I still remember when my body issues began. I was probably about 7 or 8 and had been spending the day with my girlfriends and one of their houses. There was a conversation about drinking milk, and I shared that I didn’t really like milk and I never drank it. The girls quickly came to the consensus that I would be thinner and in better shape if I would drink milk, specifically fat free milk.

At 7 or 8 years old, I believed myself to be fat. I wasn’t. I look back at pictures and I had long legs and arms, along with a round belly. No, I wasn’t skinny like my friends were, but I wasn’t fat. Instead of standing up for myself, I believed them and started down a road of body hatred. Continue reading →