I went off the radar!

I have been super busy lately and hadn't realised it had been quite as long since my last post so quick life update:

1. I am settling into my new job and am enjoying learning again and being able to help people.

2. After fundamentally stating that I wouldn't live on the farm when I was younger I am now appreciating where I live. I love travelling and experiencing new cultures but at the moment I am pretty excited about moving into my new house (10 weeks to go!!!). And I am making an effort to try and appreciate Scotland in all it's glory. A few weekends ago my friend took me and Jamie up a couple of munros and it was pretty spectacular :)

My new home :)

Munro bagging :)

3. I have been enjoying my new relationship status and spending time exploring :) However this has unfortunately led to the inevitable of me neglecting some people in my life so:

4. A reminder that my friends are incredible and I am slowly meeting my new years resolution by letting each of them know exactly why they are important. Everyone deserves to know they are valued :)

Now moving onto my usual blog ramblings.
Something that keeps on creeping up in social media is body image. It wouldn't be fair for me to focus on particular people without first explaining my own battle with self esteem.

That's exactly how I view body image as a battle. Which is 100% not what it should be. I think people should be comfortable in their skin but fundamentally they should be healthy. I personally could benefit from improving my diet and exercising a bit more but the main thing that needs altered is my attitude towards myself. I was shocked when I found a diary from when I was 15 and the amount I despised myself. To the point where if what had been written down had been said by somebody else it could have been classed as bullying. But that is how I viewed myself as a chubby teenager who hadn't quite grown out of her puppy fat and felt worthless because of it. I can't imagine the pressure felt by teenagers now with Instagram filters and photos using photoshop being more common than those without. If media showed a more honest representation of what people looked like then I think it would be a step in the right direction.

Me at 16

People often talk about females worrying about body image to impress boys or to impress other girls but I think most people are battling with the idea of the 'ideal' body image created by society.
In the 50s curves were the desired look, later catwalk models became popular and now if you can combine the two by being toned and curvy then you have apparently hit the jackpot.

copyright: http://www.zimbio.com/pictures/RgaGergkHpW/RAFW+2008+09+Zimmermann+Catwal

There has also been a lot of press coverage over Tess Holliday. I personally appreciate that she is a plus size model that is promoting the opposite of what is considered the ideal body type but I feel like people are only viewing the extremes. Fat or thin, tall or short, big boobs or small boobs, long legs vs short legs. Media images have the dreaded red circle which highlights someones saggy skin, cellulite, dark circles under their eyes or a flabby roll on their stomach. So what?? I think people need to stop focussing on individual imperfections and look at people as a whole.

copyright: http://entretenimento.r7.com/blogs/blog-da-db/files/2015/06/tess_01.jpg

My news feed is currently full of people working towards beach bodies and I have no problem with people posting weight loss progress as I am delighted that my friends are happy with their bodies. But sometimes it seems to reach an extreme and almost becomes an obsession and people fail to see how far they have come and what they have achieved.

I feel that the media and even peer groups need to stop focussing on an ideal size. Everyone is different and that what makes life interesting. I know people who eat like pigs and don't put an inch of weight on and others who are a bit heavier and eat much healthier but people are generally judged on their weight, not necessarily their lifestyle/

I would like both men and women to not focus on impressing other people or losing/gaining weight because they believe that is what other people think they should look like. They should do it for them and more importantly do it for their health. Myself included I need to stop worrying so much about what I look like today as when I am older I don't want to look back on photos of myself now and just remember how much I disliked the way I looked. I want to be able to enjoy my life with the body I have :)

Laura xox