We’ve all heard it said that people are only as old as they feel. Regardless of a person’s age, he or she may have a poor body image that leads to impressions of ugliness and problems with low self-esteem.
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However, it’s so important to love the skin you’re in. When you do that, this attitude naturally projects to the world around you and can inspire others without you even realizing it.
Keep reading how to have a better sense of yourself.
Look At Your Whole Face In The Mirror
Upon getting up in the morning, one of the first things you probably do is survey your face in the mirror. However, many people quickly and automatically zoom in on their flaws. The first thing you might notice is a zit on your chin, how there seems to be more frown lines on your face, or that you’d really like to get that beauty mark on your cheek removed.
However, as soon as you notice yourself looking only at those perceived downsides, force yourself to take a more overall look by noticing the combined beauty of your entire face. Also, as you study your reflection, shape your face into a broad grin.
Over time, if you do that daily, it should be much easier to appreciate how your whole face looks, rather than just looking at the parts of your face that you’d like to change.
Study Your Body In A Positive Way
Whenever you get out of the shower, you probably can’t help but notice if your knees look a little bony or it seems there is more fat around your midsection. In the same way it’s important to notice what’s beautiful about your face, do the same when surveying your body.
It’s very important to be aware of changes in your body, especially since some differences can signal the onset of health problems. However, instead of grumbling about all the faults of your figure, celebrate the great things about it.
Furthermore, it’s also useful to utter some sort of upbeat affirmation as you look at the things that make your body unique. In some cases, it may be beneficial to choose a mantra that turns a negative factor into something positive.
For example, if you think your arms look too bulky because they are very muscular, you can say something like “My strength makes me beautiful.”
On the other hand, if your stomach has stretch marks ever since you gave birth to children, admire those stretch marks and see them as a reminder of how your body adapted to what’s necessary for carrying a child to term.
Don’t Let The Media Influence Your Idea Of What Constitutes Beauty
If you look through a leading beauty magazine or watch TV for a few minutes, you’ll probably be met with images of people who have seemingly perfect bodies and a distinctive lack of flaws.
However, keep in mind that the vast amount of those images have been tweaked by photo improvement software, and even the people you see in commercials or on TV shows have most likely spent hours getting make-up applied by professionals.
Knowing that, it’s important to remind yourself that the perceived beauty you notice from those media stars is probably not natural. Trying to judge yourself against those examples is a nearly guaranteed way to bring yourself down.
Ideally, it’s a good idea to limit your exposure to that kind of media if you notice that it’s a bad influence on you. Doing that can be tricky in the case of TV commercials, but try not to dwell on what you see.
If you can’t consider the possibility of going without your favorite beauty magazines, consider reading an electronic version of them and switching to the text-only version of the content. In many cases, that allows you to just read the words of the articles inside the magazine, rather than also receiving exposure to the advertisements.
Surround Yourself With People Who Lift You Up
It’s also important to be around people who consistently remind yourself how amazing you are. Often, those individuals will be your closest friends. If it seems like the people you interact with are trying to make you change instead of being supportive of who you are, it may be time to look for some new friends, or at least have some serious conversations with the people who frequently make you feel bad about yourself.
Hopefully, these tips will help shift your mindset so you won’t overlook your natural beauty, and you’ll also see that beauty is not a characteristic defined by age.
