Real beauty - body positivity poll and cheerleading

Off-Topic Chat
91

I heard this today, and i thought it would fit perfectly here…Your hand fits in mine like it’s made just for me
But bear this mind, it was meant to be
And I’m joinin’ up the dots with the freckles on your cheeks
And it all makes sense to me

I know you’ve never loved the crinkles by your eyes
When you smile
You’ve never loved your stomach or your thighs
The dimples in your back at the bottom of your spine
But I’ll love them endlessly

I won’t let these little things slip out of my mouth
But if I do, it’s you, oh, it’s you, they add up to
I’m in love with you and all these little things

You can’t go to bed without a cup of tea
Maybe that’s the reason that you talk in your sleep
And all those conversations are the secrets that I keep
Though it makes no sense to me

I know you’ve never loved the sound of your voice on tape
You never want to know how much you weigh
You still have to squeeze into your jeans
But you’re perfect to me

I won’t let these little things slip out of my mouth
But if it’s true, it’s you, it’s you, they add up to
I’m in love with you and all these little things

You never love yourself half as much as I love you
And you’ll never treat yourself right, darling, but I want you to
If I let you know, I’m here for you
Maybe you’ll love yourself like I love you, oh

And I’ve just let these little things slip out of my mouth
'Cause it’s you, oh, it’s you, it’s you they add up to
And I’m in love with you and all these little things
I won’t let these little things slip out of my mouth
But if it’s true, it’s you, it’s you they add up to
I’m in love with you and all your little things

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93

It’s One Direction written by Ed Sheeran, neither of which i am a fan of, but i thought the lyrics were very apt! :slight_smile:

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94

Awwwww @WillC you’ve made my freshly applied mascara and liquid eyeliner run…

Thank you though…that’s beautiful…

:heart::two_hearts::heart:

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95

@CurvyJilly34F As i have said often here, if only you ladies could see yourselves through our eyes! Sorry about the make-up Jilly! :wink:

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97

@Justthe2ofus2007 @CurvyJilly you both are, inside and out! :slight_smile:

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99

Just stating my opinion based on your personalities and your pics, and that isn’t the vod talking! :slight_smile:

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101

Oh dear, i didn’t mean to ruin everyone’s make-up! Sorry! :wink:

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103

@CurvyJilly, @Justthe2ofus2007, you’re both lovely kind ladies :slightly_smiling_face::slightly_smiling_face::hugs::hugs:

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104

We can fight and lie all we want but there is not much we can do about the inevitability of time. I’m 37 next month. I’ve worked in a hard (on the body) trade since I was 18. My forehead is heading towards Sven Goran Eriksson’s, since I became a father my belly has grown, stamina had drained and one of my legs is giving me jib. But I’m more contented now than when I was when I was younger if I’m honest.

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105

@WillC if I had mascara on before reading that I wouldn’t now!! (And I don’t ‘do’ emotion, must be the wine…)

It hits the nail on the head - thank you :purple_heart:

106

@MsSubExperimenter i never heard the song before, but i heard a snippet today, and it struck a chord. All you ladies don’t see what we men see, we love you because of your supposed imperfections not despite them. :slightly_smiling_face:

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107

I would be interested to spend 24 hours seeing myself as others see me

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108

You know what @woodstock2? The results would likely be very positive!

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109

I would like to think so !!

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110

@Scottishfunk i’m 57 soon and do a physical job, i feel that I’m in my prime! I ignore my signs of age, and focus on the positive aspects. :wink:

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111

Love this thread - thank you @Cassii!

I think acceptance of how we look, or body positivity, is an ongoing journey for everyone and it goes through waves. As a “plus size” gal I sometimes absolutely hate what I look like, and other times I think actually, you look sexy as fxck! I think the main thing is that I try and not equate this to my worth and realise that feeling attractive isn’t a gateway to my happiness - I may have days where I really wish my tummy was 5 inches smaller but as long as I don’t feel as though it not being so makes me somehow unworthy, then this is okay.

I love the “body-neutrality” movement for this too. If anyone hasn’t heard about it before I’ve put a little quote below that I love, it’s from Anushcka Rees, the author of “Beyond Beautiful”.

“The goal of body-neutrality is to dial down the enormous significance that’s being given to physical attractiveness in our society. It goes beyond body-positivity in that it’s not just about pushing back on the specific beauty ideals of our time, but on all aspects of society that continue to promote beauty as essential, consequential and the ultimate accomplishment, and a person’s appearance as indicative of their worth.”

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112

@SexInTheCity I love that quote!

There’s so much pressure from the media and society in general to look perfect, to look younger and one phrase that seriously pisses me off that’s trotted out every summer is to get yourself a " beach body or bikini ready" almost as though you should be ashamed if you don’t look like a supermodel .

People of all genders are being judged on their physical appearance all the time , made to feel like stretchmarks , flabby wobbly tummies and wrinkles are a sign that we’ve let ourselves go in some way or like they are problems that need sorting . Television adverts and magazines stuffed full of celebrities pinging back into shape within hours of giving birth and when anyone strips off in a movie you don’t see a spare tyre or flabby arms and no one ever has stretchmarks !

It makes me mad that younger people will grow up believing that they need to conform to this ridiculous idea of perfection. It’s taken me most of my life to be able to look in the mirror and not feel totally disgusted with how I look. I’ve yo yo dieted most of my adult life and it’s only been in the last 5 years or so that I’ve started to accept that this is me and as long as I’m as fit and as healthy as I can be and happy then that’s good enough for me.

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113

To me sexy is whether a person is nice . I’ve met lots of ladies over the years and no matter what they look like - the ladies I’m attracted to are the ones you can talk to and have a laugh with

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114

Same, whether I find someone desirable or not is always based on their personality and the connection I have with them. None of the guys I have dated in my life look anything alike and I think they were all beautiful.

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115

If I see a lady that comes into my work place and I get on well with her I find myself attracted to her . Others may say “ she’s a minger “ or whatever. I hate that. They are so shallow. They don’t bother to take the time to speak to these people or get to know them at all

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