2 reasons I hate dressing rooms mirrors
Before I was married, I rarely tried on clothes before purchasing them. I just found my size, made sure the price was right and took them home. I was never concerned about things fitting. If you read my tales from the scales post, you will see that my roller coaster with weight loss didn’t begin until I AFTER I got married.
I really knew very little about how to lose weight. I purchased a few magazines on the subject and attempted to follow their advice. I did have a little success with losing the weight (still didn’t know anything about how to maintain). As a reward, one of us (me or my husband) decided it would be a good idea if I bought a few new outfits. I always enjoyed clothes shopping before, so why not?
We got to the clothing store. I found quite a few outfits that I liked. I knew I had gained weight, but I had also lost some of it. I picked out the size I thought I could fit. I was happy with the new clothes and was ready to leave the store.
My husband’s response: Aren’t you going to try those on?
My response: No, I never try on clothes in the store. I try them on at home.
His response: You don’t want to buy clothes and then get them home and they don’t fit. You would have to make an extra trip back up here to return them.
My response: Might not fit? They will fit. It takes too much time to try clothes on. … (few minutes of this) Ok. Ok. I’ll try them on.
I grabbed the clothes and head to the dressing room. You know what happened next, don’t you?
First reason I hate dressing rooms: the lighting exposes every single flaw in your skin and the mirrors magnify every lump, bump and bulge on your body.
Second reason I hate dressings rooms: As I began trying on the clothes, I finally came face to face with just how much weight I had gained. The reality was staring right back at me. I could not fit into ANY of the outfits I had chosen. I tugged. I pulled. I sucked in and then, finally, I admitted defeat. I surrendered. I realized I would need a bigger size. This is when the tears began to flow. There was no more denial. It wasn’t the lighting. It wasn’t the mirror. It wasn’t the clothes. It was the really bad eating habits I started as a kid and they had finally caught up with me.
I wish I could say that incident happened in the last few years. It didn’t. It happened about 10 or 11 years ago. I wish I could say I had some *AHA* moment that inspired me to change. Nope. If I had, I wouldn’t be blogging about this right now.
At the beginning of this year, I had to ask myself, “how long are you going to keep thinking it’s the dressing room mirror?” The curious thing about mirrors? They simply reflect whatever you put in front of them. I’ve had some moments in the mirrors of my life this year in various areas.
You want to see change in 2010? Tomorrow’s post is about making the commitment to take action and stop living the definition of insanity.
If you held up a mirror in front of your life today, what realities would be reflected back at you? Leave me a comment.
I'm a work at home mompreneur living the Good Life equipping women through blogging, workshops, seminars and online media to live their lives with passion and purpose. I have the pleasure of having been married to my best friend and hero in life for over a decade. I'm a mother of 3 extraordinary children, a dangerous dreamer,
innovator and lover of words, people and God (not in that order). My email address is chiefdiva {at} goodlifediva {dot} com.
Mama Laundry | February 25th, 2010 at 4:29 pm #
Ugh. I so agree with the hatred of dressing rooms. If you want to feel old, just go look at your skin under that light. It’s depressing! I guess one good thing about not having much money in our clothing budget is that I don’t often get to clothes shop. That’s a good thing in my book!
Sorry you’re struggling with your weight. It’s tough.
-Lauren
goodlifediva | February 26th, 2010 at 6:13 am #
Hi Lauren
I don’t consider myself to be struggling with my weight. If you read my post on Friday, The Definition of Insanity, you will see where I was going with this post.
Don’t feel bad for me. I don’t cry in dressing rooms anymore.
Thanks again for stopping by!
Erin | March 12th, 2010 at 6:22 am #
I’m a first time reader and I like what I’ve read. I love the line: “They simply reflect whatever you put in front of them”. It made me think about how people are similar to mirrors in that the people you encounter react to what you are presenting to them . If you want them (the world) to see something in particular about you, you have to show up in that way!
Shelagh | March 12th, 2010 at 10:12 pm #
The mirror would be saying:
“Girlfriend, those rolls and bumps are not from having kids. They are from eating too much junk.”
It’s as simple as that. Before I was married, I was stringent on what I ate. Very few carbs, no sugars, red wine in moderation… now? I seem to know no boundaries.
It’s hard to put the reigns on again, after they have been loose for so long. I look forward to your post tomorrow.
Kathleen | March 18th, 2010 at 12:41 pm #
We all have those days when we beat ourselves up about our appearance. For the sake of my daughters’ body image and self-esteem, I try not to verbalize the negative appearance thoughts about myself when I have them but instead try to focus on health. My girls and I enjoy the show “What Not To Wear” because it tends to focus on how to look and feel good whatever your size. I also recently learned of the book, “Intuitive Eating” by Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch, which you might find helpful too.
Julia Gersen | March 22nd, 2010 at 8:46 pm #
Really like the idea of imagining a mirror held up to my current life and thinking about what the reflection would show. Off to ponder my life’s reflection and what I want it to look like. Thanks for the good thoughts!
goodlifediva | March 26th, 2010 at 6:12 pm #
Thank you for stopping by Julia. Come back and share your insights.
goodlifediva | March 26th, 2010 at 6:14 pm #
Kathleen
I agree. I don’t want my daughter to be obsessed about her appearance. I want to continue to live a healthy lifestyle of nutritious diet and regular exercise. I pray I’m setting a good example.