Not long ago, Kirsten Bosly from Perth, Australia, went to the beach with her family. Instead of having fun, she felt uncomfortable and unsafe. When she wore a plus-size bathing suit, she felt weak, ashamed, and full of self-conscious thoughts. The day should have been full of joy and connection, but instead it turned into a quiet fight with how she saw her body. She felt small inside and thought everyone was watching at her. She kept comparing herself to others and second-guessing herself.
But everything changed.
Kirsten had a moment of clarity that altered how she saw herself and influenced thousands of people online. When she arrived home that day, she didn’t keep anything to herself. Instead, she went to her computer and told everyone what had happened. What came out was honest, real, and easy to understand.
She said, “Today is the beginning of tide of something new for me.” “I haven’t liked the way my body looks for a long time.” It was horrible. I didn’t like it. Not a fan. Wanted it to change so badly—to be smaller, thinner, and not “fat.” She said she had been cruel to her body, blaming it for things and punished it mentally and emotionally. “I’ve used it and abused it,” she claimed. “I’ve been so ashamed of its wobbles and dimples, as if they define who I am.”
But then she remembered a meme that read, “Take pictures with your kids because when you’re gone, those pictures will be all they have.” The statement really hit her hard. It made her realize that she had been avoiding images for years, not because she didn’t love her family, but because she hated seeing herself in them. She had pushed her own memories away because she felt embarrassed.
She said, “No more!” I’m sick of feeling bad about my body. It’s been there for me for 41 years. So I let go today.
She genuinely did mean it. Kirsten asked her boyfriend, whom she lovingly nicknames “The Pants,” to take a picture of her and their kids that day at the beach. She didn’t wear a cover-up, board shorts, or a towel to hide her body, and she didn’t use any filters. It was just her, her kids, and a camera. “I stopped hating and resenting my body and chose to enjoy it for what it is: my body,” she wrote. ” This photo makes me think of how happy we are together. It tastes great.
Kirsten felt free for the first time in a long time. Not having to deal with the heavy weight of shame, comparison, or false hopes. Not only did she realize she needed to love herself, but she also needed to get back the happiness, presence, and memories that she almost lost.
Later, Kirsten submitted a moving statement to the Today Show, hoping that other people might be able to relate to what she had been through. She remarked, “I was on the beach, freaking out, when I realized I was the only one judging myself.” “No one cared about me, and the only thing that kept me from letting go and fully accepting myself was the bag of problems I had made and chosen to carry around.”
“Everyone should have fun with their family and friends and feel good about themselves!” she remarked. These sentences are clear and forceful.
Kirsten wants her story to help other people who are feeling bad about themselves and alone. She wants people to realize that letting go doesn’t imply giving up; it means letting go of the joy that is already there. Her experience reminds us that life doesn’t wait for you to be “perfect,” smaller, or younger. It’s going on right now. And the best way to honor it is to be there totally, just as you are.
