I remember being a 12 year old, standing in front of the mirror, crying at the first sight of my stretch marks.

I was HORRIFIED.

Not because I didn’t know what it was or what was happening to my body, but because all I had only ever heard was others speak about how unattractive it was to have these ‘imperfections’ on our skin. 

I didn’t wear a bathing suit, or step foot in a swimming pool for about 2 years after that. And just like that, other people’s opinions led me to believe that I wasn’t beautiful or worthy.

I was filled with insecurities that weren’t my own. They were just a reflection of what our society accepts as “true beauty,” and what the collective chooses to see as ugly, and imperfect.

Then one day, I realized that those little marks weren’t going anywhere; and I had two choices. Embrace it, or be a slave to it for the rest of my life. 

It was in that moment that I realized my power lies in what I choose to accept as truth. That I am the creator of my perspective and beliefs.

So, I decided to take my power back. 

Just like that.

One decision. 

And little by little, day by day, with conscious effort and a shift in perspective, those little marks and ‘imperfections’ just became a part of my body.

They were no longer foreign to my eyes. Instead, I started to see them as an external reflection of change and growth. 

I chose love for who I am and what I am, as I am; over all the voices that echoed in my head, from conditioned minds that have been taught beauty is a starved body that you see in a movie, a photoshopped picture you see in a magazine, and now, the fitspo’s that flood our feeds. 

If you’re facing this struggle… 

Feeling a little uncomfortable in your body because it doesn’t look like the model on your Instagram feed; maybe feeling unworthy because you haven’t achieved things society considers as ‘success.’ Or any other thing that is making you feel small due to social norms…

Remember this. 

YOU, and only YOU, can give power to the words or the thoughts that make you feel small or unworthy. 

Only you can choose to take your power back, and see beyond the beliefs that shape the minds of the unconscious, to wake up to your own power and consciously create your own beliefs.

To reshape your perspective and wake up to the REALITY that no matter how you look, what you’ve accomplished, the house you live in, or the car you drive;

You are beautiful,

You are worthy,

You are perfectly imperfect, whole, and complete.