I have been modifying my body for years. Years!! I am currently a couple stone throws away from the ripe age of 30 and til recently, I haven't had much backlash on my decisions to do what I want to do to my body. I started shaving in middle school. Not because I needed to..it didn't make me run faster or anything..I was just told to do it by society and I did it. I have bought products to whiten my teeth, to straighten my hair, to make sure I have clear skin...and no one questioned anything about it. It's what society told me to do and I blindly followed.
It's when I decided to take some of that power into my own hands and started to do what I wanted to my own body..that's when I started getting feedback. I colored my hair and people wanted to know why. I got piercings and all of a sudden people were concerned about my health and scars. I got tattoos and all of a sudden my future was an issue. I'm about to go into my first surgery...ever...in my life...and it's by choice. I am choosing to modify my breast..and all of a sudden people think I care about their opinions on what I do to my body. I've split my tongue, punched out cartilage, and stretched my skin...and you know why? Because I fucking wanted to.
It's crazy how concerned people become when it doesn't fit their opinion of normal or acceptable..or even professional. It blows my mind that it's so critical in their life to be concerned with what I do with my life, that they feel the need to go out of their way to share their negative opinions. Mind. Blown. No one cared about my health when I cut myself shaving or constantly got razor burn during most my childhood...because that's "normal" and it happens. I was just told how to take care of it. No one asked if I really wanted whiter teeth even though I filled my mouth with chemicals. No one cared about my skin as I sat there night after night trying to burn and scratch the acne out of my face. No one cared about any of it until I did what I actually wanted to do..
I tell people all the time. I don't like children. I never have. I didn't like kids when I was a kid. I have chosen not to have children. This is my choice...it doesn't mean I go around to people that are out with their families or onto their social medias and tell them that they should have thought about their futures before making such a silly decision just because it's not the life I decided to have. That's silly...and it sounds just as silly when I get stopped and asked why I decided to color my hair blue.
I love my body modifications..but I'm not just my modifications, I'm still me. Just like I would still be me if I were a blonde with no tattoos and simple diamond earrings. Yet, it seems like a struggle for some people to see that...and I don't understand.
