Body Image Issues & Style

My story

I’ve lived with body image issues my entire life. Even in my earliest memories, body image issues are present. I can remember wearing a jacket in 90+ degree weather during the summer at recess as a kindergartener because I felt the need to hide my body. I was also the kid who would swim with their t-shirt on with friends because I felt too uncomfortable to be shirtless. Body image issues are real and can lead to an array of both mental health and physical concerns. We won’t get into the details of these concerns in this article, but I felt it was necessary to talk about this before diving into how body image issues affect your style. If you can relate to my story, I empathize with you. You are not alone, you are seen, and I am proud of you.

Who are you dressing for?

Take a moment to sit with this question. Are you dressing to impress a classmate or coworker, or are you dressing for yourself? It’s ok if this answer changes from time to time, but your style needs to reflect you. Your style is whatever you feel comfortable in. Once you feel comfortable in your style, you will start to notice a newfound confidence in yourself. I encourage you to try on clothes that are out of your comfort zone and just see how you feel in them. For me, I never liked the way a plain t-shirt looked on my body. I would always stick to a graphic tee because I felt like it covered my body better. Then I discovered different fits and materials of plain t-shirts. Most clothing stores have expanded their shirt fits to include different fit types such as “fitted”, “relaxed”, “boxed”, etc. You can also explore different thicknesses of shirts. I have found that I feel the most confident in a thicker and more relaxed fit t-shirt. I encourage you to apply this logic to all types of clothing. Don’t like the way your jeans fit? Explore new styles until you find the perfect one. When shopping in the men’s section it can be difficult to find options sometimes. I spent time finding jeans that had more of a high-rise fit to them because that fit made me feel more comfortable than a typical jean that sits right at the waist.

Brands I’ve been liking

The brand Cotton On has been my go-to for jeans. I love the color options, fit, and their prices are usually reasonable + there’s almost always a sale going on. I will say that if you have a store nearby, definitely try them on. Their sizes are not the most consistent, but overall I feel so confident when I wear this brand.

If you are like me and hate the way plain t-shirts look on you, I would recommend checking out Abercrombie. This brand targets the mid-20-30 year-old demographic, and I have been really happy with their clothing. What I love most about them are the different t-shirt options that they offer. I was surprised with how much I loved their “cropped” t-shirt due to it’s thickness and fit.

Regardless of the brand name, look for pieces that are high quality and will hold up throughout the years. Although fast fashion is trendy and sometimes budget-friendly, it can be harmful to the environment.

In conclusion

I’m going to highly encourage you to experiment with new styles. As you do, remember to be gentle with yourself. The human body changes as we age and experience life. We don’t have to fit into the same size we did 5 years ago or like a style that we did in the past. Choose clothing that truly fits your body and makes you feel confident.