My name is Paige, and I am 19 years old, and this is the story of how I learned to love my body. When I was a freshman in high school, I wasn’t sure how I felt about myself, I just thought I was a regular looking kid. I wasn’t always the biggest fan of my body when I was going through high school, but I didn’t really open up to anyone about it. I wasn’t sure who I could talk to about it, so I kind of just let it eat my insides. It bugged me a little more each and every day, and it didn’t help that I was insecure about my teeth and smile because at the time I had my braces. I played a lot of sports when I was younger so I was pretty fit growing up, but it a lot changed after I got into high school. I began to notice what other girls looked like and the clothes they wore. A part of me thought, “I would never be able to pull that off,” and I got mad at myself because I didn’t want to look at myself that way.

I wanted to be able to show myself to the world in a way I felt comfortable.

The older I got, the more I realized that I didn’t need to view myself in an unrealistic manner, like what you would see in magazine. I only looked at myself, and I realized that I was made to look this way, and if I wanted to, I could change it. I woke up every single morning for a week, and told myself, “You look beautiful today Paige.” And doing that for only one week made me feel better and better every single day. I didn’t have this unrealistic expectation of my body. The only thing I needed was self-love. And ever since, I have looked at myself in a new light, and it shined brighter than ever. I love my body, and I hope you learn to love yours.