Woman inspires people by using her 'biggest insecurity' to foster 'truest self love'

Many people, even if they try not to, end up disliking the shape and size of their bodies after others scrutinize them too minutely. However, a model on TikTok has been garnering praise for showing us how to accept our individual forms happily. Juliana Davis (@juliana_davis), who felt insecure about her body earlier, opened up about how she learned to love it. She has described herself as a "midsize model on a self-love journey." In a video she posted, she explained how she struggled to be okay with embracing her body, especially her "apron belly," and how she felt once she did. The video clip was captioned, "Using your biggest insecurity to foster the deepest/truest self-love. This video is VULNERABLE but I think it’s important to share" and it has been viewed 1.3 million times till now. 

"So I just woke up. I haven’t eaten. I’m not bloated, and this is what my tummy looks like. And, in fact, this is what my tummy has looked like pretty much my entire life," Davis begins by saying. "And after spending pretty much all of my life absolutely hating it, I’ve finally come to the conclusion that, actually, I think it’s just OK." She talks about how her tummy has been the biggest insecurity of her life. So much that she wanted to change it and even attributed rejections to it. "When I get rejected in a relationship, I’m like, 'Oh, but my stomach,' or if I’m seeing someone, 'Oh, they probably like me but, oh no, my stomach.' It’s been the thing that’s made me scared to wear clothes, tighter-fitting things, and it has just made me feel the most insecure and frustrated in my body," she says.

However, after a long journey of struggle, she expresses how she embraced this flawed perception and loved her tummy, contributing to a lot of self-confidence. "Having this tummy has made me discover a level of self-love and self-acceptance that I never knew that I could have," she reveals. "When there’s something about your body that society constantly tells you is wrong and needs to be fixed, there is a power that comes from realizing that it doesn’t actually have to be."

In a conversation with In The Know, "My whole life I have carried so much shame about my tummy. I felt like I was the only one who struggled with it. I thought its shape was confirmation that I’d ‘failed’ or a reason I wasn’t worthy of love. I didn’t want to talk about it or show it to anyone — in hopes that it would disappear."

"However, I truly believe in fighting shame with vulnerability. In a moment of courage, I posted the video, and almost immediately its reception was beyond anything I could have asked for. After spending so much of my life feeling alone because of my tummy, it really made me feel supported and loved. I am so grateful for the kindness everyone showed me in such a sensitive moment. What I’ve realized is hiding my tummy in shame never brought me this much love. What actually helped me finally find my people and my peace was self love/vulnerability," she adds.

Many netizens resonated with Davis and appreciated her for sharing her story candidly and confidently. "Thank you so much for sharing this. I’ve always had a tummy even when I was skinny and hated myself for it," commented @pinkblankie. "Felt. But isn't it weird that when I see others with it they are beautiful but it's hard to see that beauty on myself?" added @happytobhappy.