"I've been underweight, I've been chubby, I've been skinny fat, I've been super lean, I've been at the peak of my physical fitness and then lost it all again. All along this journey, I've hated my body, loathed it, accepted it, then loved it, then hated it again, wanted it to be skinnier, then stronger, fitter, more flexible, and the list goes on...
If you could go back and talk to your younger self, what would you tell her?
This is what I would say to my younger “eating disorder self”…
Dear Me,
You probably don’t recognize me now. You won’t recognize me for the happy, healthy person that you see before you. I know that you are not in a good place right now, but I just want to let you know that you will get through this. In fact, you won’t only get through this but you will come out of the other side as a better and stronger person.
I used to hate looking into the mirror.
Maybe it was because I didn't like seeing my uneven nose and un-chizzled cheekbones.
Maybe it was because I didn't like the way my hair fell flat along my face.
Maybe it was because of the extra pounds that I'd been carrying around with me and tried so desperately to rid myself of; a graphic reminder of my lack of self-control.
Those days are in the past and I have since then learned to embrace what I see in the mirror every day. But it was a long and hard journey...
Today, I've invited optimism and life coach, international motivational speaker and author of The Optimist In You, Jessica J. Lockhart, to talk about the complicated relationship most of us have with the mirror.
You look in the mirror. Your image looks back at you. But do you truly see yourself? Do you see your soul, your being, your humanity? Do you see the person behind the mirror? Most people don't.
