When I told my coworker that I was actually named after Rachel Green from "Friends", his reply was, "Oh the girl who never wore a bra". It has always seemed weird to me; the way people get so uncomfortable when a woman chooses to forego a bra. What, do men think we don't have nipples? Should we continue to restrain our bodies to keep the illusion, to ensure every other male is more comfortable?
I have been a dancer my whole life, which is the reason I am so comfortable in my own body. No, I was not necessarily happy because I liked what I saw, but because I couldn't be silenced. My body was my voice. I left the surface level judgments up to my scrutinizing classmates to make. I was either rehearsing in spandex shorts and a sports bra or being squeezed into some ridiculously teeny tiny costume. I spent 10 hours each week in front of a mirror, giving myself more than enough time to judge every curve of my body. But I didn't. My body was my instrument. It didn't matter if I was bloating or bulking because I saw myself as art.
This kind of comfortability carried over into my personal life where I was usually the only girl changing in front of other people. While other girls were waiting for a private stall in the bathroom, I would just start undressing either way. To me it was simple. We are all girls, and we are made up of the same parts. So, why do we have to hide behind doors like there is a secret to keep? Go ahead and wait to use the bathroom, I'll just keep waltzing around naked.
We are taught from a young age that growing up we need bra's, "for support". That we will feel "more comfortable". But most of the time, it feels like they are just used to smooth out silhouettes, that will make everyone else, feel more comfortable. Who started telling us that it is, "more appropriate" to wear bra's or, "more professional"? It is so ridiculous how frequently society tries to hide the inner workings of a female's body. The best is when someone brings up that they are on their period because for some reason we can't do this without seeming "ill-mannered", as if men didn't realize that at one point when they do envelope us we will be able to bear their children. How about the way we are innately filled with shame for looking in the tampon aisle as if there is something wrong with us for bleeding? As if there is something wrong with us for being able to hold the future in our bellies.
It's comical to me, how "embarrassing" and "inappropriate" a woman's nipple is to society. As if the person MAKING that judgment was not breastfed by their mother when they were younger. Yes, we get cold. The hairs on our arms will stick up, our teeth will probably start to chatter, and just like you, our nipples get hard. To society: sorry, I didn't realize how "offensive" the sympathetic nervous system was... I guess I just won't get cold???
The next time someone tries to shame another woman for being hard while not wearing a bra, remember that is the same nipple that will feed future generations and nourish you kids one day. So, do what you have always done. Only acknowledge our carefully sculpted bodies when you want to get laid, and we will continue to make you uncomfortable.
