The Challenge: Fall in Love… with Yourself
February 1, 2008 by angelique
Filed under Women's Health
WOW!!!
It’s the first Breaking the Mirror contest!
To encourage readers to stop the vicious cycle of self-loathing that can lead to eating disorders, I am asking every person who reads this post to leave a comment stating THREE specific aspects of their physical appearance they LOVE and WHY they love those parts of their bodies.
Not possible, you say? Pshaw! Even if it’s just your earlobes, belly button and big toes, I have no doubt that you can pick a trio of attributes to adore.
The winner of this contest will be chosen using a random number generator on Thursday, February 14, 2008 at 8:00 p.m. EST. He or she will receive a brand new copy of Nancy Redd’s phenomenal book BODY DRAMA. It’s taking the literary world by storm and is sure to open your eyes.
It’s time to stop hating and begin embracing the beauty in every figure and every size.
So what are you waiting for?
Start telling the world what you love about your bod!
(* P.S. The only person who is ineligible to win is me. Multiple entries are encouraged as long as they aren’t duplicates!)
Ok! I am the FIRST!!! (that’s gotta count for something, right?)
Here are three things about my body that I love:
1. my blue eyes. They are very blue and NO these are not color contacts. Even when I don’t feel so great about how I look, I can count on my eyes to get a compliment, or at least a comment.
2. my collarbone. I think it’s pretty hot. I wish I had more clothes that accentuated it.
3. my hands. Because they are strong and not pretty and not soft. They have all kinds of little nicks and scars that probably only I can notice, but each has a little story behind it. Like, oh, there’s where I cut my finger trying to make that stained glass window at camp…..there’s where I burnt my knuckle attempting to bake….
That’s what I got.
Three things I love about my body:
1 – My feet. My toes go in descending length order from the big toe to the little toe and I have a two cute freckles on the top of my left foot, one near my ankle and one low on the outside.
2 – The tiny mole on my stomach just above and inside the point of my right hip bone. It shows when I wear a two-piece bathing suit and makes me feel like a total hottie.
3 – My lower back, because the way it curves makes me feel like a model. I regret getting a tattoo there, but it’s still my favorite…
Bonus: I love the way my legs feel, especially my butt, after I do plies.
Kristen
Woohoo, me next, me next!
1. Like Gabrielle, my collarbone. Looks great in tanks and straplesses.
2. My belly/waist. I’m very fortunate in no matter how much weight I gain or lose, I keep an hourglass shape (there, anyway, haha).
3. My eyes. I can get stuff done with them.
LOL.
Ok, I am up…
1. The girls, yes the boobs would be what I am referring to, after 3 kids and breastfeeding they still sit on up there and people take notice, haha.
2. My red hair. I have had it since I was born, the same color and I like that it makes me a bit different.
3. All my incisions and scars- they remind me of what I have been through in the past that has made me who I am today!
I am really enjoying this string of comments and the post that started it all. Reading through all of your answers, I can’t help but think of Gloria Steinem’s fantastic essay, “In Praise of Women’s Bodies.” It’s super short; I highly recommend it if you haven’t read it before.
I love my …
1. … wrists! No matter how much weight I gain or lose, my wrists stay dainty and girly! I love bracelets because they accent my wrists.
2. … calves. They are big, muscular, get me places, and rarely ache after a long walk. They might be tough to get into knee-high boots, but I love ‘em anyway!
3. … my shoulders! My dad used to tell me that I had linebacker shoulders and I was very self-conscious of them – but as a grown woman, I see them as strong, powerful parts of my body (and they encourage me that I’ll never put shoulder pads in ANY of my jackets!).
These are all great and I thank everyone who has contributed thus far!
Let’s keep the ball rolling, folks. I want to hear all about what you LOVE about your bodies! (Guys can enter, too… why not? If they don’t want the book, they can give it to the woman in their life!)
oh, i think i would like to fall in love with myself …
thank you for this contest!
what i like about my body-self:
1) my hair: full and strong and forgiving. it looks great both coloured and when i let the full “metallic look” shine through.
2) my hands: yes, they’re getting older and they’re showing it. and they’re still a mixture of strength and elegance. i absolutely adore all the touching they do!
3) my big nose. always has been big. thank you, nose, you gave me the first memory of standing up for how i look. a 14-year old, this specialist said to me, “you’re really quite pretty, and if you did something about your nose … ” i still remember my indignation when i told him, “this is MY nose, and we’re gonna keep it EXACTLY the way it is!”
here’s a poem i wrote a while ago that you might find a propos:
http://www.moritherapy.org/article/thank-you-body/
This is such a great idea for a contest. I love it!
OK, 3 things…
1. My lips – I’ve always loved how full and nicely proportioned they are.
2. My fingers – they are crazy long, like my grandmother’s.
3. My eyes – they are such a nice shape.
This was an interesting exercise – all my first thoughts were of parts of my face, probably because I’m an artist and have drawn a million self-portraits involving all these parts. Maybe I should start drawing the rest of my body so that I can learn to appreciate it more, too!
I love it!!! This is inspiring me to do something similar, of course if the owner of the idea doesn’t mind, hahaha. I really love all the answers, it is great!
isabella mori – Your #3 was so very touching. I like how you chose something not because you thought it was aesthetically pleasing but because it helped you develop an inner strength and the fortitude to stand up for yourself.
thanks, alicia. i really am very grateful for that experience.
I wasn’t going to enter this contest at first because I honestly couldn’t think of 3 things. I could only come up with two and that was with a lot of thought. But, I finally did find a third.
1- my unusual eyes. They are mostly yellow with a hint of green. I used to have people stop me in public asking me if I knew that my eyes matched my blonde hair.
2- my hair. It’s quite thin but it’s very curly. I used to hate my hair as it was so unmanageable but I finally found a hair stylist who knows exactly how to cut it. I still have my natural dirty blonde colour and the curl is now controllable, now that I know *how* to do it.
3- my skin is still very smooth. Most people are truly shocked when they found out I’m closer to 50 than 40. It’s a natural thing though, because I didn’t really do anything to take care of it when I was younger. Still, nice to have smooth skin.
I guess I’m next. And this shouldn’t be too hard because I’ve had to list MORE than three but it’s pretty hard to find three things I L-O-V-E.
1. I love my hair. I had to get it all cut off 18 months ago and it made me feel really insecure and self-conscious. But I love how curly & soft it is now. How absolutely unruly it is in the mornings and how beautiful I feel when I step out of the shower with soaking wet hair. Honestly, it gives me something else to focus on other than my body and I can smile and I really need that.
2. I love my eyes. It’s probably the thing I get compliments for most often. Truthfully, I can never see the beauty in them when I’m looking in the mirror. But every so often I’ll see a picture of myself and see what others see and then I love them. They’re a beautiful light brown and I have really long lashes. So when my eyebrows are perfectly arched and I’m not hiding behind my glasses, I can totally see how I could charm people with a simple glance.
3. My very readable face. My friends actually call me the overhead projector because no matter what’s going on, if someone knows me, they can easily tell. Honestly, sometimes I can’t even tell that it’s written all over my face, but I love that people (who I let in, mind you) can take one look at me and know that I’m either having the time of my life, oh so content with life, scared, upset, anxious, or freaked out. It’s somewhat annoying in therapy mind you, or when I really don’t feel like talking about something. But I absolutely love that when I’m around loved ones, they never have to guess what’s going on up in this crazy head of mine.
Three things about my body that I love:
1. My eyes. Are they blue? Grey? Green? It depends on my mood and what I’m wearing. I love them.
2. My hair. I’ve got long, thick, reddish-brown hair. It’s one of my best features.
3. My boobs. I’m a D cup, no matter what I weigh ~ I enjoy them, just because I can dress to enhance them, and to take the attention away from my stomach area.
Okay, I thought of one more:
The dimple in my right cheek. I love that too.
3 things I love:
1. my nose. It’s pretty close to perfect.
2. my quads: They are strong and have gotten me through 3 marathons
3. my thick hair
(3 things…*takes a deep breath*
at first it seemed impossible….)
1. My legs are delicately narrowing around my knees and ankles. (I’m not going into upper areas…)
2. When I exercise regularly, it shows. I mean there’s result after all that sweat and suffer.
3. My hands are strong.
Again, these are FANTASTIC! I just can’t tell you guys how much I love hearing that YOU love things about yourselves!
I still haven’t decided my own three. Luckily, I have until Valentine’s Day to decide!
You have no idea how long it has taken me to come up with the three things – and even now I’m not convinced I mean it.
1) My wrists – I love the size, the shape. They seem to be the only “constant” in my life – over the years they have always stayed the same.
2) My fingernails – after 20 years of biting them terribly, I have finally been successful in growing them and they are stronger than I thought they would be.
3) My collarbones. It’s a love/hate relationship, but I do find collarbones to be extremely beautiful. Mine come and go, but when they’re visible, I find it beautiful.
(This was way harder than I thought it would be!)
I wouldn’t have been able to answer this a few months ago having been at the peek of my bulimic tendencies. I now realize that no matter what “size” we are, there are attributes to carry with pride! Those that do carry them with pride are the beautiful ones, no matter what size we are!
1. I appreciate my face, it is a happy face and a smile is worth something money cannot buy! A smile can make a huge difference on both the giver, and receiver!
2. I appreciate my skin, it is clear and free of hair naturaly, also I am learning to be comfortable in it!
3. I love my hair, I have full black hair and it is naturally straight, I can curl it, braid it, stlye it, or just leave it pin straight, also I feel it will be with me even in my old age.
Thanks for the opportunity to share! This in itself is a milestone for me!
No matter who or what we look like, we can emit confidence and beauty by knowing what our heart is made of!
I love my hair. It’s shiny and has a beautiful auburn /red color. I even like the way the silver is coming in. It just glistens.
I love my eyes. They are brown and look like a doe’s eyes. They are very expressive.
I love my fingernails. I look like a have a French manicure and they just grow that way.
Thank you for requesting this. I’ve enjoyed reading other’s comments.
1 & 2 are hips and butt I just acquired these when I got clean 12 years ago I wouldnt trade them for anything.
3. This is the most important thing I love about myself my stretch marks for everytime I see them I am reminded of the days I carreid my boys who are now 18 n 26…