Health as a state of mind and not a number

When you look into a mirror what do you see?

According to Glamour Magazine, a woman on average looks at themselves eight times a day. Some even say they cannot leave without a portable mirror in their hand.

They not only will get ready in front of a mirror, but will check every single part of themselves until they finally are ready to move on with their day.

Society has put an image in our head. An image that women cannot look past easily. An image that stick thin is the ideal size for someone and curves should not exist.

Most women, ideally, would rather have someone else’s body rather than their own. A women’s self-esteem is more strongly related to how she views her own body shape and weight than how much she actually weighs. In the end, the number does not matter, it’s what they are looking at.

When I came to college I was satisfied with how I looked, but immediately it began to change. I found myself hiding behind baggy clothes and sweatpants, feeling as though I had to hide. I felt my body wasn’t ideal, and the stress of my freshman year quickly took a toll on my body and self-confidence. It followed me as I judged how I looked, dressed and ultimately I felt miserable about myself.

In 2013, more than half of women in the world were like me, when it comes to appearance, they are their own worst beauty critics. To break away from this disgust, I exercised; something I have not taken seriously since my high school graduation. It wasn’t to impress my friends or anyone on campus, it was to gain self-confidence and find happiness with my body. I was doing it all: running, walking, lifting, even taking spin classes.

I no longer wanted to be that stick-thin girl. Instead, I wanted to be someone who could advocate for being healthy and confident. Going to the gym did not necessarily make me a size two, but it gave me the confidence in the person I was. Seeing changes did not mean losing nine pounds, but to look in a mirror and finally seeing my reflection smiling back at me.

According to leading cosmetics company, Dove, whose mission is to help women feel better about themselves, 72 percent of girls feel tremendous pressure to be beautiful and 80 percent of women agree that all women have something about them that is beautiful but do not see their own beauty.

Beauty is everywhere and in places you cannot even imagine, I challenge every women to walk across this campus and be confident, but do it for yourself.

Amanda Boyer is junior public relations major from Hillsborough, N.J. and can be reached at amanda.boyer@student.shu.edu.