Love the Skin You’re In
This month is all about love - the love we have for our partners, family, and friends. All that love is important; it’s essential for our wellbeing, but I honestly think the most profound love is the love we have for ourselves. This love looks like how we show up for ourselves, our self-care practices, and the things we bring into our life. This love can ebb and flow through the ups and downs we have throughout our lives, days where we are struggling, or perhaps even seasons where we don’t feel like ourselves. I typically see this self-love waver the most when working with my acne and eczema patients, as they at times struggle with loving themselves fully and appreciating the person looking back at them in the mirror.
We tend to be our own worst critics when looking in the mirror. Sometimes (ahem, commonly) we see blemishes, dry skin, scars, hyperpigmentation - all parts of who we are. For most, we consider these things flaws, but what if we radically changed the narrative and loved the skin we are in RIGHT NOW? What if we aimed to focus on the present moment, and not what we perhaps used to look like or what we aspire to change? What if we actively chose to love everything about our skin and saw it all as part of who we are; as something beautiful, regardless of any imperfections?
I’m not saying it’s easy trying to separate our worthiness from our outward appearance, as I struggle with this outward appreciation of myself on many days. But how about each day we try and shift our thoughts to loving our skin and the body we’re currently in, working on our self love and journeying through and understanding that our body - our skin - is only a piece of who we are? It may be a radical thought, but at the end of the day, regardless of where you are in your health or skin journey, love the skin you’re in.