"I'm selfish, impatient and a little insecure. I make mistakes, I am out of control and at times hard to handle. But if you can't handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don't deserve me at my best." - Marilyn Monroe
First off, I want to tell you Happy Love Your Body Day! That's definitely a reason to celebrate. But if you've been having trouble celebrating you lately, I want you to try this exercise. All you need is a pen and a paper.
You're going to make three lists. On the first, write down 15 (or more, if you want) things that describe what you're supposed to be. For example, you might put "pretty," "athletic," or "popular." It doesn't matter where you've gotten these expectations. Just think of the things that you measure yourself by.
Now list #2: write down 15 things that describe you, just the way you are. Anything that's uniquely you, like "loyal," "ambitious," or even "messy." Recognize all the things that make you special, that make you you.
On the last list, write down 15 things that you're thankful for. It might seem hard at first. You might be thankful for your parents, siblings, or BFF. Or maybe you're thankful for glitter and Grey's Anatomy.
Look over your three lists. A lot of us spend a lot of time focusing on the first one. We want to be perfect. We think that we need to be those things to really be happy. But look at your other two lists. Would you trade all of those to be the things on the first? Probably not. Not really. Sure, they're probably not perfect. Even the things that you're thankful for might make you mad sometimes. But those two lists - those things are totally special, and they are completely yours. Don't sacrifice them, because it won't make you happy. And feel free to trash the first list...
This was very rewarding for me, thank you for posting this! =]