Last year, on this very day, I wrote my most read blog post to date. It was reposted by other bloggers, and my local NPR station did an entire show around it, inviting me on to discuss the topic.  Maybe today I am just as passionate about it as I was last year.

I’m talking about my Bikini Body post, in which Discovery Girls magazine ran a spread detailing how to cover up your “flaws” with a bathing suit. Sounds totally crazy, right? Why would a young girl need to be instructed on how to strategically cover up her “flaws” with geometric shapes and other such nonsense?

If your answer is “this is bull honkey!” then please click the link to read the original post. Share it far and wide. Our poor girls (and to a somewhat lesser extent, boys) are having messages of “you’re not good enough” crammed down their throats by television, magazines and social media at an alarming rate. They are being told their self worth is tied up in their weight and body shape. They are being trained that their #1 concern should be to please others (mostly the opposite sex) above themselves. This is unacceptable, and the only way to help our kids to ignore those harmful messages is to talk with them and help them understand that they have the power to decide for themselves.

Maybe we can’t stop this freight train but we can do our best to help our kids decide not to get on in the first place.

Bikini Body