Tag: body image

To the Human Barbie, From Barbie

Sandy Coomer

I saw you on the internet, your waist a narrow funnel from your chest, your hips flared out to fit the width of bones required to walk, to sit. Let’s talk about your face – your lineless forehead and your pouty lips, your eyes so wide the sun could burn Read more

Sandy Coomer

Sandy Coomer is a poet, mixed media artist, and endurance athlete from Nashville, TN. Her poetry has most recently been published or is forthcoming in Red River Review, Clementine Poetry Journal, and Hypertrophic Literary Magazine, among others. She is the author of two poetry collections: Continuum, published by Finishing Line Press, and The Presence of Absence, which won the 2014 Janice Keck Literary Award for Poetry. Sandy's artwork has been on exhibit in middle Tennessee galleries, community centers, and libraries. An avid lover of endurance sports, Sandy trains and races year-round in the sport of triathlon, including Ironman and Half Ironman events.

The Pursuit of Perfection is Bullsh*t

Julie Anderson

Living life in front of the lens has its perks, namely access to incredible beauty magicians.High fashion artists, makeup and hair stylists, as well as fashion stylists are the wizards behind the curtain.  I have relied on them for many years. They taught me how pluck, tuck, plump and properly Read more

Julie Anderson

Julie Anderson is the Creator and Publisher of Feminine Collective. Julie was inspired to create this safe place for women to share their secrets, desires, triumphs and pain as the antithesis of what mainstream media offers women today. In her column Pursuit of Perfection, she explores the importance of rectifying the balance of inner and outer beauty through essays, poems and articles on self-esteem, shame, family, and self- acceptance.

Belly Busting Ever Since ’76

Erin Righetti

I am a reasonable person. I try to spend my thinking life concerned with the greater good. I try to tune out the “white noise.” Yet, I have come to accept the presence of a particular hiccup in my thinking life. It’s always in there, even if I am not Read more

Erin Righetti

Erin Righetti is a professional writer across multiple media channels. She has over 20 years experience as a freelance writer/reporter, and has been a contributor to newspapers and online magazines and blogs. Erin works as a public relations and social media strategist in Carlsbad, California.

An Open Letter to the Average, Above Average and Perfectly Proportioned Humans

Jodie Beckstine Killian

Thank you for your beaming ear to ear grins and stifled laughs that greet me when you see me waddling by, making my way into the store. The fact that I can hear you making rude and insulting remarks after I have passed are tempered and eased by the memory Read more

Jodie Beckstine Killian

Jodie Beckstine Killian has always been a little different. Growing up in a small Wisconsin town she stood out from the rest as a person born with Hypochondroplasia. As a budding entertainer, this wasn’t a disability but a “super” ability that allowed her to get noticed, but not always in the way she hoped. Stares, discrimination and cruel comments are something she deals with daily and writes about often. She currently lives in Florida. (She doesn’t miss Wisconsin winters). She works in marketing, social media and is currently writing her first novel.

I Think My Obsession Made You Feel Bad About Your Body

Ashley Carroll

I’ve written countless words that have made their way onto the internet in a multitude of public to quasi-private forums. I’ve blogged for long stretches in three separate places. I’ve nurtured the social media outlets. I engage in as many safe-enough spaces for me to represent the most authentic view Read more

Ashley Carroll

Ashley Carroll is currently on a stress-induced break. She is a mom of two, a wife, a government employee (bridging bureaucracy and the domestic violence field), food and fitness enthusiast & health advocate. She has a significant traumatic history as a younger person in the mental health system. She has spent almost a decade negotiating her unique journey through "recovery." Ashley is using this time to make peace with carbs (and her body). She is a huge fan of Brene Brown. She hopes to foster a connection with like-minded, truth-telling women. She has become obsessed with astrology, and the need to let go of perfectionism and the fear that's limited her previously. Ashley is embracing vulnerability by doing things that scare the shit out of her like writing a bio in the third person. Or writing at all. Ashley posts lots of pictures and words about day-to-day life #risingstrong (if you will). You can find her right now on Instagram @robust_ly