Wear The Bathing Suit: Choosing Joy Over Body Shaming This Summer

As the weather warms up in Delaware and we start trading our sweaters for tank tops, conversations quickly turn towards body dissatisfaction. “Not enough” starts creeping in. Not tan enough, not thin enough, not fit enough. We find ourselves hyper fixating on imperfections and spiraling thoughts about how to fix ourselves before we head to Bethany or Rehoboth Beach. The crazy thing about our thoughts is that we tend to believe every single one of them and think they are true. Often times our thoughts are just that; thoughts not facts.

Here's the truth. We don’t need to fix anything to have a fun summer. Our bodies are allowed to show up in whatever way they would naturally show up. Your perceived imperfections are just that; perceptions, not facts. You don’t need to reach a certain goal weight to wear a bathing suit or summer dresses. You’re allowed to show up as you are. You can choose to focus on flaws or you can choose to zoom out and focus on enjoying the sunshine, beach waves, and boardwalk fries.

Some may ask, “But what if I just hate my body and want to fix it before summer?” I’m not suggesting that it’s easy to love your body (or even necessary to LOVE your body), but you can practice being kinder to yourself and work towards the idea of self compassion. Focusing on body neutrality, which is not labeling your body as good or bad but practicing a neutral space where we try not to judge it. You can challenge yourself in small ways with going outside of your comfort zone when deciding what to wear. The more we do something over and over, the more natural it becomes. You didn’t form these habits overnight and you deserve the chance to form new habits no matter what stage of life you are in.

Life is short, but summers are especially short. Read that again. Summers are short! Some of us long for summer days throughout the year, and when they finally show up, I hope you can enjoy everything that is going on outside of you own body image. Wear the bathing suit. Eat the boardwalk fries. Enjoy your summer. Give it a try this year and if you don’t like it, you can always go back to the old ways next summer.

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