From the article: Do Women Love Their Bodies?
We all fixate on what's wrong with our bodies from time to time. But that doesn't mean we live in a constant state of hating our bodies every day of our lives. You wouldn't know it, however, from the way the media promotes female dissatisfaction. TV shows, magazines, and advertising feed on our inadequacies and insecurities. Very few examples focus on what women like and appreciate about their physical selves. Instead of breeding self-hatred, why not counter these negative influences with positive images? What do you love about your body? Is there a common thread between women when it comes to body self-love? Share Your Thoughts
Learning to love myself
- Wow...For years Ive grown up being complimented, adored, ridiculed and in some ways abused all because of the way I looked...Ive learned that beauty in regards to my body is a very powerful thing to be respected and I believe that once women learn about and believe in their beauty, the world will be spinning on a different axis (and men won't know what to do with us)!!! What do I love about my body?? hmmm...I love my eyes, my hair, my breasts(and my cleavage), my hands, my legs and feet...I love the softness and the roundness of my body...I love learning how strong (and weak) my body can be, and Ive learned that I truly dont need to be so hard on myself, because trust me, men have cherished, kissed and loved all of my so-called flaws as I teared up explaining why they were flaws!! My body is AMAZING, and I enjoy being a woman, knowing that I will be able to bask in the glow of femininity for as long as I live!! THERE IS NOTHING LIKE BEING A WOMAN!!
- —Guest GoldenLover
I LOVE MY BODY!
- I hope this doesn't come across as too crude, but I love my clitoris. It's the only part of my body, which is purely there for my pleasure. I think it's great! I also love my brain, my stretch marks I think are really pretty and I love my cellulite, they're like cute little dimples! I love my eyes and lips and nose and hair. I love my hands and legs and all my moles. I love my voice. I love my ears. I love my breasts and tummy and bottom and vagina. I actually enjoy menstruating. I just love being alive! I'm glad this site exists. I've never really understood this stereotype about women 'hating their bodies'. I've ALWAYS loved mine!
- —Guest kelly
I learned to love my body
- After going through sexual abuse as a child, and getting help for its damages, I now love and respect my body. It is OK that I love my eyes, my face,hair, breast, butt, legs. After that trauma, I love every part of me, but I really did have to learn to, and learn that it is wonderful to love yourself, your sexuality, and your body.
- —Guest Cindy
unexpected discovery
- My first, instinctive response was: "Nothing! There's is absolutely nothing I could like about myself. On second thoughts, I took a good look in the mirror, trying to restrain my natural self-loathing, and that's what I saw: beautiful big eyes, a lovely, warm smile, great hair, thick and shin, lovely hands, long, lean and dainty, gorgeous breasts, long, shapely legs, a nice, well proportioned body... Not as bad as I' ve always automatically assumed.
- —Guest Ariel
What Do You Love and..........
- During the early days of my puberty, I used to feel why at all such a thing happens to a girl/woman every month. I used to undergo stressful nightmarish experience of pre-menstrual pains in the abdomen, calf muscles and thighs. But with the aging process steadily advancing maturity dawned upon me that God Almighty has bestowed upone privilege of bearing a child in my womb. Greatest Gift indeed from God or Mother Nature (whatever you may call). Of course, I don't have kids and I am 28 years old. But the pride sets into me whenever I look at myself in a full length mirror, fully naked. The breasts that is willing to feed a child, the slim long legs, very attractive and smiling face makes me proud. I have learned to live the monthly menstrual struggles. Thanks to the valuable advice of my gynecologist.
- —Guest sylviepink
Something I love about my body
- I have two birthmarks that I'm quite fond of. Every so often they appear, usually as I dutifully apply sunscreen at a beach or pool, and bring a small but satisfying smile to my face. When I was a child, I remember my younger brother teasing me about the fact that these emblems, as permanent as tatoos, bear a close resemblance to certain species of animals, one a pig and the other a turkey! Thinking back, I understand completely that he teased me because he loved me. These bodily childhood reminders have been with me through more than a half century of love, joy, pain, heartache, and everything in between. Maybe they have faded over time, but my birthmarks are with me for the long haul, unlike so many other things in life. My imperfections that used to embarrass, now provide a certain kind of comfort and knowledge that everything is going to be OK.
- —Guest kadelson
a vision
- I have a vision of myself: gold-specked eyes expressive face elegant collarbones helpful breasts wide hips strong calves bare feet
- —Guest Rebekah
What I love about my body is...
- this miraculous thing that my breasts do to nourish both mother and child. I love the ability breastfeeding has conferred upon me to learn about becoming a mother through the very act of giving. I love how pleasurable it is, because I was able to get thorough the uncomfortable learning times. I love that there is no disaster that could stop me from feeding my baby in a safe way, and the freedom breastfeeding has given me to step away from the marketing of the over-sexed breast, and has allowed me to say no to plastic representations of feeding
- —Guest Alysha Jones
hmmm
- My ankles. And my bodies ability to grow life inside it...it still amazes me even after having 2 kids. (not to mention the ability to keep up with them after they are born running on no sleep!)
- —Guest tara
My Health
- The older I get, the more I appreciate my health! Whenever I suffer a temporary illness or injury, I'm reminded that some people suffer chronically from similar symptoms, and I do wonder if I will suffer some chronic condition when I get older. Even though I'm overweight, I love that I'm able to walk around, carry my daughter in my arms, swim with her in the pool, and slide down the slide with her at the playground.
- —DorisLin
What I love about my body....
- ...is that I didn't love it for so long because of menopause, and now I look at myself - particularly in a full length mirror - and feel so proud of who I am, because I see a woman who learned to love herself, to respect herself. I love my long neck, and little round belly, and my hands, and my feet, and I love the strength of my back.
- —Guest Amy Ferris
BEAUTY IS AS THE BODY DOES
- He told me this morning that I have lost some of my beauty. I gazed at him quietly, knowing that what he said was true. But I also know, as I reflect on his words while pulling weeds and watering the last of this season's roses in my garden, that what he sees as a falling away, I am experiencing as a growing into. At the age of 43, I feel less and less concerned about warding off the less perfect, less desirable parts of myself, and more interested in getting to know the experienced, desiring, creative woman I am becoming. "Ripeness is what falls away with ease," said the poet Jane Hirshfield. Snipping three fading antique roses from their thorny branches and placing them in a vase of water on my desk, I offer a small prayer of gratitude for my also-fading body and say 'yes' to what is yet to bloom in me.
- —maria.housden
What I love about my body
- That it is healthy and carries my spirit and life force so I can be with people I love, work, play, and rest.
- —Guest Barbara Glickstein
Hard to move past self-doubt
- I don't know if it's that I love and appreciate my body but that I accept my body for what it is. It's climbed mountains, hiked the Grand Canyon, given birth to babies and held the hands of friends dying too young. I appreciate that my body remains healthy, and that exercise and eating right really does change the way it looks and feels. The things I love are not beautiful but honest and real. I like my toes and go barefoot to feel the earth below. My thighs are strong but not pretty. My butt is padded enough to endure bleacher seats and the cold hard ground when I sit and watch my kids play sports. I like my breasts because they're still with me while many friends have lost theirs to cancer. I like my face because it shows my feelings to the world and because it can make others feel better with a smile. My body isn't perfect, but I'm happier with it now because health matters more than beauty.
- —Guest Anna
