A 34-year-old mother-of-three has become an Internet sensation after she showed off her stretchmarks to empower women.
Sarah Nicole Landry, from Ontario, Canada, is encouraging women to feel comfortable in their own skin by posting her stretchmarks pictures online.
Sarah weighed 16st 1 (225lb) after having three kids. Though she lost eight stone, she was left with stretch marks and saggy skin.
Instead of covering up her body, Sarah decided to show off her stretch marks to empower other women on her Instagram page (@thebirdspapaya).
Sarah said: “Before I felt so alone in having cellulite on my butt and scars on my stomach, but no one was showing that on my newsfeed. I stopped following accounts that made me feel bad about myself and started looking at positive ones, it helped me to become less judgemental and changed my mindset.”
“My body is this way for a reason, and that I didn’t have to keep perfecting it, being less than perfect was terrifying before but now it’s not. I feel a lot more confident about it now and remind myself that my body has nothing to do with my self-worth.”
She stopped feeling ashamed of her body and accepted her imperfections. She now feels more confident and happy. She doesn’t want to focus on her stretch marks or cellulite.
She just wants to spend quality time with her children because they are more important to her.
She said: “I accepted the parts of my body that I disliked and I’m not ashamed anymore, it can be hard at moments when I go to the gym or beach, but I work through those emotions.”
“Celebrating body positivity shouldn’t be a one size fits all, not just plus size, thin, fit girls or others it should be for everyone.
I really encourage women to not judge and understand body positivity is a choice about their own body and choices.”
She was ready to receive the negative feedback from the online community but more than the hateful comments, Sarah has been receiving immense support from women around the world for encouraging other women.
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