Femfession #3: Acne and "you are beautiful"

I hate it when people always say "acne is beautiful", "acne does not take away your beauty. yes it does. it makes me feel insecure and would take away my confidence when it comes to looks. my immature young self used to think it was the reason no guy had ever liked me before. even when i have finished highschool, i still have acne but i dont let it bother me anymore.

- 19 years old

Having acne absolutely does not take away your beauty, your personabiliaty and it should definitely not make you feel less confident about it. I am glad to hear that now you don't let your acne bother you anymore. Having said that, as I basically reinforced the message that you are against up here, the body positity agenda is very toxic as it forces girls and women to think of themselves as beautiful and perfect. A clear example is of affirmations such as "you are beautiful, you are perfect, love your body, love your body,  love your body". It turn fake at one point because why are you forcing us to lie to ourselves over and over again, until we cry. This is encapsulte super well in season 2 epsidoe 2 of Euphoria, the scene where Kat is surrounded by figurative women of all kind, yelling at her to "love herself", as if she is sinning and doing something wrong. But all Kat did was say that it was hard for her to love herself and get out of bed. I love this scene and think about it so often because it really put the toxic positive body image community into a physical scene. 

Kat from Euphoria in S2E2, battling with body positivty

For many people it is hard to love yourself, and when the media is telling you to "love yourself" some may find this impossible and toxic. I am one of those people too. That is why personally for me, I choose to strive for body neuturalality where I do not condone acts and thoughts of hatred against my body BUT also does not put in efforts to try and make myself beautiful and "perfect". A neutral stance mean that you are neutral with your body, emotionally and physically, that you regonize and value your body and what it does for you. 

Be at peace with your body, and like always, remember to stay hydrated and educated.

Xoxo, Yours Truly