. Whether you’re too fat for the shirt you’re wearing or too tall for the shorts you have on. Teens are genuinely some of the most judgmental age groups, especially on themselves. Everyone wants to stand out but still blend in with the crowd. 

It’s a fine line to walk, especially if you’re insecure about your looks. I know all this because this was me in my lovely freshman year. I had such a hard time even looking in the mirror, the image looking back didn’t look like any of the actors who portrayed teens in films or what was coming up on my Instagram feed. I hated my hair, my face, my weight and everything I wore. I dressed to make myself disappear. In my head, I believed that cute clothes were for smaller girls, “prettier” girls, basically anyone but me. 

Panicking over plus-size prom

Panicking over plus-size prom

And this went on for years, it’s a mentality that all girls learn as early as elementary school: to hide and hate your body no matter what size you are. 

But, one saving grace in a twisted way has been the pandemic. In 2020, I found my freedom, and so did so many others. The Body Positivity movement and the #EffYourBeautyStandard  really took off, because everyone seemed to realize one thing: who cares? While it may not be the “traditional” bodies we see on Instagram or on TV, our bodies are still valid and we shouldn’t feel ashamed of them. And that includes yours. 

And I won’t lie, even now I have those moments in my senior year where it’s so hard to always love myself, but that’s normal. No person can love themselves always, everybody has something they want to work on. But starving yourself, obsessing over your eating habits, or even eating too much is harmful.