My battles with FAD diets, how I'm learning to love my body, + how you can too!

I hop on here very often to express my thoughts on my body. From learning to love my curves to embracing my imperfections, and from being a midsize girl, to dressing to suit my shape. And today isn't much different. I wanted to hop on here today to chat to you all about loving yourself. Whether you're curvy, slim, fat, thin, or anywhere in-between – bodies deserve love. My curves deserve love. Your curves deserve love. We all deserve love...

From the second we are born, we live in a world where we need to be a certain way. As we grow, we are expected to be perfect.. the perfect representation of our generation. It can be tiring, exhausting, and mentally draining trying to be 'that' person that everybody expects you to be.. that society expects you to be. Thin, beautiful, athletic, long hair, perfect figure, and everything else that women are 'supposed to be' according to society. 

As we grow up, magazines are full of both women being celebrated for their perfection, and women being bashed for their 'flaws'. Celebrities on the front pages with harsh headlines claiming that they have 'let themselves go' because they were papped on holiday with a little bit of cellulite. And celebrities on other front pages with headlines celebrating their flawless bodies... bodies that have probably been airbrushed, altered, and distorted to make us all feel inadequate. 

My entire life has been a battle with my body. I've never let it run my life, but there have been times when it took over. You could say I've 'yo-yo dieted' – from slimming teas (I sipped my first when I was just aged 13), slimming coffees, slimming pills, Weight Watchers, Slimming World, workout DVDs, slimming milkshakes, and a million other fads. It's terrible. It's SO terrible to think I was drinking slimming tea when I was just THIRTEEN YEARS OLD!?!?! I'm incredibly lucky, as I have never battled with diets as much as some people have, but it's still pretty bad that I felt so inadequate, so fat, so unworthy of love, and so unhappy that at the age of 13, I felt as though skinny tea would make everything better. 

And of all of those fad diets, not one of them worked for me. None of them. And it wasn't until a while ago (probably around 3 or 4 years ago) that I realised I don't need to torture myself anymore. I don't need to hate myself, hate my body, or hate the way I look. I AM beautiful, I AM worthy, I AM perfect just the way I am – and it's society that needs to change... not me. 

Changing your mindset is the key to changing your life. It sounds very 'preachy' but it's so true. Since changing the way I look at society, the way I see myself has changed. I now don't see myself as a fat girl... instead I see society as ugly, and cruel, and uneducated. I see myself as a beautiful, curvy, strong, intelligent young woman. I'm not letting my physical appearance define me – and you shouldn't either.

Whether you're slim or thick, short or tall, curvy or slender – does it really matter? Does it actually change what's inside? Does it make you a horrible person? Does having fat on your body make you mean? Does having a slim figure make you a evil? No... your body shape, type or size doesn't make you a horrible person, nor does it make a nicer person. For me, it's what's inside that counts.

Judge somebody because they're a horrible person. But never judge somebody because they have fat on their body

I don't judge anybody's appearance. I used to when I was at school, but since I was around aged 16, I haven't ever judged somebody because of the way they look. It's cruel, it's unnecessary, and it's not right to judge somebody, ridicule somebody, or laugh about somebody because of how they look.

Steal Mollie's Style

I'm wearing a stunning Wine Floral Frill Wrap Top from Lovedrobe. By far the most AMAZING blouse I own, because it really flatters my figure, and shows off my curves. It nips me in at the waist (which I love), and the detailing is super pretty. It's also REALLY true to size, so no need for sizing up or down. I felt comfy and confident in this blouse – it's great for dressing up or down. Team with jeans for a night out at the pub, or smart trousers for a day in the office – it really is the perfect day-to-night blouse, as it's so easy to change up!

I teamed this gorgeous blouse with a pair of grey jeans from River Island, my favourite ever Chelsea Boots from Aldi (they're about a year old and I refuse to ever get rid of them because they're SO comfy and versatile), and my gorgeous Dune bag from Simply Be.

Take a look at society. Does it make you feel good about yourself? The odds are, that it probably doesn't. Society, the media, and celebrities can all make us feel like poo. It's not good, it's not healthy, and it can make use really unhappy in the long run.

Change the way you perceive the world – see the world and society as an ugly environment, not your body. Your body is beautiful just as it is. It's natural to want to change things about your body, but it isn't natural to loathe your body, to hate every inch of it, and to want to change every little thing about it. Embrace your natural state, learn to love your 'imperfections', and soon enough, you will love your body more than ever before...

I really hope that this post has inspired you to love yourself a little bit more. Self love is a journey that takes time – it's not a linear process, it doesn't happen overnight, and it isn't a magical cure for all of your insecurities. It will take time to learn to love and accept yourself – but every little bit of love you give yourself is a middle finger up at society and the media. You've got this!

*Lovedrobe kindly gifted me the blouse featured in this post