Men don’t think twice about it. Short, tall, big, small, they take off their t-shirts + walk around the pool deck with no thoughts of how their bodies look. No one shames them for a little pudge around the middle or a crepey skin. Even more, most don’t think about it at all.

But for women, donning a bathing suit can be completely traumatizing. We over-analyze the cut + the look from every angle. Does it show me in the best light? Is it age appropriate? Too revealing, too matronly? Will it cover THOSE areas? Let’s not even mention the “C” word – (whispers cellulite). We can be our own worse enemies. Forget that we believe other women will body shame us. We shame our selves.

So when I say, “Should I?” It was really my mindset around posting this video. My husband, the videographer, thought it was beautiful. So did my Mother, who is a truth teller extraordinaire. I anguished – maybe too strong of a word, but Dolls get the point – over my image of myself; but decided that I wasn’t going to be ashamed of where I am in my life with my body.

So, yes I will post it. As I embrace another year around the sun this week, I am going to work to get out of my head + embrace my body. What I don’t like, I’ll work on. What I like, I’ll maintain. And, at the end of the day, isn’t beauty also about what’s on the inside and our health? Isn’t that what makes a healthy body image?

Here are some gems I found about healthy body images.

💡 Deconstruct what the media is presenting.

💡 Be realistic about your individual size.

💡Appreciate the wonderful person you are.

💡Speak up when you hear others body shaming.

💡 Remind yourself that “true beauty” is not simply skin-deep.

💡 Surround yourself with positive people.

💡 Work on shutting down those voices in your head that tell you your body is not “right.

Here’s to loving the skin we are in! 🥂

Until then,

The Pretty Domestic