Friend Friday: Body Image

Katy has another batch of questions for us today.  She gave us these over a week in advance and I am here on Friday typing up my answers.

1. Since you started blogging has your image of yourself changed?
Not really.  I have been taking my picture daily for almost 6 years now and I didn't start blogging the pictures until this past summer. I just scroll through the pictures often and see how I've changed. Sometimes I wish I lost the few pounds like I was months ago and other times I wish I put on a few more pounds like previous months.  I feel like at any given time I have liked myself/how I looked. Sometimes I look back and see a few months where my face is rounder and I'm guttier but at the time I don't realize or think about it. Perhaps I have blinders on and maybe some month I'll gain 10 pounds and won't really notice. Who knows.

2. Are you self-conscious about any aspect of yourself? If so, do you go out of your way to avoid it or do you post it/talk about it anyway?
I post about it (examples: ankles/flats or matching).  Maybe sometimes I don't post about it only because after a few minutes I already forgot why I was self conscious. Like today I thought my pants were too short with the shoes I'm wearing but then a few minutes later I already forgot. (I did remember again while writing this post.)

3. Based on how you are feeling now, what do you think the future holds in the evolution of your body image?
I have no idea. I think I'll feel good but who knows. I don't think about the future for stuff like that. I barely think about the now for stuff like that.  I used to say that I would quit my weight graph on the internet if I got fat. Who knows if I will or not. Maybe something with clothes will be the same way.  Maybe I won't want to take my picture when none of my clothes will fit me.

4. Do you photograph yourself for your blog? If so, how do you feel about the experience when you're having your picture taken? If you choose not to post pictures of yourself, what prompted that decision?
I photograph myself for my blog and for my website. I don't even think of anything when I take my picture. I just set up the tripod and go and snap a few.  Over the years I have learned to take more than 2-3 pictures and to go look at them to make sure. Sometimes I'm out of focus in all 3 and then get sad. So if I check, I can go back and take new ones.  I have just learned ways that I look better posing in a picture. I also learned taking my daily picture, I like my smile a lot better. When I'm taking a picture with friends I'm usually too happy and my smile is all gums.  Sometimes I wonder if my daily pictures and posts are narcissistic. I mean how many pictures can one person have of themselves.  But then again some days I take 100 pictures of my cat. Maybe I'm just obsessed with photos. (I am obsessed but maybe there isn't some underlying problem.)

5. What would you want every person who struggles with body image to take to heart?
Everyone is beautiful in their own way. There is no one person or one style that you should be like. Be yourself. Once you accept yourself, everything else falls into place. Also don't even try to be model skinny; you can't get clothes small enough to fit and you get comments all the time from people telling you to eat. -- I'm bad at advice or things people should take to heart. I feel like I'm preaching or something. You can ignore me and do your own thing.