How many of you have ever done this or something similar?
...looked down at your humanly imperfect body, squeezed, lifted, and pulled at the trouble spots, frowned, thinking, “This won’t do at all.” so you...
- Decided to go on a strict diet and/or exercise regimen,
- Calculated how long it would take to get to your PERFECT! weight,
- Circled that date on the calendar
and told yourself--subconsciously or not--
THAT’S when my life will turn around! THAT’S when I’ll be happy! When I’ll feel confident! When I'll ask that guy/girl out! When I’ll ask for that raise! When I’ll finally wear that bathing suit! When I’ll go to the beach and actually be wearing said bathing suit!
And life will be just dandy.
Except it’s not, is it?
91percent of women hate their bodies.
In response to this alarming statistic, Taryn Brumfitt's on a mission
Taryn Brumfitt, former inhabitant of a (nearly) perfect body, is now on a global crusade to change that.
After she had her three children, she hated the way her body looked, and her confidence suffered terribly. Her internal voice which, on her blog she describes as “The Dark Passenger” would say things to her like:
“You are so disgusting. You shouldn’t go out. Your husband doesn’t want to be with you. You are gross. Look at how your tummy wobbles. Look at those stretch marks – you are scarred for life. You are hideous. You’re not so desirable any more, are you!”
She allowed herself to become nearly traumatized by how pregnancy and childbirth had drastically changed her body. She held herself up to the unrealistic beauty standards of society and, like the majority of natural women, found herself wanting.
In 2012, while contemplating impending plastic surgery which included a breast augmentation and tummy tuck, Taryn had a serious epiphany:
“If I go through with this, what am I saying to my daughter about body image? How will I teach her to love her body? How am I going to encourage her to accept and love her body, when I am standing in front of her with a surgically enhanced body? What type of hypocrite or mother would I be?”
In order to be the most positive role model for her daughter, Mikaela, she decided against getting the surgery. She knew that she had made the right choice by not sending the wrong message to her daughter, but she was still very unhappy with the state of her figure.
Because she was determined to “fix” her body, Taryn went through extreme lifestyle changes in her diet and exercise habits.
Having cultivated her ideal aesthetic, she was perfectly fit, but was desperate for a more balanced, moderate approach to life.
“I felt I was a selfish mother,” she says on her blog .
She decided all the time and sacrifice of strenuous dieting and exercise just wasn’t worth it, so she let herself gain the weight back, but she struggled with her body image again.
She says she asked herself, "What if? What if I could live happily with my body? Was this even possible?”
In 2013, she made a media sensation when she posted unconventional “before and “after” photos of herself that caused over 3 million Facebook members to respond.
In fact, it made headline news in Paris, the United States, and London specifically. Facebook users went totally bananas over a nude "after" photo of herself having gained weight.
So it was at that time in Taryn’s life that a Body Image Movement was born; when she decided that she would share with anyone how she went from a self-loathing person who couldn’t stand her own imperfections to a blissed-out, body positive advocate championing for everyone to do the same.
Body Image Movement (B.I.M.), a massive campaign to change society's concept of beauty. This is radical body positive activism aimed specifically at reaching women, girls, and young men. B.I.M.’s goal is in encouraging them to prioritize their health above their beauty.
The movement is strongly opposed to photoshopping, the sexualization of girls in the media, the objectification of women, and advertising preying on women's insecurities.
Celebrities that who’ve endorsed Taryn and her movement include Ashton Kutcher, Rosie O’Donnell, and Zooey Deschanel.
So far, more than 19,000 people have joined Taryn and the Body Image Movement.
To augment the campaign, Taryn has created a documentary called "Embrace", which will screen in Australia and the U.S. that details her journey to inspire everyone to, essentially, "embrace" their natural, God-given bodies.
The documentary, which was launched in 2013, was funded through a Kickstarter campaign. It just recently wrapped filming and editing in May 2016.
The world premiere took place on June 12.
The documentary stars: Ricki Lake, Taryn Brumfitt, Matthew Brumfitt, Mia Freedman, Stefania Ferrario, Professor Marika Tiggemann, Dr. Fardad Forouzanpour, Jane Langton, Amanda De Cadenet, Melinda Tankard, Reist Nikiah Seeds, Jes Baker, Dr Linda Bacon, Jade Beall Renee, Airya Turia Pitt.
The Body Image Movement Will Not Tolerate:
- Media images which have been “Photoshopped” or “Filtered” excessively
- Unrealistic body images set as the standard to emulate
- The Sexualization and Objectification of Girls and Women in Media and Society
- The belief that weight is necessarily a predictor of health
- Advertising campaigns which take advantage of women’s insecurities
The Body Image Movement Supports:
- The celebration of body diversity: All body types and sizes are beautiful
- Accepting and loving the self and the natural body
- Allowing oneself to age gracefully
- Focusing on the important matters, rather than being envious
- Preparing individuals to combat body image negativity in the media and society
- Teaching women that “their body is not an ornament, but a vehicle to their dreams.”
- Health at every size is possible
Taryn’s message is beautiful, straightforward, and clear:
"Darling girl : don’t waste a single day being at war with your body. Just embrace it."
"Embrace" is now airing in Australia and will air in the United States beginning August 4.
You can get news updates, including release dates and where you can view "Embrace" by joining the mailing list here.
"Embrace."
“Your body. The movement. Global Change.”
