On Body Image

Body image issues are complex, and their roots run deep.

Societally, all women are told we are not enough, on some level, but this is not true to the same degree for all of us.

No one issue is any more valid than another—there is space to process for all of us—but it would be shortsighted to fail to acknowledge that some issues are more costly than others, literally and figuratively.

I do not know what it feels like to know that my life is always in danger. I do not have to spend extra money on my airline tickets, or be gawked at for eating French fries in public, or be trolled out of "concern" for my health. I do not have to hide my relationship out of fear of it being "wrong."
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But I know that, if any of those is true for you, all of those things deeply, profoundly affect the ways in which you see yourself. I know it is possible that you have internalized their messages to some degree, believing that you're not worthy of feeling free, and boundless, and magical.

I believe no one owes anyone else their strength or their health (or really anything to which you didn't agree). I believe you can make whatever choices feel right and true for you, and I believe you should be able to make those without shame or judgment. I believe that we're all made greater when you let your soul shine, no matter which story is dominating the tale or which issues you face.

And I believe that we should all create space and hold it for each of us to safely work out our body image issues with each other, so that we can rise together.