I have grown up in a world where girls are obsessed with looking good. That is what society has made us like. We are supposed to be skinny minnies, and if we're not, we're less beautiful.

I have grown up being a girl who has a little more to love on her. I may not be overweight, but I am not tiny.

And that has tortured me.

I used to walk into a room and all I could think about was what people were thinking of me. I assumed that everyone was noticing how big I looked and that if I looked around, I would see disgusted faces.

Truth is, nobody probably even noticed. But what did I know? I was a young girl who cared about what people thought of me.

Spending my days worrying about my body and constantly monitoring myself for weight gain was truly draining.

I have since then come to a realization.

Life is way too short to spend it worrying about your body size.

I am not saying that I still don't ever think about the way that I look. I am a human, of course, I do. I want to look nice. But I am done spending my days worrying about it, and feeling bad about myself because I don't look like a Victoria's Secret model.

I have learned to love myself for the person that I am. I strive to be a good person each and every day, and that is so much more important to me than being the skinniest girl in the room.

I strive to eat healthily and to get a good amount of exercise, and that helps me to feel happy and healthy every day. So, why put negative thoughts into my own head that are only going to bring me down?

I love me. I am beautiful in my own skin.

I will never be the skinniest girl in the room, and I am okay with that.