Dustin Hoffman - Tootsie and Self Image

I will put it out there that I've never seen the film Tootsie, but after being pointed in the direction of the below link by This is My Body Project (who do great work on promoting positive body image) it is now firmly on my "To Watch" list.

http://www.upworthy.com/dustin-hoffman-breaks-down-crying-explaining-something-that-every-woman-sadly-already-experienced-3?g=2

In this interview, Hoffman speaks frankly about the need to look like a "proper" woman, not a man in drag or overtly strange, or noteworthy in any way.  He also speaks openly of his disappointment when he was shown the finished product, when he realised that he didn't look anything like what society had instilled in him as the image of a "beautiful woman" and was told there was nothing that could be done about it.

Dustin's reaction to his realisation that this feeling of disappointment, sadness, and unworthiness was something that most women tend to go through on a daily basis, is what made me want to give this man the biggest hug EVER.  I cannot put this in to words, but the link shows it all.

We are ALL beautiful, interesting, fabulous wo(men) in our own right, no matter what shell we reside in.  It's about time we, and society, started believing that.  I hope that more people (not just men!) come to the same conclusion that Dustin did, that

ALL people are created INTERESTING!

Dustin, I salute you!

ST x

Now go and tell yourself you're AWESOME!

Self Love and Shorts

We went out for a meal yesterday for a friend's birthday, and I finally managed to pluck up the courage to wear my new High Waisted Shorts (Next, second-hand courtesy of flea-bay).  My aim with these is to go a bit Monroe-esque, and the next stage will be some suitably retro/vintage (still not sure on the terminology!) tops.

Now, even though the weather was warm and the sun was shining, I still felt unsure as to whether I should even wear this outfit considering the amount of flesh on show - so I stuck the pic on Twitter and FB as you do (hehehe, nothing like a bit of self-validation is there!) and luckily all the responses were positive.  

However!  This particular response from a friend stunned me completely;

"I know everyone is saying congratulations on looking so thin and you look amazing now... But. When did you not look amazing?"

And you know what!?  He's SO right!  Why am I any less or any more amazing than when I was big, eh?!  The fact is, I'm not any more amazing now than I was a few years ago - I am now, and was then, all sorts of awesomeness.

My advice - tell yourself YOU ARE AWESOME as many times a day as you can.  Be positive, and be 100% convincing when you say it... it won't be long before you start to believe it!

ST

x