I’m gonna be honest, I didn’t notice she gained weight. I thought she’s looked really good recently, not just her body. She’s seemed a lot happier and healthier recently and it’s made me happy.
sophie imm No you can definitely see her thighs have gained. And she doesn’t have the long, slim arms of a professional ballet dancer. But that’s okay. We can’t really change those things about ourselves and so we should love and accept what we have
i had terrible acne and backne as a teenager and my mom was constantly bothering me about it claiming that "If I didn't care enough to do something about it she would care for me" (in reality it was mostly there because of hormonal issues, but neither of us knew it then)
The other day i read something like "isn't it crazy that if we all ate the exact same things, did the same workouts, etc, our bodies would be all different anyways?" and that's so true.
yeah my mom sometimes told me that ”you didn’t go for a run this week and it’s already showing on your body”🙂 i’m thirteen. like thanks that is just making my low confidence even lower:)
well maybe tell your mom that everybody's body is different, bodies change, and running is for health and happiness and not for the looks... ... seriously though, if you're thirteen, your body is going to undergo some serious changes to make you a woman and that's totally normal and beautiful ;*
My dad told me if i dont workout im gonna look like a fat cow... He also said its good im signing up for my school yoga club because i eat so much ice cream, and lets just say, hes not the skinniest person either.
@@animallover6487 maybe he's worried you're gonna put on weight like he did. And he clearly doesn't realise how comments like that are actually counter productive. I would just say 'well look at yourself first, man' ☺
wyclef O'hara Lol, actually one time I think he said “It’s good that your moving your body; because if you don’t, you’ll end up looking like me” So your right lol. And I for sure have made a similar comeback like that to him xd
The fact that as I’m watching this as a fifteen year old girl and I’m relating to this video is such a strong way makes me realize how messed up society is
Same girl, im fifteen and i just cryied, because i remember that my dance teachers use to come up to me and say that i look fat, that i need to lose weight, while im just starting to be a women. And i realaized I wear baggy cloths just to hide my little belly:/
Same I am 13 and an athlete and I have had past coaches tell me that I am too fat and my thighs were too large and teachers at school have weighed me to make sure that I am not gaining weight and it is scary. I was so low but now i don’t let them effect me and I have found that it is not the number on the scale but the numbers on the scoreboard and the kg number. Any athletes out there you are beautiful dont let coaches make you think bad about yourself.
I think something that young girls, especially athletic ones, never learn about is that muscle weighs more than fat, and as a serious ballerina, you definitely had a lot of muscle, and the fact that you wanted so badly to be 100 lbs is so sad because you were probably so strong and yet that didn't matter to you. I'm happy that you now recognize strength and health is so important
and you were going through puberty - would you want your pre-pubescent body as an 18 year old, 19 year old... etc... slowly, things are changing in the ballet world, too. Lines won't - high arches won't ever not be valued - but different aesthetics are definitely becoming more valued.
A pound of muscle weighs the same as a pound of fat! The difference is that muscle is much more dense than body fat. Therefore, a pound of muscle will take up much less room in your body than a pound of fat.
Michelle Herzberg I used to never eat or anything because I’m super skinny and fit and healthy and stuff and whenever I weighed myself (which I still do) I would weigh heaps and I would be so confused but now I understand that it muscle weighs more than fat .... but because of everything that’s going on I have been gaining weight but now just muscle weight tho... 💖
ballet was one of the main reasons for my struggle with body image. my body is hella curvy and i always felt out of place among everyone else who had the tiniest frames. because of my hips, dance attire always looked unflattering on me, the pretty costumes would go to waste on me so i always has the worst outfit when performing. it’s sad how the thing that makes me happiest is also my weakness.
I have that same thing. I constantly feel like I’m so big compared to everyone else. And it sucks because I’ve grown up thinking I’m so tiny bc I’m 5’1” and that’s always made me feel so tiny. When I grew into my hips and thighs bc of my genetics, I’ve felt so big. Every time we try on costumes, they say your size and I hate that bc I have the bigger size and it just sucks. I’m literally a small but compared to everyone else just sucks bc of how skinny everyone else is.
Maybe go to seamstress and get one made just for you? You deserve it. I learned sewing because I was sick of clothes not fitting me. I'm slim but I have slightly bigger breasts. I don't dance but normal clothes pose similar issues
"Looking at that girl who struggled throughout HS, I just want to tell her, look at you, you have legs, you have arms, you're walking, you have great health, there's nothing you should be worrying about..." :) I love this!
One of the bravest, most honest, unsparing discussions about body image that probably has ever been filmed. For someone this young to have this level of personal awareness is staggering. Among the hundreds of thousands of views this video ultimately will gather, who knows how many lives will be positively altered -- and possibly saved? Luna won the genetic lottery: brains, soul, talent and beauty. Watching her begin to fully come into her own and tap her power as a woman is really something special.
The part where you talk about feeding your friends is so triggering. I thought I was the only one who did this. Such dark times. Constantly in a state of comparison. Thank you for sharing your story!
Yup, did this too. It is aweful, but you get to the point, where you realise that you can't do anything anymore so you start to make others look bad. :(
Ashley Jackson my friends and i would go on health kicks and eat healthy and work out i would tell them to wait a month after i started so i could get a head start because i was so afraid of them looking even more better than me than they already did and also wanted people to notice me losing weight and i thought that if they did too they wouldn’t notice me
Honestly, teenage years are THE worst, especially for girls. Guys mainly grow taller and gain muscle mass, some have acne and a cracking voice for some time. No one prepares us, though, for what to really expect, no one teaches us about HOW to love our growing bodies, I've never heard in my entire life anyone say to any girl sth like "you're growing, it's normal that your body requires more energy=more food". It's making me angry now that I think about it, my parents heard me say many times that I hate my body after I hit puberty, I'd also break down and cry sometimes and they'd usually say something like "eh... you look normal"-that sounded very reassuring to a teenager girl, lol. It took me over 10 years to accept my body and be confident in it. In my last year of junior high school I was "pro-ana", I'd often wear clothes that would make my hips seem less wide and my legs skinnier, I'd avoid any glutes excercises, I'd also monitor what and when I eat until I was 17-18 etc. Also, the fact that the moment our bodies start resembling the bodies of grown women, we start getting cat-called and hit on by way older men (even if they know we are underage) is unsettling to say the least. Now I'm a figure skater and I'm nowhere near skinny, I'm fit, quite muscled and quite strong and I have "some meat" on me and I love it. I learned to love all my scars, I learned to accept my bloated menstruation body and if I had an evening training and get home late - I'll definitely eat a meal :) I wish there were more women reaching out to girls going through their puberty, making it more understandable and less scary and I wish there were more parents who'd be a real emotional support for these girls.. Thank you for this vid :)
Exactly this. Since us girls are young, we hear others around us spill negative comments about women's stretch marks, cellulite, weight, bigger stomach, acne, too big nose, literally everything. As we grow and start to gain weight, stretch marks and acne, we start to feel insecure because of that. Now that social media is more prominent, all those fake retouched pictures of Instagram models create new impossible standards for young people too. Combine these two things and you get very insecure people. I'm glad you're better now!
watching this as a 13-year-old and relating to everything: food diaries, calorie tracking, obsessive workouts, skipping meals, comparing myself to other skinnier girls and hating my body makes me realise that im not the only one going through 'terrible teens' thank you so much for this video
I'm 13 too :) but I just wanted to say, exactly. Every single thing she was saying I could relate to so deeply. I've been trying to eat under 1000 calories every day which I realize is so messed up, and there's always like that one girl I can't stop looking at and wonder what I'm doing wrong or differently that I'm so "fat" compared to her. Every day I look at myself in the mirror and put my feet together to see if my thighs tough and just start crying. I don't weigh myself every day, but most. On BMI calculators and stuff my weight is at the lower end of "Normal," but it doesn't seem to show. For reference I'm almost 5 ft 4 and weigh roughly 117 pounds. Also my parents have kind of noticed my eating, so I just take smaller portions, or whenever they're going to work I pretend like I'm preparing food but then as soon as they lock the door I put it all back away. It'll probably never go away but this vid genuinely helped me so much and to see comments like yours from people who understand is so relieving. Hope things are better since 6 months ago too.
@@clairejakubowski4805 and op You're loved and you are enough! I'm a similar size to you, maybe an inch or two shorter and an adult now, and I'm coming to realize that I will never have the super long, thin lines like a dancer because of my height - but that's nothing I can change, and actually something I'm proud of because I match my relatives whom I love (we're all short, lol.) It's been easier to accept that first, since it's so obviously unchangeable genetics, and then it's becoming easier to work through other things. Take care of yourself, which means eating enough to support your brain (fats are important) and body growing into a healthy adult!
@Alli Wow. This is exactly the message I've needed and probably always internally known but just refused to listen to because...well, I guess there's no good reason. Because I just hate my body and want to be skinny, really. But it honestly is so important to nourish yourself so that you can have enough energy for base needs and just live well in general. I've been so negative and frustrated and can't think clearly; I began struggling with imposter syndrome (you seem smart so you're probably educated on this but it's pretty much when you don't know who you are), and I saw that nothing was having an effect anyway. My body was remaining the same and this made me enraged, I thought I wasn't restricting enough or working out enough. No. This is so wrong - I wasn't eating enough to be able to properly and effectively do anything at all, so my body went on some plateau where it just got used to the minimal intake. Thankfully I have been watching and reading a lot about weight loss, as I was confused and stressed enough about it, and have started to shift my habits in the right direction. It's so easy to look at others and how much they eat and just feel a deep stinging envy. But comments like yours are what fuel me (no pun intended) to eat and live as I should and need to. Thank you so much for taking the time to help me out like that, who knows, maybe it could have been a life you saved if it had gotten to that point.
@Alli Hey again I don't want to keep bothering you about my problems I feel like such a burden and that's not at all my intentions, I just had to let you know how powerful and touching your comment was to me, I kind of teared up while reading it. You really have such a gift for words and are so helpful, and your advice is brilliant. You make me see so much more than I've been limiting myself to; making me see solutions I thought were impossible and finally making me realize the truth about my health and its impact on every aspect of my life. I'm definitely working on being more grateful for the blessings I have, already I am so privileged in unimaginable ways above so many others. It's so sad to me to hear about your friend, that will definitely stay with me and help me remember not that my problems aren't invalid or irrelevant, but that they aren't severe at all and my suffering is nothing compared to that of so many others'. Even just since your first response I have been trying to create better habits and move my body because it feels good and it makes me feel strong instead of to work off calories to see the number on the scale diminish. You are definitely making such a difference in my life I can't tell you how much you've helped me, just by taking the time to respond to that random girl on youtube lol :) So yeah you should be so proud of yourself, I hope I can be like you and help others learn from my mistakes. I will definitely do my best to find help to make sure I can maintain my mindset of eating regularly again, I know a therapist would be really effective for me in so many ways. You're right, there are probably so many people who look at me and admire things the way I do to others, so I want to be a good role model to them in a way even though I can't imagine why anyone would possibly envy me to be honest. Anyway yeah I can't express how much this has truly changed my life I never thought youtube comments could have such a potent impact on me but I'm really glad you proved me wrong. p.s. I appreciate you complimenting my maturity haha for some reason that's the sweetest thing someone could say to me idk but honestly same to you, I can just tell you're really intelligent :)
@Alli Same, it's rare that I'll ever comment at all so you're right it definitely is meant to be I think :) I knowww I was thinking that too, I wish there was a way we could keep talking so that it's not completely public 😭 Wow that's crazy to think that I've impacted anyone's life, even mildly, especially somebody who I can accurately judge to be as brilliant as you, like honestly it makes me so flattered and just simply happy. Somehow you've helped me realize so much so quickly about myself and the way I think and how I see myself, I didn't even think such a thing was possible. Also just hearing that assurance that I'll be alright and that I have a bright future makes me feel so at peace, I don't know how to explain it because obviously nothing is certain but it just makes all my stress of meeting expectations and feeling like I'm a failure to everyone fade. I wish you the absolute best too ❤ I'm so grateful to the world for you being able to help me and just make me feel like I'm not alone when everything seems so complicated and inescapable, and that you replied to my comment out of all the billions of others, I mean talk about luck. I couldn't have done any of this without you seriously as exaggerated as that may seem, getting the perspective of somebody else genuinely helps so much because I always shut myself down and invalidate the few positive thoughts that tend to stream through my mind. This is so sad omg I obviously don't want to keep a long conversation chain over youtube going but you've helped me so much it feels weird to just stop talking at the same time I have no idea what to do lol. Anyway I really can't thank you enough for everything, you've guided me to being healthy so well and in the best way which is just incredible and says so much about you as a person, like you should really be so proud of yourself for making somebody find themselves and start to love themselves for who they are again. If there's no way we can communicate more or even just like follow each other on any socials then I just want to say thanks again (I know that's literally all I'm saying but I can't say it enough) for wasting your time on some messed-up teenager like me and making her feel comfortable and cared for and normal, instead of crazy and scared and unfixable.
I’m watching this as a 14 year old girl and I can relate to everything she said. I pressure myself into looking a certain way thinking it’ll make me happy. I always compare myself to Instagram models and sometimes I feel so bad about my body that I won’t even go outside that day. It’s so sad how the media affects us, starting from a young age. :(
Well im watching this a 13 yo lol , listen , love yourself always , every one is made pretty is their own way ! I feel that too , i used to compare myself to my classmates but now i love myself , idc what ppl and im tryingto be as healthy as i can 😆
Me too. I’m a dancer and the spots where bones usually stick out mine do A LOT making me feel like I can’t be graceful and just look absolutely awful. The body image stuff like you’re saying doesn’t help anyone.
My advice to you is to change the media you see, search and surround yourself with people who has a similar body type as you do. With time you'll start to think they're beautiful and then you'll too find yourself pretty. And with doing it you start to know how to "deal" with your type of body, type of clothes, styles and colours that make your own beauty shine. Hope it helps
well now being “thicc” is the “in” thing nowadays. this just goes to show that the “ideal” body shape/figure will never be constant or same. It’s all just a societal idea.
I hate how human beings are trends. You're in one second and out the next. And to think that literally any insecurity you have, you can 100% trace it back to an ancient time when that was considered desirerable.
HEY KYU being thicc is in but then you still gotta have a flat stomach and tiny waist lol. Not very achievable for a lot of people. Body image trends are just annoying
@@medoingrandomthings4288 I respectfully disagree. Sure the video was about herself and her own struggles, but that does not equal being egotistical. As a young woman, I found this video comforting to know that we who struggle with our bodies are not alone in that feeling. That is my opinion though - to each their own.
as a 24 y/o this is still pretty relatable... I’m starting fresh with my body, trying to build a healthy relationship through yoga and meditation. wishing u the best
during a lot of parts of the video, it almost felt like you were talking about me. *almost everything* from your story was the same for me when went trough eating disorders and depression; the hate of my legs and curvy hips that were now starting to show, victoria's secret models as "role models", not really having someone to talk to, etc. I've realized that this is pretty normal and is sadly increasing, which is the reason why we have to talk more about this openly and on social media. thank you so much for sharing your story, it is to much help for someone like me who is still on recovery and working on loving myself and not overthink and overdo things, to just listen to my body. much love Luna!
i'm not crying, you're crying seriously Luna, I feel like we could talk for hours and right now you're just speaking my heart really and what I love about myself are definetly my freckles, it took me a hot minute to find something but now that I think of it, I can truly say that my freckles make me cute and I feel good about it, thank you honey!
It's insane that people that I find absolutely gorgeous like Luna struggled so much with body image... proof that it's not about how you look, it's about how you feel
I am a dancer, and I’ve always been crazily focused on my boy proportions. As an Asian dancer, I was always ashamed of my “shorter” legs, round/square-ish face, and slanted eyes. But now, after having been fulfilled through discovering traditional Chinese dance and a form of dance called 国风爵士 (traditional Chinese with jazz), I’ve come to accept my very “ethnically” different features. Thanks so much for sharing Luna, I know how hard it may be.
I've had anorexia since I was 11 years old and I'm 17 now. I have gained almost 20 kilograms and I am still gaining. I am gaining weight and I am gaining life. There is more to life than the way your body looks. Eating is a fun and wonderful aspect of life because it is a source of energy and also of enjoyment. 💗
Exceptional ly please talk to a trusted adult about this. If the first person doesn’t give you the response you need, talk to another person . It gets better, but you need to take the first step - talking about it. It’s not to late, you won’t regret getting help and getting better - but if you don’t get help now, you will regret not doing so if you’re still struggling in 5 or 10 years from now.
@@pastelpink1202 I have always had body issues and, being the same age as you in all, I know EXACTLY how you feel. I look in the mirror and wonder why can't I have a body like other girls, or at least a good metabolism like other girls. I feel ashamed with a having a donut sized mass of stomach fat an cellulite on my legs and torso. Now, I have never been obese or fat, just a little bit chubby on my stomach, back, and thighs but I was to weak minded to see that and saw myself as a hippo. I've always loved to exercise, but that just wasn't enough for me. I have a piece of advice you that might boost your confidence. I know this may sound ridiculous, but it saved me from an even worse eating disorder, like not eating for weeks and exercising for hours eating disorder. I came across body positive Tik Toks on a bunch of different youtube channels, and I realized that NO ONE is perfect. I still cry every time I think that I could've literally fell down a rabbit hole and died from the toxic mindset that social media gave to me.
Me too! And it's still so strange for me. I absolutely hated myself back then and every time someone smile at me I thought they laughed because I'm fat or disgusting. But now it's different and sometimes I just cannot believe how nice people could be.
I love how skilled I am at swimming and how my shoulder muscles pop because of how long I’ve been swimming for. I completely understand body image issues from being swimming from the age of 3. Wearing a leotard is essentially similar to wearing a swimsuit. I’m just recovering from an eating disorder currently and this was something that needs to be openly discussed within communities. Especially at a younger age in sports that require more skin showing and where it’s all about your “body type”. Luna you’re amazing. Keep shining bright 🌟
Susannah Cliff this!!! Took me forever to be proud of my shoulders. Especially starting from a young age, our entire skeletons are different. When I realized that muscular and broad shoulders are not just beautiful but a sign of my lifetime of hard work...? It totally changed my perspective. Love them now :)
Super off topic but I’m gonna try out for this year round swim team in my city (after this quarantine) and I haven’t swam competitive (I ride horses and I was in gymnastics I had to stop due to an injury) I have a great body for swimming and the coaches there saw me swim (I was taking a couple lessons for the 4 strokes) and they said I have a great shot and a fast learner so what would you say as a swimmer to someone starting so late at the age of 16 almost 17 (I’m graduated though so I have a lot of free time) I have a lot of anxiety and worrying I won’t be good enough for the team
Zhanna Healy as someone who was a competitive swimmer for 10 years i want to tell you to always swim for YOU. do it because YOU think it is fun. do it because YOU want to be faster. if you’re trying to perform to impress your coaches or friends you will get burnt out, but if you enjoy pushing yourself in the water you will stick with the sport for years :)
Zhanna Healy I would say don’t compare yourself to the other swimmers. Your speed and stroke will come with practise, keep going don’t be put off just because you may not be as fast or have the stamina yet. I’ve been swimming now for 18 years (I’m 21) and still I have things I can improve. When racing, only focus on yourself, your form and controlling your breathing. I went through a long period of not even being able to go because I felt so anxious. But this year I forced myself even when I was feeling the worst, and afterwards I always felt 100 times better. So I’d say even if you’re anxious, still go because you’ll feel so accomplished afterwards! Good luck too!! Swimming is an amazing sport and life skill 💕
Girl, the moment when you said that you were looking at ways to throw up but never got yourself to do it, resonates so much with me because this is how my eating disorder started. I'm so happy it didn't work for you and you got to that self-love path. Wish you the best
i just wanted to say that i went through almost exactly what you went through: i tracked my calories, severely underfed myself, overexercised, restricted, weighed myself every morning (and if i weighed more than usual one day, i'd purposely not eat much that day.) i lost a lot of weight and all of my friends and people i didnt even know would comment on how skinny i was and how good i looked. i gained weight eventually, and it made me feel so terrible about myself. i never liked my body, and i HATED myself for gaining the weight even though i was exercising and still tracking and under-eating. it made me feel SO much less alone to watch this video. i want to get to the point where you are. i watched one of your what i eat in a day videos, and was shocked that you ate over 2,000 calories and still looked so healthy and beautiful. you are so inspiring, thank you.
so empowering to see someone talking about this topic. Especially when everyone is going through similar things. Thank you for being so honest to us, it’s truly needed. Reminding ourselves that being “skinny” won’t make me happy, but being healthy is what matters most. And everyone is different in our ways and there is so much beauty in that.
Just a little detail: can we talk about the cute baby dog happily sleeping while she is opening her life and heart on video? I waaant to squish him and love him. (or her?, idk). You are so brave Luna. Big hugs from New Zealand.
Yeah I get you cuz my mom says to me like : Why dont you eat less? You eat a lot and you know it. But she never said me that I am beautiful. Parents sucks sometimes
It would be nice if she told you that you are beautiful, but maybe you DO eat too much and she really wants to help you not to put on too much weight. It is not helping you telling you that you eat healthy if that is not the case. On the other hand, maybe you eat the right way and don't have any problem with the way you look, in this case she should leave you alone.
"why would I take they're advice or believe them, they hate themselves just as much" DAMN GIRL!!!!! those are words I didn't even know I needed to hear
I don’t mean this in a bad way, I’ve just been there so I know, honey this mindset, the way you reacted to ‘bad foods,’ the comparing, the weight goals, the tracking. this was an eating disorder. there’s a lot more than just anorexia. You are SO STRONG to pull yourself out of this. I’m proud of you, you’re doing so well❤️
screamingminnow i completely agree. i hate diagnosing people, but when you’ve been there yourself, you’re able to recognize the symptoms so easily and i definitely noticed a bunch in this video. body dysmorphia and eating disorders almost always go hand in hand. and the journal she had is practically proof that she had/has an eating disorder. the symptoms you listed plus the excessive exercising and weighing. definitely all signs of an eating disorder even if it was one other than anorexia. there’s so many subtypes like atypical or ednos. im glad she is able to talk about it and has since accepted weight gain (which wasn’t even noticeable to me)
As for someone who is always struggling with her body imagine, hearing you talk about this with the right amount of sweetness and reality without any filters on brings a huge smile on my face. You are helping a lot of young girls accepting their owns bodies so thank you. You're an amazing human being ❤
This is mind blowing how freaking skinny Luna is and she still struggled with not liking her body. It’s so toxic how the media is and how everyone sees their body image. Girl you’re gorgeous!
Its also just how body dysmorphia warps what you see in the mirror. I have it too, and when I look in the mirror, it looks like I’m looking in a fun house mirror that makes me look really wide and round. I’m way bigger now than I was at my dancing peak, and they way I look now is what I thought I saw in the mirror when I was thinner. Its so weird how it distorts your brain!
Nobody will see this comment but I'm 14 I've bean dancing for 11 years and as I grew up I was developing way faster and bigger than everyone else to the point where I quit dance for half a year. It was really physically and mentally hard for me. I skipped days eating just to be a pound lighter. Anytime I tried to talk to my friends they either didn't get it because they were not dancers or they were just supper thin and weren't as big as me. I've bean watching Luna for so long.. probably years. And the community and Luna here have helped me sooo much in accepting and loving myself. Its still a battle in loving myself but its now a battle I have strength and confidence to fight.
I had to quit ballet because I was also doing gymnastics and I was 'too chunky' for it. I am so sorry you feel this way, and that the world has made women like us feel less worthy because we don't 'look right'. You're beautiful. Every body shape is gorgeous. As long as you are happy with how you look, doing the best you can, and you have a good relationship with food. We are so proud of you. Thank you for sharing.
Oh my gosh, Luna I can’t tell you how much this has helped me. I started crying after watching this. My mom used to be a model and is super obsessed about her weight and my dad criticizes my weight. I’m dancing at Ballet Chicago and I’m behind for my age and on a scholarship and it’s so hard to feel okay with my body, so I honestly can’t tell you how this feels, I think as ballet dancers we all feel really alone and this is soooo amazing and beautiful to hear
Wow. You were really close to having a serious eating disorder. The notes you took at that young age are so shocking and sad. I'm really happy that you managed to get over this, and that you're encouraging a lot of people to do the same. Thank you❤
this hit way too hard, i used to go to a dance school (i used to dance since kindergarten all the way through middle school and high school so i grew up in the industry) and that competitive mindset of who was the smallest triggered my ed, 8 years later im finally recovered (and i quit dance, it was too much for me) so it does get better
This video made me tear up because you are so authentic and it really shows how much you have grown to love yourself. I am really thankful that I have never had insecurities about my body but somehow I am very touched by people who had to deal with EDs or similar things. Thank you so much for sharing your story and encouraging other people to love themselves! One thing tho: I would recommend deleting the “what I eat in a day” Videos because they might scare people with EDs... Thank you for being authentic Luna
wow this is so sad I’m 15 and I weigh 130lbs and i’m not necessarily considered „skinny“ but I’m healthy and happy. It took me YEARS to love my body like it is. I see other girls desperately wanting to be 100lbs and I think that girls just have to love themselves and that there is not a „perfect“ bodytype and that every figure is beautiful💗
This shows how strong and confident you are. You can literally show us your diary and talk about this sensitive topic on TH-cam. I wanna hug you and be your friend and comfort you! You are such an amazing person and you make me happy.
i’m not athletic at all, and i always was that average girl. like not very tall & normal proportions. but now i’m sixteen, and the past few years my weight has gone up a lot, and i really struggle with body image. especially my acne. its so much worse than all the others have and i really want to do something about it. but just like you, my mom does not get it at all. i love her but i cant have any serious conversations with her.. but thank you luna, i feel incredibly comforted
OMG it is actually crazy how similar our stories are!! like down to such small details! thank you so much for discussing this openly and honestly, we have super similar body types and I think you are absolutely beautiful so seeing you accept your body so openly truly helps me with my body image so much
I love my lips, my hair, my body and recently, I started loving my eyes. I always thought they were messing up my face but no, they are making my face prettier and I'm so happy I noticed that ❤🥺
this video is going to helpful to so many people, including myself! i am a dancer aswell and looking at myself in tights and a leotard everyday is hard for me and something i have struggled with for a long time. knowing there are people out there, like you, who struggle with it just like me makes me feel so much less alone and crazy. like you i was (and still sometimes am) a serial calorie counter. tracking EVERYTHING i would put into my body and tracking my weight. i would weigh myself in the morning, before, and after i worked out (yes, literally three times a day) now i look back and can see how crazy i was being but in the moment i thought that was the only way to become happy with my body. i am working on accepting my body (as both a women and a dancer) and finding a balance between eating what i want and loving my body.
To anyone struggling with this, remember that in this time it is more okay than ever to eat what you feel you need to eat. I'm having an ice cream every day. This is not normal life, and if all we can do is get through it, that's fine. ❤️
when i was growing up my life was surrounded by negative self talk, my parents made 8 year old me go on weight watchers with them, i was anorexic in 8th grade and was hospitalized to save my life, now that im 18 i realized my parents had a large part of why i hated my body, i recently have gained like 40 pounds bc of being in a healthy relationship, i have finally realized food isnt the enemy it was the way that i thought about food, i hope all the girls in the comments find that food isnt bad and that your body carries you everywhere and to take care of it, luna you feel like a sister for me, thank you for being so honest, much appreciated
i am an ex ballerina that really wants to rejoin my old studio. i keep thinking my belly is too big to rejoin but your body is *EXACTLY* like mine, and i feel so much better after watching this
I am 51 years old and a former ballerina. This video helped me so much you cant even believe. I still struggle with my body image and am seeing a therapist now for this because it consumes me. I wish i was this wise when i was younger. Thank you
This is so inspiring. I remember, as an acrobatic gymnast, the fear when I began to develop around age 13. It sucked more because the coaches would compare my body type to my partners, and how they had sharp, defined muscles, whereas I was all “soft”. I worked out so much and I was as strong as everyone else, I just didn’t have a six pack. They told us we shouldn’t have an ounce of extra fat on our bodies!! I’m 19 now and no longer competing, and I find myself thinking or caring about my body so much less. I wouldn’t say I am happy with it, but it definitely does not get me down as much any more as it’s not a focus. Thank you so much for sharing all this
My mom tries to “fix” me too and tells me what I need to work on to loose weight. It really makes me feel like crap and I know I’m not the skinniest and I’m trying to lose weight but I feel discouraged hearing her say these things. She says that, but she continues to buy junk food and tell me those hurtful things. I feel so discouraged and disgusting😢😢
My mom too i was mad at her in the beginning but I understand now she’s just don’t want me to experience what she went through now i’m over this and i’m gonna help my mom to go over her past and not letting my little sister to have this problem 😌😌
You are NOT disgusting. You are perfectly YOU! It's all about balance, you should do what feels right for you. And be open about it, talk about it with your mom!
Sabrina McConnell Your Mum has obviously been through body image issues. If you don’t speak up things will get worse. TELL her how you feel. It’s really hard to speak up, I know, but you need to do it for yourself. Even just saying, “Mum, I don’t like the way you speak to me about my body.” Or, “Mum, please can you stop commenting on how I look? I am happy with the way I am.” Making these comments might help just a little bit! You’re amazing ❤️
this helped me in so many ways. luna is sooo fricken beautiful it breaks my heart she has to feel this way, but then again people say the same thing to me. i’ve spent my whole life hating my body and this quarantine has amplified it 1000000x. but seeing that other girls understand helps me a lot. ur all beautiful
im a ballerina too. when i was about ten i was at a pretty strict dance school and one of my teachers told me that my body wasn't right for ballet. i have a large chest/hips and i build muscle so easily. i would not eat for days and even i passed out a few times it was really rough. it still sticks with me today in class all the time. thank you for talking about this, it's sososo prevalent in our line of work
you honestly talked so well about this topic, so refreshing to here someone say that it isnt about loosing weight its about being happy with what you have xxx
watch Luna be our free therapist This video put my mind in such a right setting and I just want to thank you. You are actually changing lives and helping people. I love you & thanks !!
One thing I love about myself is my freckles. I really didn’t know what I liked about myself until I read the comments and someone else said they liked their freckles and it made me realize that I really like mine.
You don‘t know how much this video helped me!! I‘ve watched it 2 years ago and it helped me to accept myself. I can tell this now, knowing how much I was struggling with myself that time…
I hate talking about myself in a positive way, i feel weird and it feels wrong to tell myself or think to myself that i look pretty or i performed a dance well. But, something i do love about myself is i am very supportive, to my family and friends i always try my hardest to support them, give them advice and just be there for them to talk to. However, i don`t feel like i get the support back, and mentally it has been really affecting me, but that has been something I am really working on, and I`m proud of myself for this! Thank you for this video Luna, love you so much you are a perfect role model for all women! :)
I've been athletic all my life and danced from 4th to 10th grade. I'm 5'1" and very muscular and curvy. I'd never considered myself insecure, but there's always some pressure from society to be skinny. But last year I spiraled into anxiety and could barely eat because of it. My anxiety would also make me physically sick. It lasted for a couple of months before I got a handle on it. I lost a ton of weight. It was then, when I had bags under my eyes and had lost weight in my hands and fingers, that I really realized what was important to me and what mattered. I was the skinniest I had ever been as a young adult and probably will never be that thin again. But I didn't look like me. I was a shell of myself. And I was far from happy. I got comments on "how great I looked", which is so damaging. And I didn't agree with any of those compliments. I looked underslept, unhappy, and like I was struggling. Because I was. Ever since then, I've gained most of my weight back healthily, through time. And I've made it a point to stop thinking negatively about my body. My body is MINE. Not Adriana Limas, not Kim Kardashians. Nobody else can be me. I am happy, healthy, and take good care of myself. What else is there to work on? My body has carried me through some of the toughest times in my life, including my struggle with anxiety. My body kept me alive. I hadn't considered myself insecure before, but after this awakening I had, I realized that I was more insecure than I thought. All I can hope is that other girls can see this and realize that you are so much more than your physical appearance ❤️
Clicked faster than ever I love you so much for this I am struggling so much with weight atm especially bcz everyone in my class is so much better than me like they have this perfect skinny body and I’m literally like 132pounds and I’m only 13 (5’5) and although I’ve only done ballet for 9 months I’m so annoyed that I’m only in grade 4 like I just wanna be good enough but I’m the worst dancer that I know and I keep blaming food and hating food like I’m so fat i just hate eating it’s always so scary like I’m gonna gain weight it’s like I don’t deserve it and you make me feel so much less alone and like it’s not my fault so thank you really!
oh my god i’m a late starter too!! i feel so behind, like i’m never going to get enough training in before i’m 16, constantly stressing whether or not ill make it into a career, and always stressing about eating too much and having a fat body while all the other 11 year olds in your class look perfect and get complimented by the teacher all the time :(
Julia same I just want to be good and nothing I do works:( what grade are you in and when did u start? I’m so happy I’m not the only late starter here❤️
Yasmin Khadem Aljamaa don’t worry about not being the best dancer! You’ve only been doing ballet for 9 months, ballet takes a lot of time and effort to improve so if you practice as much as you can at home you’ll definitely get better!
I needed this video more than ever, I myself have struggled with body dysmorphia since I was probably 10 and I'm proud that I've been able to really make life-changing progress for myself. This is a subject matter that needs to be discussed more because so many young people experience this kind of mentality and don't know how to get help, how to love themselves, to know that this "perfect body image" is all a societal construct and that they're not alone. I'm so proud of you and your journey thus far, and I hope this video helped others to see that they're not alone and that their bodies are absolutely valid in every shape and size. Peace and lots of love xx
Luna, what an amazing gift you are giving to so many individuals who are struggling with an eating disorder or body dysmorphia. Thank you for being vulnerable so that you can serve as a model of healing in a culture that so desperately needs it. I am not a ballerina nor have I ever even taken a ballet class, but as a woman I really relate to this video and am deeply grateful that you have taken the time and courage to post this information. We are surrounded every day by messages of what we should or should not look like (women, men, non-binary folk, dancers and non-dancers), and this is such an inspirational and honest video that serves as the perfect antidote to all the bulls**t out there. I wish this was required viewing for all dancers and for anyone out there who feels alone in their struggle. Thank you for using your experience to make a positive difference; it's a really powerful thing you've done here on TH-cam.
Legit started crying when you said "gained a lot of weight but now, IM HAPPY" Im so happy for you ! ALL BODDIES ARE VALID ! we must never ever forget that ! your journey is amazing ! keep going ! sending you lots of courage and love
I love how positively you look at how your mum affected your eating, like parents are people too and however bad their advice may be and how much it can affect you, learning goes both ways and I think it’s amazing that you don’t paint her in a bad light but have come to accept where she was coming from and both process how it was bad for you
I completely agree. And I think it was so important that she included her mom's perspective because I think we don't even realize the effect that our parents' input has on our minds and bodies. After all, most of us teens live with our parents and have to see and talk to to them every day. It's refreshing to hear the way she handled the situation with her mom.
this inspires me so much. i have been struggling with body image my whole life and i’m only 13, but this past year has been the absolute worst for me. i am a dancer too and although i focus more on contemporary/jazz, i am constantly comparing myself to others. i’ve struggled with bulimia and nobody knows about it because i’ve been embarrassed. i have always tried to be 100 lbs or less and i weigh myself everyday to see my “progress”. your video inspires me in so many ways to not care so much about body image and to recognize that my body will never be the perfect ballerina body. also watching those clips of you dance are amazing!! thank you for being such a huge inspiration and you are absolutely gorgeous❤️
I trained to be a professional dancer and after years of intense training I actually ended up switching from dance to commercial voice-over, modeling, and acting. I am mentally in such a better place. I'm still paranoid about my body. I'm 5ft 1in so I always perceive myself as stubby on camera. but I'm learning to embrace it. Happy that you're doing so much better
I've been a competitive swimmer for the past 8 years, and I'm sure my experience is very similar to seeing other girls in leotards every day. It's always tough for me not to compare my body to others. I try to think about it like this: I have done the exact same workout as some of these girls for the past 5 years, giving the same effort, the exact same set, and I don't look like them. I don't have the abs that some of the other girls do. I don't have the defined muscle that some of them show on their arms. But I can perform just as well as they can. Everyone has a completely different body, and even if you exercise the exact same for years, you will and can not look the same. Your body is healthy, and that is enough.
I really relate to you talking about how your mom just wants to put a bandaid on you. I went through a binge eating disorder when I was in 8th grade. I didn't tell my mom about it because I was afraid of the same reaction you said your mom had to you talking about your weight concerns. And now, years later, I told my mom about the eating disorder and her immediate response was "Why didn't you tell me? I could have stopped buying cookies or sugar." But that wouldn't have stopped me. I needed someone to just be there for me.
I was having an incredibly hard time today because of body image since we are in quarantine and I just finished dancing in a show, so I have gained a couple of pounds since I can’t dance. This helped me more than anyone can imagine, and I am so thankful for your message. I am also a dancer without the typical skinny body, and I always struggle with that. Thank you so much for using your voice to share your experience and make the world a better place.
This is such an important video to share and I can see how far you've come, I think the last step is to really understand that you've delt/dealing with a ED. I've been there as well and it was when I really "confessed"/said it out loud that it was an ED that I could finally start to move on! You are amazing and this video will help so many teenagers ❤
These videos have really help me! I danced for 11 years and had to quit at 14 for health reasons. I’ve always been small and when I quit I had gained weight. I was in and out of the hospital and in bed in bed a lot because I’ve had a migraine for 4 years straight(24/7). Now, even though I’m a lot better then I was before I can’t dance like I used to. I still have body dysmorphia and body image issues but your videos have helped a lot! Thank you for making them and keep up the good work love!💛
Ok here we go. What I love about me is that my body seems to have recovered almost completely from the health situation I was in in december 2019. It was the scariest thing that ever happened to me, the doctors still don't know why it happened, but it woke me up and showed me that a healthy body should be everybodys goal and wish because when it comes down to it beauty standards are not going to cure you
This message is so important. I remember being 8 years old and asking my ballet teacher how I could look like all of the rest of the ballerinas before the nutcracker auditions and she told me I should stop eating my ice cream after class everyday - that is something that has stuck with me to this day. It is crazy how we deeply some of these words and expectations are wired into us without us really recognizing it but if we don't stop and recognize it now WE are going to perpetuate the problem like my dance teacher was doing without knowing it. I love you! You are so strong and your soul shines soooo brightly now more than ever
@@yc-vy9lz Thank you! I feel that she was not trying to be harmful but it was. I have learned from her to be more careful with my words and be more intentional so in a way I'm glad I went through it.
Girl, I never comment on videos but this time I had to. I can relate to what you explained so, so much, without the ballet aspect. As a child, I was never good at any kind of sport and was pretty fat. Then I joined a gymnastics class and my body started to change. I got slimmer, I had more muscles showing up and I loved it. I never had an eating disorder, but I "wished" I had one just to get skinny. I tried to make myself throw up just like you explained but never could. My parents were just so protective that I never, never could watch my calorie intake or my daily weight and I hated them for that. I then stopped gymnastics and I gained weight. I started a relationship and gained even more weight. My father died and gained weight again. To this day, I am really struggling with accepting my body image and I still feel extremely fat (although I'm not even overweight). Thank your for this video, you made me realise how special each human being is. Now is the time to change our mindsets about the fact that everyone has to be skinny. (ps : excuse the bad english, non native english speaker here)
thank you so much for posting this. as a ballet dancer who barely weighed 110 until last year, i always thought i was fat compared to everyone at auditions and that’s why i wasn’t getting in. whenever i brought it up, people always said i was “attention seeking”. so thank you so much :)
i was one of the friends being fed. as a “bigger” girl in my friend group, or so i thought, i was surrounded by girls who in my opinion were so much prettier than me. i was always trying some diet, like sugar free, or keto, even in like elementary school! however, i still binge ate and that was a way of comfort for me. and when my skinny friends offered me food, i would take it because they were skinny so it must be ok! this triggered me to binge eat a lot and i felt sososososo bad about it. i couldn’t stop for so long. i was never really FAT but i was definitely not tiny. i still struggle with it to this day. now i’ve learned to starve myself more and am kinda falling into the other side of the spectrum, and the guilt is still there.
You should really consider getting professional help, as scary as that might seem. At least find a trusted adult that you can talk to about your eating habits. Binge eating or starving yourself is unhealthy and harms you both physically and mentally. I'm so sorry to hear you've been struggling with this, I hope you can reach a place of feeling confident in your body ❤️
i really needed this video since i've felt so bad about my body because i gained weight this winter from eating more due to stress and dancing less and less because of school and everything else
I feel like so many people needed this, especially being a dancer it’s really easy to fall into a habit of comparing. This was such a beautiful video thank u so much for making this. You are such a good role model and I hope everyone can see this
It’s crazy how you feel so alone going through things like this when in real life so many people experience the same things , this helped me so much thank you !!! I really didn’t know I needed this xxx
Every young woman who's struggling with body image or has eating disorders needs to watch this video! The photoshopped, airbrushed models that permeate the media offer unrealistic versions of women and encourage body dysmorphia. You are right. We are all unique!
luna I am literally crying, I feel so identified with your story, this is very difficult for me, and it is the same situation with my mother, we do not want to hear that from our mothers, my mother always tells me, it is okay tomorrow we can make a diet , you feel like you are the fattest in the world, I am always seeing the slimmest dancers on Instagram and they are incredible. When I was younger like 11 years old (actually I'm 14) I went to my first summer intensive , I got an important role, I was one of the main ones, I was not worried about my figure I was very thin, my period came and then it was my first competition and I was not worried about my figure either, until I saw the photos, I felt fat, from the age of 12 I began to worry about the figure and the way I was eating, the period changed my body. It is impossible not to eat fat food, but sometimes I think and say I shouldn't because that would affect my physique. and it is the same your friends will tell you "you are very skinny you are not fat" but it is because they are your friends. I just won a scholarship to France and I really feel very insecure, I don't know if I'm very fat because I don't know if I trust people, in mirror or in the camera.
back when i was really little and i still did ballet my teacher stopped class early one day and just talked to us about body image and stuff and it always stuck with me.
I feel this so much. I used to avoid eating any sweets or "extra" food that I didn't consider necessary. I worked out like craaaazy and pushed myself to unrealistic standards. I'm still struggling a little but I LOVE my progress being in a healthy relationship with my body, eating habits and exercise ❤️ it takes time, but we all can do it. Thank you so much Luna once again for being so open and inspiring
Luna thank you for posting, this definitely hit me hard. As a dancer I feel everything you described. There are so many days that I wish I was skinnier and I try to not eat so I lose weight. I know I shouldn’t because of people like you who have found peace with their bodies, but it’s still hard. Thank you for sharing your story, it really helps to know I’m not alone in these feelings. 💜💜 One thing I love about myself is my hazel eyes (: it’s a small thing but they always make me feel beautiful, even when nothing else does.
you are so strong and i love that you posted this because it is something that doesnt get talked a lot , thank you so much and im so glad you are better now .
Glad I watched this video. I stopped full-time ballet training Dec 2018 and moved towards contemporary. I gained some weight which was tough, but I felt that I was in the right mindset for it. Unfortunately I've gained 10kg in the past two months and I've been struggling with that a lot so this video came to me at the perfect time!
I’m gonna be honest, I didn’t notice she gained weight. I thought she’s looked really good recently, not just her body. She’s seemed a lot happier and healthier recently and it’s made me happy.
YES !
sophie imm No you can definitely see her thighs have gained. And she doesn’t have the long, slim arms of a professional ballet dancer. But that’s okay. We can’t really change those things about ourselves and so we should love and accept what we have
Exactly!
ohwellwhateverr luckily I would say. She is finally happy. Ballet is sad
Food sill do that to the brain, bring well-being!💛
My mom would buy me clothes in smaller sizes so they would “inspire me” to lose weight. So I get you girl :/
That's pretty awful, I hope you're more at peace with your body. My mother used to be shaming me, so I am understanding what it is that you feel
Parents are not perfect humans, that's for sure
That’s my grandparents for me.... „ you‘d be even MORE beautiful if you just loose some weight“. Yay 😬
i had terrible acne and backne as a teenager and my mom was constantly bothering me about it claiming that "If I didn't care enough to do something about it she would care for me" (in reality it was mostly there because of hormonal issues, but neither of us knew it then)
That's horrible. I hope you can find the confidence to talk to your mum about it.
It's heartbreaking to see how she was never fat but deemed herself as fat
Anorexia has entered the chat
Body dysmorphia
Yeah that's what everyone sees as heartbreaking. It isn't quite as sad when it's someone who isn't skinny.
Ballet bodies my friend. It's insane
The same has happened to me. I look back to pictures where I know I felt very fat and I just look so skinny, it’s such a crazy and weird feeling
The other day i read something like "isn't it crazy that if we all ate the exact same things, did the same workouts, etc, our bodies would be all different anyways?" and that's so true.
Yep
Everyone is different. /Self asteam name of the game. P.s. my name is Charlie will you be my angel two.? Funny bunny.
I absolutely love that. Thank you for sharing. All bodies are so, so beautiful.
@@gavincutler8976the fuck
yeah my mom sometimes told me that ”you didn’t go for a run this week and it’s already showing on your body”🙂 i’m thirteen. like thanks that is just making my low confidence even lower:)
that's kind of rude of her to say :/
well maybe tell your mom that everybody's body is different, bodies change, and running is for health and happiness and not for the looks...
...
seriously though, if you're thirteen, your body is going to undergo some serious changes to make you a woman and that's totally normal and beautiful ;*
My dad told me if i dont workout im gonna look like a fat cow... He also said its good im signing up for my school yoga club because i eat so much ice cream, and lets just say, hes not the skinniest person either.
@@animallover6487 maybe he's worried you're gonna put on weight like he did. And he clearly doesn't realise how comments like that are actually counter productive. I would just say 'well look at yourself first, man' ☺
wyclef O'hara Lol, actually one time I think he said “It’s good that your moving your body; because if you don’t, you’ll end up looking like me” So your right lol. And I for sure have made a similar comeback like that to him xd
The fact that as I’m watching this as a fifteen year old girl and I’m relating to this video is such a strong way makes me realize how messed up society is
Same girl, im fifteen and i just cryied, because i remember that my dance teachers use to come up to me and say that i look fat, that i need to lose weight, while im just starting to be a women. And i realaized I wear baggy cloths just to hide my little belly:/
Same I am 13 and an athlete and I have had past coaches tell me that I am too fat and my thighs were too large and teachers at school have weighed me to make sure that I am not gaining weight and it is scary. I was so low but now i don’t let them effect me and I have found that it is not the number on the scale but the numbers on the scoreboard and the kg number. Any athletes out there you are beautiful dont let coaches make you think bad about yourself.
Please run as fast as you can from those toxic environments. I started having disordered tendencies at 14 and now I'm 20 and starting recovery
@@francescatitmuss2125 same just 13 yrolds something is WRONG with our society!!!
same im 15
I think something that young girls, especially athletic ones, never learn about is that muscle weighs more than fat, and as a serious ballerina, you definitely had a lot of muscle, and the fact that you wanted so badly to be 100 lbs is so sad because you were probably so strong and yet that didn't matter to you. I'm happy that you now recognize strength and health is so important
Michelle Herzberg perioddd
and you were going through puberty - would you want your pre-pubescent body as an 18 year old, 19 year old... etc... slowly, things are changing in the ballet world, too. Lines won't - high arches won't ever not be valued - but different aesthetics are definitely becoming more valued.
A pound of muscle weighs the same as a pound of fat! The difference is that muscle is much more dense than body fat. Therefore, a pound of muscle will take up much less room in your body than a pound of fat.
I can relateeee
Michelle Herzberg I used to never eat or anything because I’m super skinny and fit and healthy and stuff and whenever I weighed myself (which I still do) I would weigh heaps and I would be so confused but now I understand that it muscle weighs more than fat .... but because of everything that’s going on I have been gaining weight but now just muscle weight tho...
💖
The respect she has for her mom is so impressively mature and honestly inspiring to me
I agree, I’m so petty I’d never get over that.
@@ihateyouall7026 Yesss you are SLAY QUEEN
@@ihateyouall7026 i would be too resentful
ballet was one of the main reasons for my struggle with body image. my body is hella curvy and i always felt out of place among everyone else who had the tiniest frames. because of my hips, dance attire always looked unflattering on me, the pretty costumes would go to waste on me so i always has the worst outfit when performing. it’s sad how the thing that makes me happiest is also my weakness.
I have that same thing. I constantly feel like I’m so big compared to everyone else. And it sucks because I’ve grown up thinking I’m so tiny bc I’m 5’1” and that’s always made me feel so tiny. When I grew into my hips and thighs bc of my genetics, I’ve felt so big. Every time we try on costumes, they say your size and I hate that bc I have the bigger size and it just sucks. I’m literally a small but compared to everyone else just sucks bc of how skinny everyone else is.
i started ballet late so i hate my legs
i have to be the one going through the most puberty compared to others who are still flat
Maybe go to seamstress and get one made just for you? You deserve it. I learned sewing because I was sick of clothes not fitting me. I'm slim but I have slightly bigger breasts. I don't dance but normal clothes pose similar issues
"Looking at that girl who struggled throughout HS, I just want to tell her, look at you, you have legs, you have arms, you're walking, you have great health, there's nothing you should be worrying about..." :) I love this!
One of the bravest, most honest, unsparing discussions about body image that probably has ever been filmed.
For someone this young to have this level of personal awareness is staggering.
Among the hundreds of thousands of views this video ultimately will gather, who knows how many lives will be positively altered -- and possibly saved?
Luna won the genetic lottery: brains, soul, talent and beauty. Watching her begin to fully come into her own and tap her power as a woman is really something special.
This is a beautifully written comment!! You seem like a good person ❤
Big facts
The part where you talk about feeding your friends is so triggering. I thought I was the only one who did this. Such dark times. Constantly in a state of comparison. Thank you for sharing your story!
Ashley Jackson same I used to do that as well, it’s crazy hearing someone else say they did that it’s makes it more eye opening
Yup, did this too. It is aweful, but you get to the point, where you realise that you can't do anything anymore so you start to make others look bad. :(
Ashley Jackson my friends and i would go on health kicks and eat healthy and work out i would tell them to wait a month after i started so i could get a head start because i was so afraid of them looking even more better than me than they already did and also wanted people to notice me losing weight and i thought that if they did too they wouldn’t notice me
I kind of feel like my friend does that to me sometimes, does anyone know how to deal with that?
Omg I do that to just to feel better with myself 😕
Honestly, teenage years are THE worst, especially for girls. Guys mainly grow taller and gain muscle mass, some have acne and a cracking voice for some time. No one prepares us, though, for what to really expect, no one teaches us about HOW to love our growing bodies, I've never heard in my entire life anyone say to any girl sth like "you're growing, it's normal that your body requires more energy=more food". It's making me angry now that I think about it, my parents heard me say many times that I hate my body after I hit puberty, I'd also break down and cry sometimes and they'd usually say something like "eh... you look normal"-that sounded very reassuring to a teenager girl, lol. It took me over 10 years to accept my body and be confident in it. In my last year of junior high school I was "pro-ana", I'd often wear clothes that would make my hips seem less wide and my legs skinnier, I'd avoid any glutes excercises, I'd also monitor what and when I eat until I was 17-18 etc. Also, the fact that the moment our bodies start resembling the bodies of grown women, we start getting cat-called and hit on by way older men (even if they know we are underage) is unsettling to say the least.
Now I'm a figure skater and I'm nowhere near skinny, I'm fit, quite muscled and quite strong and I have "some meat" on me and I love it. I learned to love all my scars, I learned to accept my bloated menstruation body and if I had an evening training and get home late - I'll definitely eat a meal :) I wish there were more women reaching out to girls going through their puberty, making it more understandable and less scary and I wish there were more parents who'd be a real emotional support for these girls..
Thank you for this vid :)
Thank you for giving me inspiration the same thing was happening and I thought I was the only one THANK you
Beautifully said ❤
I always heard the "you're growing up" thing actually. didint work to be honest as many of my friends still were insecure
Exactly this. Since us girls are young, we hear others around us spill negative comments about women's stretch marks, cellulite, weight, bigger stomach, acne, too big nose, literally everything. As we grow and start to gain weight, stretch marks and acne, we start to feel insecure because of that. Now that social media is more prominent, all those fake retouched pictures of Instagram models create new impossible standards for young people too. Combine these two things and you get very insecure people. I'm glad you're better now!
@@MilkyWay-vr7ku You just said everything and I'm soo agree with you ❤
watching this as a 13-year-old and relating to everything: food diaries, calorie tracking, obsessive workouts, skipping meals, comparing myself to other skinnier girls and hating my body makes me realise that im not the only one going through 'terrible teens'
thank you so much for this video
I'm 13 too :) but I just wanted to say, exactly. Every single thing she was saying I could relate to so deeply. I've been trying to eat under 1000 calories every day which I realize is so messed up, and there's always like that one girl I can't stop looking at and wonder what I'm doing wrong or differently that I'm so "fat" compared to her. Every day I look at myself in the mirror and put my feet together to see if my thighs tough and just start crying. I don't weigh myself every day, but most. On BMI calculators and stuff my weight is at the lower end of "Normal," but it doesn't seem to show. For reference I'm almost 5 ft 4 and weigh roughly 117 pounds. Also my parents have kind of noticed my eating, so I just take smaller portions, or whenever they're going to work I pretend like I'm preparing food but then as soon as they lock the door I put it all back away. It'll probably never go away but this vid genuinely helped me so much and to see comments like yours from people who understand is so relieving. Hope things are better since 6 months ago too.
@@clairejakubowski4805 and op You're loved and you are enough! I'm a similar size to you, maybe an inch or two shorter and an adult now, and I'm coming to realize that I will never have the super long, thin lines like a dancer because of my height - but that's nothing I can change, and actually something I'm proud of because I match my relatives whom I love (we're all short, lol.) It's been easier to accept that first, since it's so obviously unchangeable genetics, and then it's becoming easier to work through other things.
Take care of yourself, which means eating enough to support your brain (fats are important) and body growing into a healthy adult!
@Alli Wow. This is exactly the message I've needed and probably always internally known but just refused to listen to because...well, I guess there's no good reason. Because I just hate my body and want to be skinny, really. But it honestly is so important to nourish yourself so that you can have enough energy for base needs and just live well in general. I've been so negative and frustrated and can't think clearly; I began struggling with imposter syndrome (you seem smart so you're probably educated on this but it's pretty much when you don't know who you are), and I saw that nothing was having an effect anyway. My body was remaining the same and this made me enraged, I thought I wasn't restricting enough or working out enough. No. This is so wrong - I wasn't eating enough to be able to properly and effectively do anything at all, so my body went on some plateau where it just got used to the minimal intake. Thankfully I have been watching and reading a lot about weight loss, as I was confused and stressed enough about it, and have started to shift my habits in the right direction. It's so easy to look at others and how much they eat and just feel a deep stinging envy. But comments like yours are what fuel me (no pun intended) to eat and live as I should and need to. Thank you so much for taking the time to help me out like that, who knows, maybe it could have been a life you saved if it had gotten to that point.
@Alli Hey again I don't want to keep bothering you about my problems I feel like such a burden and that's not at all my intentions, I just had to let you know how powerful and touching your comment was to me, I kind of teared up while reading it. You really have such a gift for words and are so helpful, and your advice is brilliant. You make me see so much more than I've been limiting myself to; making me see solutions I thought were impossible and finally making me realize the truth about my health and its impact on every aspect of my life. I'm definitely working on being more grateful for the blessings I have, already I am so privileged in unimaginable ways above so many others. It's so sad to me to hear about your friend, that will definitely stay with me and help me remember not that my problems aren't invalid or irrelevant, but that they aren't severe at all and my suffering is nothing compared to that of so many others'. Even just since your first response I have been trying to create better habits and move my body because it feels good and it makes me feel strong instead of to work off calories to see the number on the scale diminish. You are definitely making such a difference in my life I can't tell you how much you've helped me, just by taking the time to respond to that random girl on youtube lol :) So yeah you should be so proud of yourself, I hope I can be like you and help others learn from my mistakes. I will definitely do my best to find help to make sure I can maintain my mindset of eating regularly again, I know a therapist would be really effective for me in so many ways. You're right, there are probably so many people who look at me and admire things the way I do to others, so I want to be a good role model to them in a way even though I can't imagine why anyone would possibly envy me to be honest. Anyway yeah I can't express how much this has truly changed my life I never thought youtube comments could have such a potent impact on me but I'm really glad you proved me wrong.
p.s. I appreciate you complimenting my maturity haha for some reason that's the sweetest thing someone could say to me idk but honestly same to you, I can just tell you're really intelligent :)
@Alli Same, it's rare that I'll ever comment at all so you're right it definitely is meant to be I think :) I knowww I was thinking that too, I wish there was a way we could keep talking so that it's not completely public 😭 Wow that's crazy to think that I've impacted anyone's life, even mildly, especially somebody who I can accurately judge to be as brilliant as you, like honestly it makes me so flattered and just simply happy. Somehow you've helped me realize so much so quickly about myself and the way I think and how I see myself, I didn't even think such a thing was possible. Also just hearing that assurance that I'll be alright and that I have a bright future makes me feel so at peace, I don't know how to explain it because obviously nothing is certain but it just makes all my stress of meeting expectations and feeling like I'm a failure to everyone fade. I wish you the absolute best too ❤ I'm so grateful to the world for you being able to help me and just make me feel like I'm not alone when everything seems so complicated and inescapable, and that you replied to my comment out of all the billions of others, I mean talk about luck. I couldn't have done any of this without you seriously as exaggerated as that may seem, getting the perspective of somebody else genuinely helps so much because I always shut myself down and invalidate the few positive thoughts that tend to stream through my mind. This is so sad omg I obviously don't want to keep a long conversation chain over youtube going but you've helped me so much it feels weird to just stop talking at the same time I have no idea what to do lol. Anyway I really can't thank you enough for everything, you've guided me to being healthy so well and in the best way which is just incredible and says so much about you as a person, like you should really be so proud of yourself for making somebody find themselves and start to love themselves for who they are again. If there's no way we can communicate more or even just like follow each other on any socials then I just want to say thanks again (I know that's literally all I'm saying but I can't say it enough) for wasting your time on some messed-up teenager like me and making her feel comfortable and cared for and normal, instead of crazy and scared and unfixable.
I’m watching this as a 14 year old girl and I can relate to everything she said. I pressure myself into looking a certain way thinking it’ll make me happy. I always compare myself to Instagram models and sometimes I feel so bad about my body that I won’t even go outside that day. It’s so sad how the media affects us, starting from a young age. :(
Well im watching this a 13 yo lol , listen , love yourself always , every one is made pretty is their own way ! I feel that too , i used to compare myself to my classmates but now i love myself , idc what ppl and im tryingto be as healthy as i can 😆
14 gang
You're not pressuring yourself; you're experiencing the cultural effects of mass objectification and sexualization of women’s bodies.
Me too. I’m a dancer and the spots where bones usually stick out mine do A LOT making me feel like I can’t be graceful and just look absolutely awful. The body image stuff like you’re saying doesn’t help anyone.
My advice to you is to change the media you see, search and surround yourself with people who has a similar body type as you do. With time you'll start to think they're beautiful and then you'll too find yourself pretty. And with doing it you start to know how to "deal" with your type of body, type of clothes, styles and colours that make your own beauty shine. Hope it helps
well now being “thicc” is the “in” thing nowadays. this just goes to show that the “ideal” body shape/figure will never be constant or same. It’s all just a societal idea.
I hate how human beings are trends. You're in one second and out the next. And to think that literally any insecurity you have, you can 100% trace it back to an ancient time when that was considered desirerable.
not in ballet in ballet its all about being skinny and having no body at all
Thicc isnt in. It's just the same skinny girls with wider hips. Ideal body shape has changed but the acceptable size hasn't changed
HEY KYU being thicc is in but then you still gotta have a flat stomach and tiny waist lol. Not very achievable for a lot of people. Body image trends are just annoying
Kelly E. Yeah slim thicc is usually preferred nowadays so only skinny girls can achieve it but even for them it can be hard to achieve
"Why am I expecting my natural face to look like that (surgery), when in reality, that's not natural either." Best quote of the video, wow.
As a nineteen year old girl, this is THE most relatable video I have seen
Anya Irvin she’s egotistical and not relatable
Sansa Stark how is she egotistical?
@@medoingrandomthings4288 I respectfully disagree. Sure the video was about herself and her own struggles, but that does not equal being egotistical. As a young woman, I found this video comforting to know that we who struggle with our bodies are not alone in that feeling. That is my opinion though - to each their own.
Anya Irvin aww I’m so sorry you relate to this but I hope you love your body more now
as a 24 y/o this is still pretty relatable... I’m starting fresh with my body, trying to build a healthy relationship through yoga and meditation. wishing u the best
"if you can learn to be grateful for the little things, you can learn to love yourself" - Luna 2020
during a lot of parts of the video, it almost felt like you were talking about me. *almost everything* from your story was the same for me when went trough eating disorders and depression; the hate of my legs and curvy hips that were now starting to show, victoria's secret models as "role models", not really having someone to talk to, etc. I've realized that this is pretty normal and is sadly increasing, which is the reason why we have to talk more about this openly and on social media. thank you so much for sharing your story, it is to much help for someone like me who is still on recovery and working on loving myself and not overthink and overdo things, to just listen to my body. much love Luna!
i'm not crying, you're crying
seriously Luna, I feel like we could talk for hours and right now you're just speaking my heart really
and what I love about myself are definetly my freckles, it took me a hot minute to find something but now that I think of it, I can truly say that my freckles make me cute and I feel good about it, thank you honey!
I feel exactly the same !!!
yay i love that for you! gonna be honest, i've always wanted freckles - they're so cute and i'm sure you rock them!! x
You go! Freckles are seriously one of the cutest things that could ever be on a face!
pau la Freckles are adorable! I’ve wanted them all my life, embrace them girl! X
samee!
It's insane that people that I find absolutely gorgeous like Luna struggled so much with body image... proof that it's not about how you look, it's about how you feel
Odile Mltt THIS!! I thought I’d be super happy if I lose a lot of weight. Haha, nope, hated myself even more. It won’t fix all your problems.
The only thing I noticed was that Luna looks much happier, more comfortable, healthier and much more focused... Be safe!
This genuinely felt like you were telling me about my own life I’m shocked
I am a dancer, and I’ve always been crazily focused on my boy proportions. As an Asian dancer, I was always ashamed of my “shorter” legs, round/square-ish face, and slanted eyes. But now, after having been fulfilled through discovering traditional Chinese dance and a form of dance called 国风爵士 (traditional Chinese with jazz), I’ve come to accept my very “ethnically” different features. Thanks so much for sharing Luna, I know how hard it may be.
I've had anorexia since I was 11 years old and I'm 17 now. I have gained almost 20 kilograms and I am still gaining. I am gaining weight and I am gaining life. There is more to life than the way your body looks. Eating is a fun and wonderful aspect of life because it is a source of energy and also of enjoyment. 💗
congratulations on your recovery ♥️♥️♥️ such a huge accomplishment
@@hannahkrantz7086 Thank you so much!! : )
My eating disorder has been going on for over a year. I'm 12 and started it when I was 11. I really need some advice 😔 I always feel fat
Exceptional ly please talk to a trusted adult about this. If the first person doesn’t give you the response you need, talk to another person . It gets better, but you need to take the first step - talking about it. It’s not to late, you won’t regret getting help and getting better - but if you don’t get help now, you will regret not doing so if you’re still struggling in 5 or 10 years from now.
@@pastelpink1202 I have always had body issues and, being the same age as you in all, I know EXACTLY how you feel. I look in the mirror and wonder why can't I have a body like other girls, or at least a good metabolism like other girls. I feel ashamed with a having a donut sized mass of stomach fat an cellulite on my legs and torso. Now, I have never been obese or fat, just a little bit chubby on my stomach, back, and thighs but I was to weak minded to see that and saw myself as a hippo. I've always loved to exercise, but that just wasn't enough for me. I have a piece of advice you that might boost your confidence. I know this may sound ridiculous, but it saved me from an even worse eating disorder, like not eating for weeks and exercising for hours eating disorder. I came across body positive Tik Toks on a bunch of different youtube channels, and I realized that NO ONE is perfect. I still cry every time I think that I could've literally fell down a rabbit hole and died from the toxic mindset that social media gave to me.
I love seeing others smile back at me when I give them a smile.
Me too! And it's still so strange for me. I absolutely hated myself back then and every time someone smile at me I thought they laughed because I'm fat or disgusting. But now it's different and sometimes I just cannot believe how nice people could be.
I love how skilled I am at swimming and how my shoulder muscles pop because of how long I’ve been swimming for. I completely understand body image issues from being swimming from the age of 3. Wearing a leotard is essentially similar to wearing a swimsuit. I’m just recovering from an eating disorder currently and this was something that needs to be openly discussed within communities. Especially at a younger age in sports that require more skin showing and where it’s all about your “body type”. Luna you’re amazing. Keep shining bright 🌟
Susannah Cliff this!!! Took me forever to be proud of my shoulders. Especially starting from a young age, our entire skeletons are different. When I realized that muscular and broad shoulders are not just beautiful but a sign of my lifetime of hard work...? It totally changed my perspective. Love them now :)
Super off topic but I’m gonna try out for this year round swim team in my city (after this quarantine) and I haven’t swam competitive (I ride horses and I was in gymnastics I had to stop due to an injury) I have a great body for swimming and the coaches there saw me swim (I was taking a couple lessons for the 4 strokes) and they said I have a great shot and a fast learner so what would you say as a swimmer to someone starting so late at the age of 16 almost 17 (I’m graduated though so I have a lot of free time) I have a lot of anxiety and worrying I won’t be good enough for the team
Zhanna Healy as someone who was a competitive swimmer for 10 years i want to tell you to always swim for YOU. do it because YOU think it is fun. do it because YOU want to be faster. if you’re trying to perform to impress your coaches or friends you will get burnt out, but if you enjoy pushing yourself in the water you will stick with the sport for years :)
i am also a swimmer, i embrace my shoulders and love how wide and muscular they are, just love em
Zhanna Healy I would say don’t compare yourself to the other swimmers. Your speed and stroke will come with practise, keep going don’t be put off just because you may not be as fast or have the stamina yet. I’ve been swimming now for 18 years (I’m 21) and still I have things I can improve. When racing, only focus on yourself, your form and controlling your breathing. I went through a long period of not even being able to go because I felt so anxious. But this year I forced myself even when I was feeling the worst, and afterwards I always felt 100 times better. So I’d say even if you’re anxious, still go because you’ll feel so accomplished afterwards! Good luck too!! Swimming is an amazing sport and life skill 💕
Girl, the moment when you said that you were looking at ways to throw up but never got yourself to do it, resonates so much with me because this is how my eating disorder started. I'm so happy it didn't work for you and you got to that self-love path. Wish you the best
I'm a 13 year old ballerina, and this was so important for me to hear, thank you.
i just wanted to say that i went through almost exactly what you went through: i tracked my calories, severely underfed myself, overexercised, restricted, weighed myself every morning (and if i weighed more than usual one day, i'd purposely not eat much that day.) i lost a lot of weight and all of my friends and people i didnt even know would comment on how skinny i was and how good i looked. i gained weight eventually, and it made me feel so terrible about myself. i never liked my body, and i HATED myself for gaining the weight even though i was exercising and still tracking and under-eating. it made me feel SO much less alone to watch this video. i want to get to the point where you are. i watched one of your what i eat in a day videos, and was shocked that you ate over 2,000 calories and still looked so healthy and beautiful. you are so inspiring, thank you.
Jenna Mongrez I feel the exact same way as you do but I’m sending my love and strength to you and I know we can get through this❤️
You are stronger than you know
so empowering to see someone talking about this topic. Especially when everyone is going through similar things. Thank you for being so honest to us, it’s truly needed. Reminding ourselves that being “skinny” won’t make me happy, but being healthy is what matters most. And everyone is different in our ways and there is so much beauty in that.
Perfectly said!💗
Just a little detail: can we talk about the cute baby dog happily sleeping while she is opening her life and heart on video? I waaant to squish him and love him. (or her?, idk). You are so brave Luna. Big hugs from New Zealand.
Yeah I get you cuz my mom says to me like : Why dont you eat less? You eat a lot and you know it. But she never said me that I am beautiful. Parents sucks sometimes
Well you are beautiful even though I can't see you lol 😂❤
i cant see you but i bet youre gorgeous 💗
It would be nice if she told you that you are beautiful, but maybe you DO eat too much and she really wants to help you not to put on too much weight. It is not helping you telling you that you eat healthy if that is not the case. On the other hand, maybe you eat the right way and don't have any problem with the way you look, in this case she should leave you alone.
@@maelle1819 I mean even if she’s right the way she’s wording it is prolly not the best
"why would I take they're advice or believe them, they hate themselves just as much" DAMN GIRL!!!!! those are words I didn't even know I needed to hear
I don’t mean this in a bad way, I’ve just been there so I know, honey this mindset, the way you reacted to ‘bad foods,’ the comparing, the weight goals, the tracking. this was an eating disorder. there’s a lot more than just anorexia. You are SO STRONG to pull yourself out of this. I’m proud of you, you’re doing so well❤️
screamingminnow i completely agree. i hate diagnosing people, but when you’ve been there yourself, you’re able to recognize the symptoms so easily and i definitely noticed a bunch in this video. body dysmorphia and eating disorders almost always go hand in hand. and the journal she had is practically proof that she had/has an eating disorder. the symptoms you listed plus the excessive exercising and weighing. definitely all signs of an eating disorder even if it was one other than anorexia. there’s so many subtypes like atypical or ednos. im glad she is able to talk about it and has since accepted weight gain (which wasn’t even noticeable to me)
As for someone who is always struggling with her body imagine, hearing you talk about this with the right amount of sweetness and reality without any filters on brings a huge smile on my face. You are helping a lot of young girls accepting their owns bodies so thank you. You're an amazing human being ❤
This is mind blowing how freaking skinny Luna is and she still struggled with not liking her body. It’s so toxic how the media is and how everyone sees their body image.
Girl you’re gorgeous!
Its also just how body dysmorphia warps what you see in the mirror. I have it too, and when I look in the mirror, it looks like I’m looking in a fun house mirror that makes me look really wide and round. I’m way bigger now than I was at my dancing peak, and they way I look now is what I thought I saw in the mirror when I was thinner. Its so weird how it distorts your brain!
Nobody will see this comment but I'm 14 I've bean dancing for 11 years and as I grew up I was developing way faster and bigger than everyone else to the point where I quit dance for half a year. It was really physically and mentally hard for me. I skipped days eating just to be a pound lighter. Anytime I tried to talk to my friends they either didn't get it because they were not dancers or they were just supper thin and weren't as big as me. I've bean watching Luna for so long.. probably years. And the community and Luna here have helped me sooo much in accepting and loving myself. Its still a battle in loving myself but its now a battle I have strength and confidence to fight.
same i feel u
I had to quit ballet because I was also doing gymnastics and I was 'too chunky' for it. I am so sorry you feel this way, and that the world has made women like us feel less worthy because we don't 'look right'. You're beautiful. Every body shape is gorgeous. As long as you are happy with how you look, doing the best you can, and you have a good relationship with food. We are so proud of you. Thank you for sharing.
Oh my gosh, Luna I can’t tell you how much this has helped me. I started crying after watching this. My mom used to be a model and is super obsessed about her weight and my dad criticizes my weight. I’m dancing at Ballet Chicago and I’m behind for my age and on a scholarship and it’s so hard to feel okay with my body, so I honestly can’t tell you how this feels, I think as ballet dancers we all feel really alone and this is soooo amazing and beautiful to hear
Hope you're doing well!
Wow. You were really close to having a serious eating disorder. The notes you took at that young age are so shocking and sad. I'm really happy that you managed to get over this, and that you're encouraging a lot of people to do the same. Thank you❤
this hit way too hard, i used to go to a dance school (i used to dance since kindergarten all the way through middle school and high school so i grew up in the industry) and that competitive mindset of who was the smallest triggered my ed, 8 years later im finally recovered (and i quit dance, it was too much for me) so it does get better
This video made me tear up because you are so authentic and it really shows how much you have grown to love yourself. I am really thankful that I have never had insecurities about my body but somehow I am very touched by people who had to deal with EDs or similar things. Thank you so much for sharing your story and encouraging other people to love themselves! One thing tho: I would recommend deleting the “what I eat in a day” Videos because they might scare people with EDs... Thank you for being authentic Luna
wow this is so sad I’m 15 and I weigh 130lbs and i’m not necessarily considered „skinny“ but I’m healthy and happy. It took me YEARS to love my body like it is. I see other girls desperately wanting to be 100lbs and I think that girls just have to love themselves and that there is not a „perfect“ bodytype and that every figure is beautiful💗
This shows how strong and confident you are. You can literally show us your diary and talk about this sensitive topic on TH-cam. I wanna hug you and be your friend and comfort you! You are such an amazing person and you make me happy.
i’m not athletic at all, and i always was that average girl. like not very tall & normal proportions. but now i’m sixteen, and the past few years my weight has gone up a lot, and i really struggle with body image. especially my acne. its so much worse than all the others have and i really want to do something about it. but just like you, my mom does not get it at all. i love her but i cant have any serious conversations with her.. but thank you luna, i feel incredibly comforted
Beautiful girl, wholeheartedly agree that complimenting someone on losing weight adds fuel to the fire
OMG it is actually crazy how similar our stories are!! like down to such small details! thank you so much for discussing this openly and honestly, we have super similar body types and I think you are absolutely beautiful so seeing you accept your body so openly truly helps me with my body image so much
I love my lips, my hair, my body and recently, I started loving my eyes. I always thought they were messing up my face but no, they are making my face prettier and I'm so happy I noticed that ❤🥺
this video is going to helpful to so many people, including myself! i am a dancer aswell and looking at myself in tights and a leotard everyday is hard for me and something i have struggled with for a long time. knowing there are people out there, like you, who struggle with it just like me makes me feel so much less alone and crazy. like you i was (and still sometimes am) a serial calorie counter. tracking EVERYTHING i would put into my body and tracking my weight. i would weigh myself in the morning, before, and after i worked out (yes, literally three times a day) now i look back and can see how crazy i was being but in the moment i thought that was the only way to become happy with my body. i am working on accepting my body (as both a women and a dancer) and finding a balance between eating what i want and loving my body.
To anyone struggling with this, remember that in this time it is more okay than ever to eat what you feel you need to eat. I'm having an ice cream every day. This is not normal life, and if all we can do is get through it, that's fine. ❤️
Sofia Voudou thank you for saying this. I hope you know how much this means to people, especially me❤️
Yesss!!! This is so true😭thank you for the reminder, i literally was just thinking a should not have had that cookies last night before this!
when i was growing up my life was surrounded by negative self talk, my parents made 8 year old me go on weight watchers with them, i was anorexic in 8th grade and was hospitalized to save my life, now that im 18 i realized my parents had a large part of why i hated my body, i recently have gained like 40 pounds bc of being in a healthy relationship, i have finally realized food isnt the enemy it was the way that i thought about food, i hope all the girls in the comments find that food isnt bad and that your body carries you everywhere and to take care of it, luna you feel like a sister for me, thank you for being so honest, much appreciated
i am an ex ballerina that really wants to rejoin my old studio. i keep thinking my belly is too big to rejoin but your body is *EXACTLY* like mine, and i feel so much better after watching this
I am 51 years old and a former ballerina. This video helped me so much you cant even believe. I still struggle with my body image and am seeing a therapist now for this because it consumes me. I wish i was this wise when i was younger. Thank you
I love this. Sometimes moms make mistakes and I feel like my mom doesn’t understand body image but I understand now she is just trying to help me
Parents aren't perfect :/
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This is so inspiring. I remember, as an acrobatic gymnast, the fear when I began to develop around age 13. It sucked more because the coaches would compare my body type to my partners, and how they had sharp, defined muscles, whereas I was all “soft”. I worked out so much and I was as strong as everyone else, I just didn’t have a six pack. They told us we shouldn’t have an ounce of extra fat on our bodies!! I’m 19 now and no longer competing, and I find myself thinking or caring about my body so much less. I wouldn’t say I am happy with it, but it definitely does not get me down as much any more as it’s not a focus. Thank you so much for sharing all this
My mom tries to “fix” me too and tells me what I need to work on to loose weight. It really makes me feel like crap and I know I’m not the skinniest and I’m trying to lose weight but I feel discouraged hearing her say these things. She says that, but she continues to buy junk food and tell me those hurtful things. I feel so discouraged and disgusting😢😢
My mom too i was mad at her in the beginning
but I understand now she’s just don’t want me to experience what she went through
now i’m over this and i’m gonna help my mom to go over her past and not letting my little sister to have this problem 😌😌
You are NOT disgusting. You are perfectly YOU! It's all about balance, you should do what feels right for you. And be open about it, talk about it with your mom!
You are beautiful, that I;m sure of. Keep your head up and remember that you are perfectly you!
ReLaTabLe
Sabrina McConnell Your Mum has obviously been through body image issues. If you don’t speak up things will get worse. TELL her how you feel. It’s really hard to speak up, I know, but you need to do it for yourself. Even just saying, “Mum, I don’t like the way you speak to me about my body.” Or, “Mum, please can you stop commenting on how I look? I am happy with the way I am.” Making these comments might help just a little bit! You’re amazing ❤️
this helped me in so many ways. luna is sooo fricken beautiful it breaks my heart she has to feel this way, but then again people say the same thing to me. i’ve spent my whole life hating my body and this quarantine has amplified it 1000000x. but seeing that other girls understand helps me a lot. ur all beautiful
im a ballerina too. when i was about ten i was at a pretty strict dance school and one of my teachers told me that my body wasn't right for ballet. i have a large chest/hips and i build muscle so easily. i would not eat for days and even i passed out a few times it was really rough. it still sticks with me today in class all the time. thank you for talking about this, it's sososo prevalent in our line of work
you honestly talked so well about this topic, so refreshing to here someone say that it isnt about loosing weight its about being happy with what you have xxx
watch Luna be our free therapist
This video put my mind in such a right setting and I just want to thank you. You are actually changing lives and helping people. I love you & thanks !!
One thing I love about myself is my freckles. I really didn’t know what I liked about myself until I read the comments and someone else said they liked their freckles and it made me realize that I really like mine.
You don‘t know how much this video helped me!! I‘ve watched it 2 years ago and it helped me to accept myself. I can tell this now, knowing how much I was struggling with myself that time…
I hate talking about myself in a positive way, i feel weird and it feels wrong to tell myself or think to myself that i look pretty or i performed a dance well. But, something i do love about myself is i am very supportive, to my family and friends i always try my hardest to support them, give them advice and just be there for them to talk to. However, i don`t feel like i get the support back, and mentally it has been really affecting me, but that has been something I am really working on, and I`m proud of myself for this! Thank you for this video Luna, love you so much you are a perfect role model for all women! :)
I've been athletic all my life and danced from 4th to 10th grade. I'm 5'1" and very muscular and curvy. I'd never considered myself insecure, but there's always some pressure from society to be skinny. But last year I spiraled into anxiety and could barely eat because of it. My anxiety would also make me physically sick. It lasted for a couple of months before I got a handle on it. I lost a ton of weight. It was then, when I had bags under my eyes and had lost weight in my hands and fingers, that I really realized what was important to me and what mattered. I was the skinniest I had ever been as a young adult and probably will never be that thin again. But I didn't look like me. I was a shell of myself. And I was far from happy. I got comments on "how great I looked", which is so damaging. And I didn't agree with any of those compliments. I looked underslept, unhappy, and like I was struggling. Because I was. Ever since then, I've gained most of my weight back healthily, through time. And I've made it a point to stop thinking negatively about my body. My body is MINE. Not Adriana Limas, not Kim Kardashians. Nobody else can be me. I am happy, healthy, and take good care of myself. What else is there to work on? My body has carried me through some of the toughest times in my life, including my struggle with anxiety. My body kept me alive. I hadn't considered myself insecure before, but after this awakening I had, I realized that I was more insecure than I thought. All I can hope is that other girls can see this and realize that you are so much more than your physical appearance ❤️
Ava Silvestri 💕 wow I am happy to know I am not alone.
@@abbeywyrrick ❤️
Well said!👏👏
Beautiful! :)
Clicked faster than ever I love you so much for this I am struggling so much with weight atm especially bcz everyone in my class is so much better than me like they have this perfect skinny body and I’m literally like 132pounds and I’m only 13 (5’5) and although I’ve only done ballet for 9 months I’m so annoyed that I’m only in grade 4 like I just wanna be good enough but I’m the worst dancer that I know and I keep blaming food and hating food like I’m so fat i just hate eating it’s always so scary like I’m gonna gain weight it’s like I don’t deserve it and you make me feel so much less alone and like it’s not my fault so thank you really!
oh my god i’m a late starter too!! i feel so behind, like i’m never going to get enough training in before i’m 16, constantly stressing whether or not ill make it into a career, and always stressing about eating too much and having a fat body while all the other 11 year olds in your class look perfect and get complimented by the teacher all the time :(
Julia same I just want to be good and nothing I do works:( what grade are you in and when did u start? I’m so happy I’m not the only late starter here❤️
Yasmin Khadem Aljamaa don’t worry about not being the best dancer! You’ve only been doing ballet for 9 months, ballet takes a lot of time and effort to improve so if you practice as much as you can at home you’ll definitely get better!
Val thank you!! I practice everyday and follow online classes though I can’t do then that well ❤️
Megan Rees I feel you it can be so stressful but I’m sure there is light at the end of the road we just have to keep walking till we reach it
as a person who's struggled with body dysmorphia and eating disorders, I appreciate this so much. thanks luna:)
I needed this video more than ever, I myself have struggled with body dysmorphia since I was probably 10 and I'm proud that I've been able to really make life-changing progress for myself. This is a subject matter that needs to be discussed more because so many young people experience this kind of mentality and don't know how to get help, how to love themselves, to know that this "perfect body image" is all a societal construct and that they're not alone. I'm so proud of you and your journey thus far, and I hope this video helped others to see that they're not alone and that their bodies are absolutely valid in every shape and size.
Peace and lots of love xx
Luna, what an amazing gift you are giving to so many individuals who are struggling with an eating disorder or body dysmorphia. Thank you for being vulnerable so that you can serve as a model of healing in a culture that so desperately needs it. I am not a ballerina nor have I ever even taken a ballet class, but as a woman I really relate to this video and am deeply grateful that you have taken the time and courage to post this information. We are surrounded every day by messages of what we should or should not look like (women, men, non-binary folk, dancers and non-dancers), and this is such an inspirational and honest video that serves as the perfect antidote to all the bulls**t out there. I wish this was required viewing for all dancers and for anyone out there who feels alone in their struggle. Thank you for using your experience to make a positive difference; it's a really powerful thing you've done here on TH-cam.
Legit started crying when you said "gained a lot of weight but now, IM HAPPY" Im so happy for you ! ALL BODDIES ARE VALID ! we must never ever forget that ! your journey is amazing ! keep going ! sending you lots of courage and love
I love that your puppy is just chilling in the background
I love how positively you look at how your mum affected your eating, like parents are people too and however bad their advice may be and how much it can affect you, learning goes both ways and I think it’s amazing that you don’t paint her in a bad light but have come to accept where she was coming from and both process how it was bad for you
I completely agree. And I think it was so important that she included her mom's perspective because I think we don't even realize the effect that our parents' input has on our minds and bodies. After all, most of us teens live with our parents and have to see and talk to to them every day. It's refreshing to hear the way she handled the situation with her mom.
this inspires me so much. i have been struggling with body image my whole life and i’m only 13, but this past year has been the absolute worst for me. i am a dancer too and although i focus more on contemporary/jazz, i am constantly comparing myself to others. i’ve struggled with bulimia and nobody knows about it because i’ve been embarrassed. i have always tried to be 100 lbs or less and i weigh myself everyday to see my “progress”. your video inspires me in so many ways to not care so much about body image and to recognize that my body will never be the perfect ballerina body. also watching those clips of you dance are amazing!! thank you for being such a huge inspiration and you are absolutely gorgeous❤️
I trained to be a professional dancer and after years of intense training I actually ended up switching from dance to commercial voice-over, modeling, and acting. I am mentally in such a better place. I'm still paranoid about my body. I'm 5ft 1in so I always perceive myself as stubby on camera. but I'm learning to embrace it. Happy that you're doing so much better
I've been a competitive swimmer for the past 8 years, and I'm sure my experience is very similar to seeing other girls in leotards every day. It's always tough for me not to compare my body to others. I try to think about it like this: I have done the exact same workout as some of these girls for the past 5 years, giving the same effort, the exact same set, and I don't look like them. I don't have the abs that some of the other girls do. I don't have the defined muscle that some of them show on their arms. But I can perform just as well as they can. Everyone has a completely different body, and even if you exercise the exact same for years, you will and can not look the same. Your body is healthy, and that is enough.
I really relate to you talking about how your mom just wants to put a bandaid on you. I went through a binge eating disorder when I was in 8th grade. I didn't tell my mom about it because I was afraid of the same reaction you said your mom had to you talking about your weight concerns. And now, years later, I told my mom about the eating disorder and her immediate response was "Why didn't you tell me? I could have stopped buying cookies or sugar." But that wouldn't have stopped me. I needed someone to just be there for me.
I was having an incredibly hard time today because of body image since we are in quarantine and I just finished dancing in a show, so I have gained a couple of pounds since I can’t dance. This helped me more than anyone can imagine, and I am so thankful for your message. I am also a dancer without the typical skinny body, and I always struggle with that. Thank you so much for using your voice to share your experience and make the world a better place.
This is such an important video to share and I can see how far you've come, I think the last step is to really understand that you've delt/dealing with a ED. I've been there as well and it was when I really "confessed"/said it out loud that it was an ED that I could finally start to move on! You are amazing and this video will help so many teenagers ❤
These videos have really help me! I danced for 11 years and had to quit at 14 for health reasons. I’ve always been small and when I quit I had gained weight. I was in and out of the hospital and in bed in bed a lot because I’ve had a migraine for 4 years straight(24/7). Now, even though I’m a lot better then I was before I can’t dance like I used to. I still have body dysmorphia and body image issues but your videos have helped a lot! Thank you for making them and keep up the good work love!💛
Ok here we go. What I love about me is that my body seems to have recovered almost completely from the health situation I was in in december 2019. It was the scariest thing that ever happened to me, the doctors still don't know why it happened, but it woke me up and showed me that a healthy body should be everybodys goal and wish because when it comes down to it beauty standards are not going to cure you
This message is so important. I remember being 8 years old and asking my ballet teacher how I could look like all of the rest of the ballerinas before the nutcracker auditions and she told me I should stop eating my ice cream after class everyday - that is something that has stuck with me to this day. It is crazy how we deeply some of these words and expectations are wired into us without us really recognizing it but if we don't stop and recognize it now WE are going to perpetuate the problem like my dance teacher was doing without knowing it. I love you! You are so strong and your soul shines soooo brightly now more than ever
Im so sorry to hear that...what that teacher did wasnt ok at all and especially at such a youn age...hope you are at a better place now
@@yc-vy9lz Thank you! I feel that she was not trying to be harmful but it was. I have learned from her to be more careful with my words and be more intentional so in a way I'm glad I went through it.
I've never heard anyone say out loud the exact experiences I went through. It sounds so much less logical when its not all in your own head.
agreed
Girl, I never comment on videos but this time I had to. I can relate to what you explained so, so much, without the ballet aspect. As a child, I was never good at any kind of sport and was pretty fat. Then I joined a gymnastics class and my body started to change. I got slimmer, I had more muscles showing up and I loved it. I never had an eating disorder, but I "wished" I had one just to get skinny. I tried to make myself throw up just like you explained but never could. My parents were just so protective that I never, never could watch my calorie intake or my daily weight and I hated them for that. I then stopped gymnastics and I gained weight. I started a relationship and gained even more weight. My father died and gained weight again. To this day, I am really struggling with accepting my body image and I still feel extremely fat (although I'm not even overweight).
Thank your for this video, you made me realise how special each human being is. Now is the time to change our mindsets about the fact that everyone has to be skinny.
(ps : excuse the bad english, non native english speaker here)
thank you so much for posting this. as a ballet dancer who barely weighed 110 until last year, i always thought i was fat compared to everyone at auditions and that’s why i wasn’t getting in. whenever i brought it up, people always said i was “attention seeking”. so thank you so much :)
body change is inevitable!!! learning to love our bodies is hard but it's so worth it in the long run
i was one of the friends being fed. as a “bigger” girl in my friend group, or so i thought, i was surrounded by girls who in my opinion were so much prettier than me. i was always trying some diet, like sugar free, or keto, even in like elementary school! however, i still binge ate and that was a way of comfort for me. and when my skinny friends offered me food, i would take it because they were skinny so it must be ok! this triggered me to binge eat a lot and i felt sososososo bad about it. i couldn’t stop for so long. i was never really FAT but i was definitely not tiny. i still struggle with it to this day. now i’ve learned to starve myself more and am kinda falling into the other side of the spectrum, and the guilt is still there.
you have to be so courageous but I am sure you're so pretty! You don't necessarily need to loose weight to be pretty, you're pretty the way you are!!
:(
You should really consider getting professional help, as scary as that might seem. At least find a trusted adult that you can talk to about your eating habits. Binge eating or starving yourself is unhealthy and harms you both physically and mentally. I'm so sorry to hear you've been struggling with this, I hope you can reach a place of feeling confident in your body ❤️
This is something that so many people struggle with. Thank you Luna.
this felt so therapeutic to watch. I had a very similar journey in my adolescence and it feels good to see others heal so well
i really needed this video since i've felt so bad about my body because i gained weight this winter from eating more due to stress and dancing less and less because of school and everything else
I feel like so many people needed this, especially being a dancer it’s really easy to fall into a habit of comparing. This was such a beautiful video thank u so much for making this. You are such a good role model and I hope everyone can see this
Never really had a body image issue, I just always thought my face was ugly but low key kind of crying watching this, thank you so much for opening up
It’s crazy how you feel so alone going through things like this when in real life so many people experience the same things , this helped me so much thank you !!! I really didn’t know I needed this xxx
Every young woman who's struggling with body image or has eating disorders needs to watch this video! The photoshopped, airbrushed models that permeate the media offer unrealistic versions of women and encourage body dysmorphia. You are right. We are all unique!
luna I am literally crying, I feel so identified with your story, this is very difficult for me, and it is the same situation with my mother, we do not want to hear that from our mothers, my mother always tells me, it is okay tomorrow we can make a diet , you feel like you are the fattest in the world, I am always seeing the slimmest dancers on Instagram and they are incredible. When I was younger like 11 years old (actually I'm 14) I went to my first summer intensive , I got an important role, I was one of the main ones, I was not worried about my figure I was very thin, my period came and then it was my first competition and I was not worried about my figure either, until I saw the photos, I felt fat, from the age of 12 I began to worry about the figure and the way I was eating, the period changed my body. It is impossible not to eat fat food, but sometimes I think and say I shouldn't because that would affect my physique. and it is the same your friends will tell you "you are very skinny you are not fat" but it is because they are your friends. I just won a scholarship to France and I really feel very insecure, I don't know if I'm very fat because I don't know if I trust people, in mirror or in the camera.
back when i was really little and i still did ballet my teacher stopped class early one day and just talked to us about body image and stuff and it always stuck with me.
I feel this so much. I used to avoid eating any sweets or "extra" food that I didn't consider necessary. I worked out like craaaazy and pushed myself to unrealistic standards. I'm still struggling a little but I LOVE my progress being in a healthy relationship with my body, eating habits and exercise ❤️ it takes time, but we all can do it. Thank you so much Luna once again for being so open and inspiring
Luna thank you for posting, this definitely hit me hard. As a dancer I feel everything you described. There are so many days that I wish I was skinnier and I try to not eat so I lose weight. I know I shouldn’t because of people like you who have found peace with their bodies, but it’s still hard. Thank you for sharing your story, it really helps to know I’m not alone in these feelings. 💜💜
One thing I love about myself is my hazel eyes (: it’s a small thing but they always make me feel beautiful, even when nothing else does.
you are so strong and i love that you posted this because it is something that doesnt get talked a lot , thank you so much and im so glad you are better now .
Glad I watched this video. I stopped full-time ballet training Dec 2018 and moved towards contemporary. I gained some weight which was tough, but I felt that I was in the right mindset for it. Unfortunately I've gained 10kg in the past two months and I've been struggling with that a lot so this video came to me at the perfect time!