Today I want to talk to you about why you should and can love your body, regardless of its shape or size. When I was a young adult I suffered from an eating disorder for several years, and in the years around that I found it very difficult to appreciate my body and not wish it was somehow different.

Now, despite the odd bad body day I generally appreciate my body exactly as it is, and that state of mind takes ongoing mental work. Part of that work comes from positive thinking, reminding myself what’s good about my body and insisting that my brain focus on those positive thoughts and not on the shape of my stomach or the size of my jeans.

If you’re in a place of not enjoying your body I thought it might be helpful to remind you why the body you’re in right now is loveable just the way it is today. I hope it’s helpful.

Five reasons to love your body;

It serves you well. Despite having a chronic illness I still appreciate that my body is doing its very best to serve me well. My heart beats and pumps blood around my body, I breath, I move, my body is working to the best of its ability. I appreciate my body for keeping me alive.

It looks amazing. Some of you probably wish your body was smaller, leaner, curvier or taller. I’m telling you that your body looks wonderful. Nobody has ever looked at an elephant and said it should be smaller or told a mouse that it should do some growing. The only reason you look in a mirror and feel bad about your body is that at some point someone, TV or magazines, or an unkind person,  told you that there is only one way that a body should be.That is ridiculous!

I genuinely see beauty in all body types. Guess what, the ones that look the most beautiful are the ones who feel comfortable in their own skin, this confidence radiates beauty to me. Work harder on loving your body than you may have been doing on changing it and you will be beautiful.

It allows you to experience the sensory world. Your body doesn’t need to be a particular size or shape to enjoy cuddles, or sushi, or the sun on your skin.

Thanks to my body I can listen to music, marvel at a painting, experience the sensation of swinging higher and higher at the playground.

It allows you to visit new places. Despite being autistic and finding travel hard I have still visited many places. I’ve been to France, Spain, Italy, America and Cyprus. Within the UK I’ve visited many places, and enjoyed many different experiences. Guess what? My body took me there.

It’s the physical representation of your personality. When people look at me they’re not seeing my saggy tummy, or the cellulite on my bum! They’re seeing me, my sense of humour and quirky outlook on life.

My body reminds them of the time we laughed together,  saw that film, ate that meal, or gossiped the afternoon away sat by the river. My body is me, and if I don’t love it then I’m hating on myself and that’s really silly.

I hope you love your body, it’s the only one you have and really life is way too short to waste a single minute of it being unkind to yourself.