The other morning, I woke up and went to the bathroom to start getting ready for class. I stopped to look in the mirror and for the first time in a long, long time, I looked at myself and thought, “Wow, I don’t look ugly.”

It honestly surprised me, because normally when I view myself in the mirror I always have a flaw to pick out, something to criticize, or some part of my body to wish was better. Whether it’s being skinnier, having some definition to my cheekbones, wishing my hair was longer, or just focusing on acne on my face.

For the first time in a long time, I looked at myself and only saw good. I was not only okay with what I saw, but I was happy. I was looking at my raw, untouched, sleepy self, and I was okay with her.

When I began to think positively about myself, I almost began to feel conceited for thinking highly of myself. I then paused to think, since when did feeling good about yourself become something to be ashamed of?

That’s when it clicked.

It is so hard for women (and men for that matter) to feel genuinely beautiful and good about themselves because the media does nothing but give us false images to gawk at and to strive towards. When you look at yourself and you aren’t seeing what society has deemed beautiful, you feel subpar. Ugly. Gross. Fat. The list goes on and on. What I’ve realized is that when our society meets people who DO feel good about their body image, they’re viewed as conceited or full of themselves. I’d like to imagine a world where men and women are able to see themselves as nothing but beautiful in the body they were born with. Imagine a world where people can look in the mirror and think something positive before they’d pick apart (seemingly) negative traits about themselves.

These thoughts sparked an idea for me to start a “This is Me” Campaign.

I posted this picture with the following caption.

And this is me being okay with her. It's been a long time since I've been able to look in the mirror without thinking something negative or wishing for something more.

This is me, and I'm okay with this girl."

After doing this, I reached out to other women, asking them to be vulnerable and try doing what I did, just to see how they'd react and to see their opinions about their body imaging.

When I saw these women and their comments, it became so apparent to me that so many women struggle with the same issues. Imagine this - Women empowering other women instead of putting them down. Instead of judging. Instead of COMPARING. Imagine... encouragement. Vulnerability. Honesty.

These are just a handful of the pictures and comments from women who are comfortable saying, "This is Me."

"This is me awake for a 7 a.m meeting. This is me with tired eyes. This is me with wet, unbrushed hair. This is me with no makeup. This is me with skin peeling on my forehead and flaking in my hair. This is me with irritated pimples on my face. This is me valuing sleep, and health over looking put together."

"This is me straight out of the shower with no makeup and crazy, wet hair about to get in bed. This is me totally vulnerable and feeling somewhat awkward, but the point is that it's the raw me. Me the way that I come and me the way that I was made. No one should feel ashamed to be/look like/embrace themselves. And that's something I'm still learning and struggling with, but this is me."

"This is me in the morning light. This is my massive sleep shirt covering my shorts and my bed head that is about as messy as the room behind me. These are my puffy swollen eyes and all the imperfections I hide with makeup. This is me showing the world what I've always hoped my husband would love me enough to accept.

And this is the day I choose to love myself enough bed head, puffy eyes, and all, believing that l am 'all together beautiful' and 'there is no flaw' in me."

"I have a hard time feeling pretty with or without makeup, whenever I wear makeup and I fix my hair, I tend to be happier with myself. I know that with makeup on and my hair done I am still me. I just tend to feel like a more put together me. But why? I should feel equally beautiful either way. Beauty comes from within and shines through confidence, humility, kindness, and compassion. I am still learning that the hard way, but for the mean time, this is me."

Our thoughts are consumed with how we can stand out, what will make us more attractive. We base our decisions on what we believe others would want from us, or how we believe others will perceive us. We seek validation that our efforts are meaningful. We're frustrated and hurt when we're not seen how we want to be seen. We're embarrassed and ashamed when we're seen when we don't want to be seen.

Now imagine a world where women are not only comfortable, but also confident to look in the mirror and say, "This is me."

Try it for yourself. You are a beautiful you.