#youcansitwithus

There is seriously something so magical about being comfortable in your own skin. This is probably THE first year that I’ve felt totally confident to rock any suit and a one piece none the less…I realize that my body is far from perfect and in a lot of cases is not an “ideal” body to work towards, but it is my body. And I feel more confident, strong, and empowered than ever. There is definitely no shame in that.

This body of mine has done some pretty amazing things (two of them call me mom), it has endured some abuse in my teen and early twenties when I was living in a constant state of rebellion boozing and experimenting with drugs as a result. All the while feeding it poorly and exercises infrequently at best.

Perhaps the most amazing thing about this body is that it is mine. I am the trusted keeper and it is my job to nourish it, move it, love it, and make sure that it is running smoothly into old age so that I can enjoy the grand babies I hope to someday have.

It’s crazy that it’s taken me 32 years to come to this place of acceptance, grace, and love for myself. Wanna know the really crazy part? I am NOT at my leanest, my lowest weight, or smallest size. I’ve been on both ends of the weight spectrum. I’ve gone from not giving a damn about my body, to caring too much, and every where in between. As a mom I can only hope to protect my daughter from agonizing over her body’s imperfections like I have mine. It is such a waste of time, and beautiful girl where ever you are, you are worth so much more than what meets the eye.

This has been a slow and painful process at times. And I have fumbled time and time again. In fact, I don’t know that we will ever arrive at the place where we are completely in love with every aspect of who we are, but I am so thankful that I am much closer than I’ve ever been.

It is my hope and my heart’s cry to help other women and girls get her much quicker than I did. I’ll be honest, I don’t pay much attention to the magazines or the media anymore (that was only causing more harm and holding me back), but I know from the looks of the clothes in the girls’ department and the quick glance at the covers as I stand in the check out. We are more obsessed than ever with a one size approach.

You don’t have to go that route, none of us do. But we do have to be very intentional about what we think, say, and do to our bodies. And we have to be willing to openly share and embrace our flaws.

If you are tired of running the rat race without any hopes of ever winning, or maybe you are just fed up with what the world tells you is sexy or beautiful or worthy of being loved. I’ve got your back. That is the beautiful thing about truly feeling confident in who you are. You WANT to help others rather than see them hurt. You realize that just because ‘she’ has what you want doesn’t mean that you can’t have it too. Believe me, there is more than enough to go around and the more we share, the better it gets.

Ready to  join me on my self-love crusade? I’ll be here waiting. #youcansitwithus

Email: findyourthrive@gmail.com