Being healthy

Jude has had some respiratory issues today but I am going to steer in another direction on today's blog. My friend Stacy whom I have met via Facebook through our children's similar situation shared this story today and I was touched. 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ravishly/being-thin-didnt-make-me-happy-being-fat-does_b_6661862.html?ncid=fcbklnkushpmg00000046

When I met Mike I was in the best shape of my life. I worked out several times a week and I would generally eat pretty healthy. I didn't count every calorie and I did have my wine but I was very active and I knew I looked great. I related the the above blog in many ways. I agree that when you are a size 4 you tend to turn heads and offers for torrid love affairs are a common occurrence. 

Being thin and pretty has it perks and can make a persons self confidence soar. Working out also releases endorphins to help the mind and spirit. Exercise is something I truly enjoyed and looking good was a bonus. However was being thin responsible for my happiness? No. I was happy because I loved my life and was happy with the person I was on the inside so I felt it showed on the outside.  Keeping up with ones appearance and being healthy should be a way of life.....if you have that way of life available.  

Without question the last six years have been very rough and have taken a toll on me mentally and physically. When you work all day and go home to work at night there is no time for the gym. Sitting on a couch listening to a sick child takes over the need to be thin and beautiful. I still eat relativity healthy, I still consume my wine (helloooo calories), and I have little time to exercise. So looking at my pictures I see my hair has grown dark, my face has aged, and I weigh more than I ever have. 

Does this make me unhappy? No. I am still me and I refuse to give into corporate America's stigmata of what a beautiful woman has to be. I do not need to be airbrushed, I don't need to be a size 4, and I don't need to be coated with a tan. I am beautiful just the way I am because I am pretty on the inside and my child is much more important. I no longer turn many heads when I go out to the store but occasionally I get a wonderful compliment. My husband still loves me very much and I am very comfortable being the mom who has trudged through hell and came out a little heavier. I don't need a particular pant size to validate my happiness or self worth and you don't either. Being healthy is so much more than just a size.