Let me start off by saying that I’m a huge fan of promoting a positive self body image. I think curvy models like Ashley Graham send the right images to young women and their peers around the world. But I’m starting to question some of the photos I see around the internet. I don’t want to single out Demi Lovato but her name has been brought up a ton this weekend, and for good reason. Lovato suffered from bulimia and a number of other issues for a very long time. Lovato wasn’t comfortable with her own body for a while and lately she’s been posting a number of bathing suit pictures on Instagram.
On Thursday, the brunette got some attention when she posted two images of herself in a plunging teal one-piece. One photo was captioned, “So ready for summer” and another, “Why not?” According to E:
Demi’s come a long way from her battle with bulimia. The singer previously talked to E! News about finally being comfortable with herself to show some skin on her 2015 Cosmopolitan cover.
“It took so much for me to get a place where I would feel comfortable enough to do that,” she said. “If anything, it’s showing all of my fans who know my story and my journey that I’ve gone from hating every inch of my body to doing a photo shoot in my underwear in front of the entire world. That’s more of statement to me than just looking sexy on a magazine cover.”
But here’s my question. At what point are these images more “selfish” than they are promoting a positive self body image? Let’s take Ariel Winter as an example. Do you think she posts these racy photos of herself because she’s proud of her body or because she just wants to “sell” her body? Think about it. Was Winter posting bikini pictures prior to her reduction surgery? No. Was she posting pictures when she was a little heavier? Nope. What about Lovato? Was she posting photos in bikinis when she had more weight on her frame? People might answer that with “at that point in her life she was embarrassed.” But here’s my question. Was it the confidence that embarrassed them or not having a better body?
If they went through therapy and learned to be confident with themselves but still had frames not nearly as sultry and “in shape” as today, do you think they’d be plastering these photos all over their Instagram accounts? I’m not the one to answer that question but it’s something to think about.
