mybetter_self/InstagramEvery day we are bombarded with images of impossible perfection; flawless skin, shapely figures and wind-defying hair.
It’s therefore all too easy to beat yourself up over the parts of your body which don’t reach this standard. The sense of failing in some way to be the ideal can hurt.
I’m sure I’m the only one who has been amazed when a friend has opened up about their insecurities. They hate the way their tummy sticks out after a big meal, they fret over the way their arm flesh looks in a short sleeved t-shirt.
And all you can do is stare in bewilderment, wondering what sort of funhouse mirror they have been looking in. We are all of us so repulsed by what makes us human, and are therefore confused when we don’t resemble a carefully curated Instagram post.
Bums appear to be a particular source of worry, perhaps more so for girls.
Buttock implant surgery has become popular in recent years, with plenty of women determined to achieve a camera-ready bottom of fashionable proportions.
However, body positive fitness model Louise Aubrey has used her influential Instagram presence to spread a very important message.
She posted two side-by-side images of her behind, one where she is posing and one where she is standing naturally. Her bottom looks very different – and perfectly fine – in both pictures.
Captioning the post, the Paris based student explained to her 154 thousand followers:
« You cannot understand, you have a perfect body ». ⠀
⠀
Yes, I workout. Yes, I eat healthy. No, I do not have a perfect body.And you know why? Because I stopped looking for it.
She continued:
When I started working out, I had these crazy expectations on the body I hoped / wanted to get.
Finally, I will get a thigh gap, a flat stomach, and no more cellulite !! Because that’s how a healthy body is perceived.
Because people make you think is it not normal to have it. But you know what ? It is.
Yes, I still store fat on my stomach. Yes, I still have cellulite. And yes, I am still « healthy ». Remember one thing : your body is NOT the enemy.
Check out more about body positivity below:
Louise’s followers were quick to applaud her positive message, and were grateful to her for setting such an admirable example.
One person commented:
She’s wonderful! I love her so much… The more I read her posts, the better I feel.
Another said:
Being healthy matters more then what society has us strive to be to have super fit aesthetics by far.
And accepting ones self and being thankful for ones body is an amazing quality itself. Great post girl!
Louise told UNILAD:
I am so happy to see this post helped women felt better in their own skin and realized nothing is wrong with their body.
It is so easy to scroll social media, and fall in the trap of comparison and start asking yourself Why don’t I look like this ?
She added:
I think a lot of women struggle to love their body because of the ideal body we are pressured to get.
What is even harder nowadays is that this ideal is informal – it is not the one we see on billboards, the girls we know are models anyway, it is all the women showing their best angles on social media.
And it is natural to want to look good in a public space, but it is just detrimental to me to only show one side of reality that makes us believe we are the problem not to look flawless 24/7.
mybetter_self/Instagram
mybetter_self/Instagram
mybetter_self/InstagramAccording to The 2017 Dove Global Girls Beauty and Confidence Report, eight out of ten girls, between the ages of 10 and 17, will avoid spending time with family and friends if they are unhappy with their personal appearance.
Louise said:
I did not become confident overnight. I think it is a long process and I am not even sure I can say I am 100% confident now.
But what I can definitely is that I am accepting myself as I am; and that I stopped blaming my body for not being perfect. I think this is what has helped me more and what my main advice would be : stop looking for perfection.
Take care of your body FOR yourself, and not AGAINST who you are.
A few words from a role model like Louise really could make all the difference to the girls and young women who feel uncomfortable in their own bodies.
If you have a story you want to tell send it to UNILAD via [email protected]
Jules studied English Literature with Creative Writing at Lancaster University before earning her masters in International Relations at Leiden University in The Netherlands (Hoi!). She then trained as a journalist through News Associates in Manchester. Jules has previously worked as a mental health blogger, copywriter and freelancer for various publications.