Self v. Reality

As of recently, I've been having more and more difficult with body image issues. Not entirely surprising, considering that I've been engaging in negative thoughts and self-talk far more than I should. Stemming from the fact that I'm officially menstruating again, (which is an issue in itself that I'm trying to come to terms with) and trying to regulate that with birth control, my body has changed in places that make me extremely uncomfortable. And no matter how many comments I get on how good I look now, or how many times I catch people's eyes wandering, I just don't see it. And it's getting to the point that I'm wondering if I just don't want to let myself see it.

Coming to point, I stumbled across a video produced by Dove concerning self-perception and reality a few days ago. Not only did it make me sad that critical, unrealistic self-perception is such a common problem in our society, but it also made me wonder if maybe I, too, could be a part of that group. That maybe it's not society that's crazy and/or lying, but rather me, holding myself back from letting myself feel pretty, feel like I'm worth looking at, feel like I'm enough. 

I don't have any life-changing idea to end with. But I think the video has a grain of truth. And with that in mind, I think it's about time to try and stop questioning anything that's remotely positive that is said about my body. The goal is that maybe I can learn to accept a compliment without taking a rip on my self-worth. And beyond that, maybe one day I'll look in the mirror and see what everyone else around me seems to see.