Welcome
My story looks like so many others…
I grew up in the 80’s; a young girl who wasn’t really concerned about her body until my teen years when someone I had a huge crush on made a comment about my legs, mentioning that they might be able to kick start a Boeing. Well, I can tell you I did not take this as a compliment! The fact that my legs were strong, sturdy and capable of carrying me around a hockey field or tennis court or riding a bike did not factor into my thoughts.
Whilst I look back on this memory with amusement today, back then I was devastated. What did he mean? When I went home and examined my legs in the mirror, they looked perfectly ordinary and normal, if a bit bow legged.
These legs have since carried me thousands of kilometres. They’ve propped me up while I teetered around through two pregnancies. They’ve been a part of many kilograms lost and regained, suffered varicose veins, stretch marks and more. Heck, they’ve even allowed me to do a Tough Mudder, numerous obstacle course races, half-marathons and even a full marathon!
But do you think I thanked and appreciate them for it? No! Not one bit. Instead I stood and stared at them critically in the mirror, shaking my head judgmentally.
Not good enough!
Not thin enough!
Not pretty enough!
Poor legs, what had they ever done except serve me faithfully? Fast forward to my first year of university and as an impressionable little 18 year-old being told by an older boy, ‘you’re gorgeous, but you know what would make you really hot? If you just lost a bit of weight. Just 5kg should do it.’
The amazing thing now looking back is that I didn’t wallop him across the chops. Instead, I really gave it some thought… could he be right?
Burning with shame, I took to comfort eating even more, which is really easy when you’re far away from home and eating in a university residence dining hall. This was to be the start of too many years of yo-yo dieting, losing weight, putting it back on, starving myself, popping pills, and worshipping at the altar of the dieting gods. And for what? To be desirable to some boy who didn’t know what the heck he was talking about? For nearly 25 years?
How many of us have had some form of these casually careless and cruel remarks directed at us, possibly from a very young age?
Maybe even from family members? No wonder we’ve developed body shame, even body loathing and self-hatred. Well no more I say.
The only person whose opinion truly matters about you and your body is you.
Because when all is said and done, you are the one who inhabits your body, sees it in the mirror, walks around in it all day and listens to your constant stream of thoughts.
If you could learn to be more compassionate and loving towards this truly miraculous body that keeps on going, breathes for you when you forget to, gets you to the places you need to go to, heals you when you’re sick, tired or hungover, and patiently breaks down and eliminates all the crap you sometimes put into it; imagine what a team you could be? Imagine what freedom you’d feel?
Imagine how you could learn to tell the difference between emotional hunger and physical hunger?
And give the emotional hunger what it truly needs? Imagine how you could use your energy for other more enjoyable pursuits?
This, my friends, is why I started Blue Turtle Psychology.
To help, to educate, to inform, to get you thinking and questioning your status quo.
To be part of a bigger movement comprised of many voices. Some well known, some not, some loud, some angry, sad, persuasive, quiet… And to add my small voice.
A movement and a voice that says no more!
No more being taken in or deceived by the media or companies who peddle lies to make a quick buck, preying on our insecurities and self-loathing.
No more spending money on the latest fad or product that makes us promises that can never, ever be delivered.
No more eating plastic, toxic food prepared for us by strangers in cold factories, with who knows what ingredients and intentions.
No more deception.
No more.
Thank you so much for taking the time to read my first ever blog article. If you enjoyed it, please visit Meet Gaby to learn a bit more about me and what I’m about. Also feel free to subscribe to my blog to receive regular articles, tips and ideas.
Body acceptance might literally feel like the most challenging thing you could ever imagine doing. AND yet, these are the vessels that contain the essence of who we are. All our love, hope, dreams, and desires are contained within this vital human suit. Without it we wouldn’t exist.