Something Different

What I Wore: Top - Urban Outfitters, Skirt - Loft, Shoes - Seychelles

It's a been a little while since I've posted about an outfit, but I wore a crop top today (for the first time in my life) and bought this new skirt so I thought it would be appropriate to share. Aside from the usual "I haven't been wearing anything very interesting" excuse I mainly just haven't been feeling too good about myself lately and really have not wanted to have my photo taken. Today was different. Today I felt good and wanted to share this outfit and a few thoughts I've been having.

I recently had a bad day. A day when I felt really really horrible about myself to the point where I was allowing it to ruin my entire day. After trying to spend the morning out with friends I ended up essentially locking myself up in my house to be by myself and get the negative thoughts out of my system. That day I was reminded of a previous day when one of my friends had been feeling a similar way. That day I had done my best to try and listen to her and tell her what she needed to hear, which I now realize is I what I needed to be hearing (and listening to) as well.

Here are the two things that I need to tell myself more often and actually listen to:

1. You are allowed to take up space. The more 'you' there is in the world the better because you are good and valuable and important.

2. Your body houses so many good things and allows you do so many good things. Focus on those things and not the way your arms looked in that photo or how it feels when your legs rub together under your dress. Nourish the good things your body allows you to do/think/feel.

I am realizing more and more that on my bad days I am not mad at my body but that I'm more mad at the way I think about my body. My body does everything I could ever want or need it to do, but I am in desperate need of a paradigm shift in my relationship with it. I am continuously learning how to inhabit, use, and honor the shape I was lucky enough to be born into.

And with that, I encourage to do something to honor yourself today (and tomorrow and the day after that).