Last year, Sasha Pieterse of Pretty Little Liars fame opened up on Instagram about her struggles with body image and weight gain due to a hormonal imbalance. The then-19-year-old actor spoke out against body-shaming and offered support to others with similar conditions. Unfortunately, Pieterse has had to take to social media once again to defend herself against internet trolls. This time, she's declaring her self-love and acceptance in a powerful letter.
"Truly loving yourself is one of the hardest things we as humans can do," she begins, before going on to say that, in the past, the opinions of others kept her from doing just that. "People were actually angry that I had gained weight, I was being (and still am) called names, made fun of," Pieterse writes. She notes that she's already had to defend herself against this criticism — and with that in mind, she's done worrying about what others think.
"I decided at that point to love myself the way I am right now," writes Pieterse. "That doesn't mean I don't want to improve myself, it means that I am making a point to love myself at every stage and chapter of my life." This sentiment addresses a common (and dangerous) misconception about body positivity in general: that loving yourself as you are somehow means you don't care at all about taking good care of yourself.
Coming to understand that caring about what you eat, how often you move, and what's going on with your body are themselves acts of self-love is very important. As Pieterse writes, "Eat like you love yourself. Move like you love yourself. Speak like you love yourself. Act like you love yourself."
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Read Pieterse's full letter, below.
It's your body. It's your summer. Enjoy them both. Check out more #TakeBackTheBeach here.