A MIDSIZE model has bared her soul and her body in a heartfelt post, that has gone viral.
Her sincerity and vulnerability touched thousands and her video has seen an outpouring of love, respect, and admiration.
Inspiring others and making them feel good about themselves, is just what Juliana (@juliana_davis) would have wanted.
This lady confessed to hating her apron belly her entire life, and it had blighted many experiences for her.
But, despite efforts, it never went away, even when she lost weight.
There is hope, however, because her body dysmorphia is in the distant past now since she found peace with her body as it was and with her belly.
Today she loves herself so much more and no longer hankers after another body shape.
One commenter reminded her that women with bodies like hers were once celebrated: “I’m positive this is what a Greek goddess would have looked like.”
She really wore her heart on her sleeve in her post, and it showed, with Juliana visibly emotional.
“Using your biggest insecurity to foster the deepest, truest self-love. This video is vulnerable but I think it’s important to share,” she said.
Her post began with her belly out. But there was no shame here.
“So I just woke up, I haven’t eaten anything, I’m not bloated and this is what my tummy looks like,” she said.
“In fact this is what my tummy has looked like pretty much my entire life.”
It has been a source of great pain for her: “After spending pretty much all my life absolutely hating it, I’ve finally come to the conclusion that actually it’s just okay.”
Her belly had been her “biggest insecurity.” If relationships didn’t work out, she blamed her belly.
It restricted her choices when it came to fashion too because she was scared to wear clothes that were tight or fitted.
“I spent all these years trying so hard to change it, and it’s just never changed. Even when I was exercising a lot,” she despaired.
But, a period of reflection and a determination to change her body image, has seen her regard herself very differently: “I’m actually starting to be grateful for [my belly].
“Having this tummy has made me discover a level of self-love and self-acceptance that I never knew I could have.”
Forget what society thinks, she urged others.
“When there is something about your body that society constantly tells you is wrong and needs to be fixed, there is a power that comes from realizing that it actually doesn’t have to be.”
She hasn’t looked back: “It has taken her a long time to get to a place of self-love.
“It is the most freeing thing because now I have such a profound love for my entire body because I found the love for my tummy as well.”
There were 242,000 likes to her post, thousands of comments, and a whole lot of love.
One person said: “I love this. I have an apron belly forever so this makes me feel pretty just like you.”
This husband loved an apron belly: “My wife’s stomach is one of my favorite parts of her. It’s just lovely, I can’t describe why.”
There was gratitude from this fan: “Thank you so much for sharing this. I’ve always had a tummy even when I was skinny and hated myself for it.”
And some respect from this person: “You are absolutely radiant and your vulnerability in this video is beautiful.”
