The Strength in Vulnerability
Be comfortable in your own skin.
Beauty is about being comfortable with yourself.
When you’re comfortable with yourself, you won’t care what others think.
Just be you, don’t be who the world wants you to be.
Your value doesn’t decrease based on someone else’s inability to see your worth.
Too fat, too thick, too thin, too muscular, too light, too dark, too uneven, too … TOO.
While all of these phrases are thrown about. Scattered across newsfeeds and tossed into casual text conversations back and forth – does anybody really believe them? You might repeat it back to yourself. Say it to yourself in the mirror every morning.
But do you believe it?
Do you think that you, in your own skin, doing what you do, every day, is enough?
You have affirmations from friends and family. Significant others. Clients. Passers-by on the streets.
But why can’t you afford yourself that comfort?
We are our own worst critic. That’s a fact. But how can we be our biggest supporter too? Because what if, one day, your biggest supporter isn’t there anymore? Do we lose our value because an external source doesn’t give us internal validation?
The inner dialogue is enough to stifle even the most confident, strongest (wo)men. So why do we do this to ourselves?
Honestly, at the end of the day – the reasoning isn’t the question. And the question won’t even give us the answer.
I won’t pretend that I’m an expert in this. I’m not. Sometimes I don’t think I am enough. I struggle with needing to prove it. Repeatedly. Usually to myself, sometimes to others. I repeat to myself that I’m strong enough. Fast enough. Tough enough. Hard working enough. Approachable enough.
I thought long and hard before sharing any of this, because it’s a struggle I deal with every.single.day. Am I enough? How do I prove that? Do I need to prove that? To myself? To someone else? Why? Isn’t beauty in the eye of the beholder? Or is comfort in the eye of the coveted?
I saw a photo like this one on Instagram months ago. Despite others telling me that I had lost weight. Gained muscle. Looked rested. My diet plan was working… I never felt confident or comfortable enough to take a similar photo. But why not?
Vulnerability.
Was that really it?
Or was it that I feared approval. From myself. From others.
Self-doubt filled my mind. Acceptance from peers, co-workers, clients – it made me freeze. These negatives had always previously stopped me from loving myself. Opening myself to new opportunities. Challenging myself to grow.
This photo is unedited. 100% pure and open and raw. When I first took it, I saw a girl who was scared. A woman who has been broken. I saw a human with flaws.
Today – I want to be stronger than that. I need to be braver than that.
Today? I am. Tomorrow I will be, too.
If I can, others can be. Living Unbreakable isn’t just about training your body, it’s about fueling your mind. Being your own number one fan. It’s not a cliché. It’s not being selfish. It’s about finding and owning every inch of your being. It’s about being your own champion.
Now repeat after me… “My “enough” is enough. I am Unbreakable.”
#WorldMentalHealthDay