Throughout my childhood being overweight was a challenging situation to go though, a situation many of us know too well. The world (Parents, teachers, coaches) sold to me as a problem with eating and exercise when in truth it was a problem between my two ears. It has always been hard for me to love the person in the mirror, I’ve always been extremely self conscious of my physical appearance from my teeth to my weight. This came from dealing with people telling me that I should look differently, the worst part is as a kid you think its all your fault. These problems persisted into my young adulthood and my insecurities have hindered me from receiving all the love, compassion, and friendship that I’ve been yearning to receive from the world. I couldn’t communicate what I was thinking because it seemed like I was the only person that had these feelings. I had to work on my perception of what my reality was and who I was. The biggest arena this weakness hit me was in my love life, but the truth is if you don’t love yourself how can you expect anyone to love you? False ideas of inadequacy plagued me until I finally put in the work and repaired the damage from my childhood, I had to be real with myself and be vulnerable.
The truth hurts.
Which brings me to one of the fastest growing superstars of 2019, Lizzo! If you havent heard of her yet you must be living under a rock, because she has been everywhere from the VMA’s, NPR’s Tiny Desk, all the way to the top of the billboard charts! She’s brought body positivity to the forefront with her superstardom and has been authentic to who she was, who she is, and who she wants to be. She’s breaking down barriers of what conventional beauty should be by looking inward instead of conforming to what you “should” look like. That being said she doesn’t want you to call her brave for being confident in her own skin. Opening up about your vulnerability can lead to a place of strength. Lizzo has stated “being emotionally honest can save you life” while going through a bat with depression this last June. By her opening up it can help release the stigma of mental health and show people who deal with this illness that normalcy is possible and there will be ups & downs. She talks about relationship problems and new triumphs that come with success. Like having a new man that plays for the Minnesota Vikings for instance.
