LET’S TALK SELF IMAGE
I like to address topics that I hear about in the office that my patients are talking about, because the truth is they are not alone in these thoughts and neither are you.
So let’s begin by outlining a couple of truth regarding self-image.
1. You will continue to have a birthday every year, you can’t stop time
2. You outward body was designed by our amazing CREATOR to break down and age, it’s inevitable
3. We as woman were made to be beautiful for a specific purpose
4. Your beauty NEVER fades or goes away it simple shifts as your life transitions from one era to another.
So let’s explore self-image more.
Women no matter what stage of life
8 years old, 15 years old, 25, year old, 35 years old, 45 years old, 50 years old, 65 years old, 75, years old, 85-100 years old all battle the same feelings, they just shift year to year due to the bodies aging process. We all want to feel beautiful and wanted. This is a completely normal “want” it’s crafted in our DNA. It’s a desire placed in us for a reason, it was God’s intention all along.
Some of the questions I receive the most from women mostly 40-70 years of age is, “why is my body doing this to me? Why do I feel old? Why can’t I do what I used to be able to do a month, a year, or 3 years ago? Why can’t I lose the weight like I used to be able to? Why am I so unmotivated? Why do I feel depressed? When will this heal? When will I be like my “old self” again?
These are very honest and real questions we ALL ask ourselves and we ask our health professionals, friends and family members.
I’m not able to answer all these questions but something that resounds in me in all these questions is we are not allowing space or room for transitions of life, we don’t allow them to just occur….
Transitions/change in life are very hard for many people let alone for women! But we need transitions for a reason. Just like we need winter to pass and spring to come. Transitions change us, and allow a new beginning to occur. A new thing to come and an old thing to go. I’ve said it above, aging is inevitable so accepting the transitions puts your why and when questions into perspective. If we understand that at 40 years of age you no longer have the same face lines that you did at 25 then you can understand the beauty of that and find the thankfulness in it.
Life gave you those changes to your skin, I could use the same example for what you have inside your body. At age 40 your kidneys are not at the same function level as they were at 25 years of age, they still work there just older now and more prone to glitches because of that (broad example).
I want to spend a little time on age 40-60, this can a very difficult time for women! So much change happens to women in this age period. You are pre-menopausal meaning the change is coming or you are in limbo and by limbo I mean your hormones are JACKED up and it may feel like you’re taking CRAZY PILLS. You’ll have a normal period one month, then the next month it’s the red sea, then you’ll completely skip a month! Also for many of you your children are nearly grown, or grown and out of the house scaring you to death with their “adult “decisions. Also you are still working a full time job but getting tired, your marriage is shifting as you have definitely been together long enough to be moving into the veterans category which will put stress on you as a woman to stay “young, frisky, and beautiful.” You still cook, clean, take care of the people in your life (your aging parents) all while making sure your relationship with God is close and your still “casting” your cares and worries onto him.
WHOOO I’m exhausted? Anyone else? So I say all that to say this stage of life is expected to be stressful and full of transitions and a lot of why’s. But that’s ok….it’s what GOD intended. You will press through it, just like you birthed that baby….or 2, or 3 or 4. And for the record you are incredibly beautiful at this age. Even more beautiful without makeup! Statics say it’s true, not just me…and I love stats!
Now let’s spend a little time on ages 60-75. Now here’s an age that doesn’t necessarily get recognized enough for your beauty. That’s because our eyes are trained to notice young and shiny. But the truth is you are the hidden gems of beauty. Your faces show what love is, what survival looks like, what perseverance, and raw unfiltered life looks like. You have the depth of love pressed deep into your faces. You may not feel like you are seen first but you are seen. I hear a lot of women after 60 say they don’t feel noticed anymore. Trust me you are seen! WE SEE YOU! The eyes looking back at you may be different but we see you. Children notice you, young girls see your smile, and your loved ones notice the changes of color in your hair. The garden you groom notices your hands. These things are important to us. This season of your life is designed for subtleties that truly impact the world around you. You may not feel noticed the way you were at 30 but you are not forgotten. The notices have just shifted, and you must shift with it. It’s worth it, and it is a time for rediscovery of yourself.
I felt like writing this because many women need to know they are loved, noticed, and other women know and understand what you’re experiencing on this life journey. Notice a woman in your life today and tell her you SEE her!
Much Love, you beautiful women!