Taking Body Positive Influences From All Over

Evening :)

If you have read my blog before then you will have seen that I love finding positive body image sources from all over. I have linked to different people before and I think it's important to surround yourself with positive stuff, where possible. I am not saying it's a miracle cure, but I am very happy and content in the skin I am in - and for years I have sought out, collected, watched and shared positive images, videos and sayings... I guess the two are related!

Anyway, when I find pieces that I like, I want to share them because I think its important for people to have places they can stumble across little rays of sunshine when they didn't expect it - so here you go!

Carrie Hope Fletcher

The little sister of Tom McFly has had a YouTube channel for a while now. I don't pretend to know lots of facts about her but I do love her singing voice! Anyway, last week she released this video of her talking about body image, her own body and how she feels about confidence etc. I really enjoyed watching it and I hope you will too! :)

Hollie McNish

I have blogged about Hollie before and my love of her poems. This week I was reminded of her words when I found out that some of her poetry was being used for Dove adverts. 

My favourite of hers is a poem called "WOW"

One of her Dove advert ones can be seen/heard here:

I love all of these pieces - and a couple more by Hollie McNish. As ever I love Mary Lambert, Natasha Devon and so many other people!

Surrounding myself with positive influences like this really helps me to be happy with who I am... 

What do you do to help yourself with body confidence? Do you find people influential to the way you feel about your body?

I'd love to know your thoughts!

Debz 

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You Are More Beautiful Than You Think

Discovered this on twitter tonight. I loved it! The world sees you very differently than you see yourself... You are beautiful, love yourself always!! 

Where Can I Buy Confidence?

Some of you may have seen that I was quoted in The DailyTelegraphs Wonder Woman section last week...

“Debz, 30, is an internet marketer, who also runs a plus size fashion blog Wannabe Princess. She knows Miranda through Twitter (there’s definitely a scene) and loves Club Indulge, although she says her size doesn’t put her off going to mainstream nights.

“I’d go anywhere, I don’t really care, but we all come along to this together, so it’s a good opportunity to see people.” Although she admits: “If I can’t fit past someone here, I’ll tell them to move, whereas in a normal club I’d feel like I had to squeeze past or go the long way round.””

Apart from learning that I probably shouldn't talk to journalists when I am drunk, I was glad to have a link to my blog & some new visitors - Hiiii!

Anyway, I guess write-ups like this lead to 'normal' people discovering blogs and BBW websites etc. because it is something that they wouldn't usually Google to find.

I had a lovely email from a lady the day after the article and it made me realise that the blogs that we all write (And I don't mean this in a big myself up way - I mean it generically across the board) are doing some good!

" I stumbled accross your site through an article in a paper about BBW night clubs. I was so happy to see this, you look so confident and your clothes are fab.... I feel that in my life long quest to be thin I have wasted so much time on being unhappy being fat. I have so much more confidence now as I used to feel succesful when im thin and unsuccessful when im fat! I am learning to accept me as a big person, not easy though, any tips please, I love your style and confidence. xx"

I wrote back to the lovely lady (Hello if you are reading this) but it made me think, how exactly do you 'get' confidence?

This has been saved on my computer for years, I do not know the original source - sorry!

A few years back one of the biggest things for me was realising that many people suffer with the same body image issues - whether they're 'justified' or not. I started to post body positivity quotes that I liked on my Facebook and I was surprised at the number of friends that related to what I was saying. I always thought my thin, beautiful friends would never understand how I felt but actually in this image-conscious world we are all fighting the same battle.

What was also a big step for me was realising that if people wanted to pick on something about your image/look/style they will - they'll call you out for wearing glasses, or having the wrong haircut or having the wrong clothes.

This has been saved on my computer for years, I do not know the original source - sorry!

However the truth is that these people don't own me - they don't have any bearing on my life or the good memories I make with the people who do matter. Someone might make a comment in a nightclub or while I am out, but they are the ones who spend their night concentrating on others - I am usually so happy to be out with people I care about that I don't even register other people’s negativity.

I am not saying I am 100% confident - who is!! But what I am saying is that any issues I do have are just that - my own issues. I do not have to let any ill confidences I feel about my body have a negative effect on my life - or even my day. 

Whatever size clothes you wear, you deserve to be happy & have good people in your life, so never let the haters bring you down!

This has been saved on my computer for years, I do not know the original source - sorry!

I hope you're enjoying the sunshine

Debz xx

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Fat Is Not A Feeling

Today I read ‘When Your Mother Says She’s Fat’ an open letter by a lady to Kasey, to her mother. If you haven’t read the letter then please take 2 minutes to read it, it’s inspiring.

The letter covers Kasey’s body image issues, how she feels they stemmed from her mother’s ever-present hatred of her own body and how Kasey does not want those to project onto her 3 year old granddaughter.

In the letter Kasey uses the words ‘fat is not a feeling’ and that is true. All too often we are taught that if we are fat then we should feel sad and uneasy with our body. Eventually this manifests itself into ‘fat  = sad’. Before we know it, if you’re overweight then you must be sad.

The truth is that fat is a body type – it is not a feeling or an emotion.

You cannot ‘feel’ fat.

You can be fat and that being fat can make you feel sad (or happy) but you cannot feel fat.

In the letter Kasey touches on wanting to have a better body image for her daughter in the future and it would be lovely if we could all strive for this. If you are someone that has ever looked in the mirror and hated what is looking back at you, why would you want someone else – the next generation even – to feel the same way that you do.

We are in a time that is lucky to have access to all sorts of media which looks at body image in a positive light, but it is not enough... All too often we read tweets about a celebrity that has gotten too thin or someone that has put on a few pounds and is now too fat. I know that we’ll always live in a world where we look other people’s body types, but I would love to live in time when it wasn’t the most important aspect of someone.

In Kaseys letter she describes hearing her mother despair that she was fat, old and ugly. From that very moment, just a young child Kasey linked them together. If you were fat you were ugly. 

It didn’t matter that you could be fat and successful, or fat and happy, or fat and healthy or fat and the queen of your very own world, all she saw was that fat was ugly – and she never wanted to be there. She was just a child who hadn’t even had time to live through the trials and tribulations of high school and she had already been taught that if she ever made the ‘mistake’ of being overweight.

Instead of talking about body hate in front of our children, or even our friends let’s try and think about what we do like about our bodies... Trust me, you can be fat and happy with your body it just sometimes takes a little practice and a nudge in the right direction.

Be-You-Tiful

Debz xx