Last week, as some of you may know, was the Mental Health Awareness Week and one of my favorite models/influences on Instagram Ambar Miraaj Driscoll started a hashtag #Ilovemybodybecause and is raising money for Beat Support which is The UK's eating disorder charity. She wrote an incredible Instagram post on this subject and I was influenced to bring awareness to this as well. 

In a world that is increasingly opening up to and understanding those with mental health issues, it’s no surprise that Mental Health Awareness Week is now a firmer fixture on calendars around the world. 

The reason why I absolutely love this "trend" Amber and many others are doing is that one of the main mental health problems are related to eating disorders and the pressure of having the "perfect body". As cliche as it sounds every size and every type of body is perfect. From middle school (which is waaaay to early to start hating your body since you haven't fully developed it yet, but that's the issue on its own) to high school I have had a love/hate relationship with my body. In my mind, I was always either too fat or too skinny and my surroundings didn't help with dealing with that issue. I remember seeing all these fit models in magazines and on TV and it drove me crazy. I kept wishing to be like them and started eating improperly, which left mark on me, and could leave one on you as well.
But I have been lucky enough to realize that my body is amazing. It's keeping me alive. It brings me from one place to another. My body allows me to move. It allows me to laugh and have fun with my friends. It took me to some incredible places and to experience some amazing things. It allows me to think and make decisions on my own. And again it is doing all it can to keep me alive and that's bloody awesome.
Working out is amazing and that is one of the main reasons my mental health improved so much in the last year or so, but don't work out JUST because you think you will be happier if you look a certain way. You won't. I know from the experience. You won't be happy just because you see a certain number on the scale. Work out so you will be healthier and more active, don't do it because you want to look like those models on Instagram, because not even they look that way. It's all in the angles and lighting. Every body has rolls and stretch marks and that is what makes it so beautiful. 

The reason why I'm writing this now is that I want you to be kind to yourself every day of the year, not just this week. Everything starts with your mind, so take care of it. It is so bloody important. So please take care of your mind and health. Be kind to yourself. Be kind to others. Never judge and comment on others because you never know what are they going through or they went through.

xx OvethinkGalore