How do you love the skin you are in?

Why is it that no matter if you are tall, short, fat, thin, black, white, athletic or strong, we all go through some level of self loathing at some point in our lives. Some of us never escape it.

Before I had babies I have to say I was quite a body confident person. I was a little heavier than what was healthy to be but aesthetically I didn't mind that. I was curvaceous and so looked good in the 50s style clothes that I like to wear. During pregnancy I ballooned but forgave myself for it because the human body is a magical thing! I breastfed and after a lifestyle change of healthier eating, the baby weight has gone, and some. 

Now heading towards my mid-thirties I weigh what I did as a teen; but the reflection in the mirror doesn't quite look the same. I think it's that thing of, if you're born with straight hair, you want curly hair or if you have blue eyes you want brown eyes. When people talk about having babies you often hear them complain about stretch marks, and whilst I got my fair share, they are not that bad and they don't bother me. However, what I'm struggling with is loose or saggy bits. Just saying the word makes me cringe. I don't want to have the wrinkly skin of an 80 year old, that's not fair! 

Now if I'm honest the only people who are ever going to see the wrinkly bits are myself and my husband, but even then its bothering me. As a twentysomething I once won a joke award from my pals of 'Top Tits' and here I am now able to role them up like a burrito. It's not me in the mirror anymore. My husband however is amazing. He tells me no less than 10 times a day how amazing I look;

back when I was on the heavier side, full blown preggers and complementing me now on my fitter physique. If he loves me and the skin I'm in, no matter how ill-fitting it may be, then I should be able to give myself a break.

You may have seen Chidera Eggerue posts as 'theslumflower' on Instagram, a stunning body positive woman who has ditched the bra and flaunts the hashtag 'saggyboobsmatter', one of her goals being to ensure that all body types are represented on social media. It also makes me think of Katie Piper who I am a massive fan of and whom I have looked up to over the years. She's been through a nightmare and yet is so beautiful and always looks stunning. It makes me realise that we should not be apologetic about the bodies that we have. Every body is beautiful and just because the media is so one sided doesn't mean there aren't more bodies like our own out there. I love to see real women in advertising. Seeing women with their tiger stripes, prosthetics and bras off, always makes me appreciate the advertiser a little bit more. Brands like Snag Tights and Dove are doing this amazingly right now and really championing diversity. 

If you embrace the skin you are in, have the confidence to be who you are, warts or psoriasis and all, maybe someone else will see you and think, 'huh it's not just me', or 'they look good maybe I can wear that too?'. We all have a part to play in lifting each other up. This goes for men too who are so often forgotten about when it comes to body confidence. Love who you are, how you got here and support the people around you. 

Because, 'if you can't love yourself, how in the hell you gonna love somebody else?'.