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Angel Hope's avatar

Thank you...I needed this reminder. It is a lot of work to learn to love yourself and see the beauty in yourself. I've come a long way, but still have so far to go!

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Kristi Koeter's avatar

Me too, but even those small steps count!

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Leslie Senevey's avatar

It’s interesting because the older I get, which means the less attractive I get by society’s standards, the more beautiful I feel. And I think it is because of authenticity. The more we grow into ourselves, the more confident we feel.

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Kristi Koeter's avatar

I feel this way too. I think there’s something about the invisibility as we age that’s liberating.

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Jennifer Trainor's avatar

I’m having one of the bad days but I know I am on the right path for healing and learning self-compassion overall. Thank you for your words. They are a reminder for me to keep moving towards the goal of self-acceptance.

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Kristi Koeter's avatar

Sorry to hear you’re struggling, but glad you could find some comfort here.

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Joanna B.'s avatar

Wow. The impact of this piece caught me off guard. Especially this: "my difficulty showing empathy". It's comforting to know I'm not the only one. Being a physically 'plain' daughter compared to my stunningly beautiful mother made for years of hyper focus on my outside appearance. Then came the phase where at least I could control how ''good' I was perceived. Being 'good' or perceived as such, became more important to me than being beautiful, except I couldn't quite hack it. Especially the empathy part. Slowly, slowly, 'grace and space' for others is expanding to include myself. Thank you!

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Amy Brown's avatar

Such a wise and honest reflection, Kristi, on how you see your own beauty and invite us to see ours as well. Thank you for this. I am struggling these days to see my own beauty. I've had weight gain, it feels uncomfortable on me at times. But most of the time I recognize my attractiveness as a human, as a woman, is so much more than my weight or any physical aspect of my appearance. I show myself some grace. I look in the mirror and I seek kindness. I look into her eyes. And I smile. The first person who smiles at me every day has to be myself. And just maybe a little pep talk, "I love you, Amy. You're doing great!I: I owe her that.

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John Koeter's avatar

Very powerful and authentic

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Kristi Koeter's avatar

Thank you, love

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