It’s the middle of April, May’s coming, and that means swimsuit season is right around the corner. And while looking your best is important (because looking good makes you feel good), it’s also important to remember that people have different ideas about what it means to be bikini-ready. Just because we’re fed the idea that our stomachs should be flat and our abs should be rippled, doesn’t mean that’s what everyone wants or needs. Even Chrissy Teigen had to shut down body-shaming trolls after her last photoshoot and she’s a supermodel! Fortunately, more and more people are standing up for themselves when people make unnecessary and rude comments about their bodies. Like Jes Ortelli, a woman who recently had to shut down someone telling her that she should keep it covered up.
In a Facebook post that’s been shared almost 2,000 times, Ortelli recounts something that happened to her on a recent swimsuit shopping trip.
Here’s what she writes:
I don’t usually post such pictures of myself on Facebook however what happened today should be shared to raise some awareness.
The girl at the store today said that “girls like me” shouldn’t wear a bikini ! Well girl let me tell you something , im happy with myself and my biiiigggg tummy with tiger stripes ? but you could have said the same thing to the girl who finally got out there and had the courage to wear a bikini and you just killed her confidence with one stupid comment. You can be any size and look good ! Confidence is what makes you sexy and not just being a size 6 !
Thankyou for fat shaming me ,thanks to you I got an awesome discount on my bikini ???Much love
#Fat ,#confident, girl !
Xxx
Check out the picture she posted along with the story:
Awesome, right? Right! Why? Because there’s absolutely no reason any stranger should be telling you what you should and shouldn’t be wearing unless you are literally walking down the street naked screaming “smart people can see my clothes, okay?” And because there’s already so much stigma placed on not having a body that’s seen as “perfect.” Should you be as healthy as possible? Sure. And while you’re figuring out what that means for you, you should be able to wear clothes and go to beaches (this is all obvious, right?).
Should Lane Bryant ads be playing on your TV? Yup. And should people like Jes Ortelli — who didn’t ask for others’ opinions on their bodies — be standing up for themselves? Based on the responses she’s received, which range from the expected “you go, girl!” to grateful acknowledgments of how important it is to hear a message like this, we’d certainly say so.
Now put on that swimsuit and jump in the pool! (Also, generally, stop being mean to each other!)
