How many of you have stood in front of the mirror, staring at yourself, analyzing every square inch of your body only to pick out every last “flaw”? Standing there thinking, “my god I’m ugly…look at these pimples! Is that a wrinkle on my forehead?? Jesus Christ and there’s a gray hair! Good lord my hair looks like I stole it from a used mop! Uggghhh and look at my stomach, would a sit-up kill me?”, you turn around, clench those cheeks and rather than admiring that firm squeeze, all you see is every last dimple of cellulite, “I guess it's a salad and long run tomorrow…”. Why do we tear ourselves down like this?
Here’s a challenge, take all those thoughts you have against yourself, and project them onto a loved one. A family member, a friend, or a significant other, what is your initial response? I know what mine is, absolutely not!! Why? Because we love them, and they are absolutely perfect! We love them exactly how they are, so why don’t we treat ourselves in the same manner? Every single time we look in the mirror and point out a flaw, we are developing a self-destructive habit, and our minds will immediately default to that negative, deteriorating thought process.
Here is another challenge for you, go look in the mirror, repeat out loud, “I am beautifully and wonderfully made”, give yourself a little “yaaasss queen/king” and develop a new habit, a positive one.
I must admit, I can’t take credit for that phrase, my therapist challenged me to close my eyes and think of different periods in my life; myself as a baby in my mother's arms, as a one-year-old digging my fingers into my birthday cake, or as a young girl learning to ride a bike, as a young woman who graduated college getting her first real job and finally where I am now. Each time she made me repeat, “I am beautifully and wonderfully made”. Do you know what happened? I began to cry.
I thought of the young girl I used to be, so confidently happy, and carefree, that little girl never looked in the mirror and told herself she was ugly. I then thought of my mother that made me, who is no longer here, and suddenly felt guilty tearing down the person she created, it felt like an insult. I continued to cry.
Consider all the events that had to align for you to be here, every small seemingly insignificant moment that had to occur for you to be who you are. Hell, we are all beautiful and wonderfully made, down to every last “flaw”, because you know what? They aren’t flaws at all! It’s just simply being human, and being alive.
The next time you look in the mirror, please be kind to yourself, and treat yourself as you would a loved one because you deserve to love yourself, and you deserve to know that you truly are absolutely beautiful.
To my readers, you are ALL beautifully and wonderfully made.
Yours truly, AA
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