Body Image in general and as a mer (share your story)

[Dacora]

While I don't have a weight issue I have hair issues. I come from a very hairy family. Resulting in me to shave my stomach,unibrow and other places that are not the "norm", other females in my family have this curse aswell. As a person it does not bother me, my boyfriend is very understanding about it since he has hair issues as well. But as a mer Im a bit afraid to go out this coming summer. Even if I do shave it comes back as little tiny prickly hair by the afternoon. Im going to try waxing and seeing if that has a longer effect.
If a kid asks me about it I might try saying I live in cold water and it keeps me warm.

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[Mermaid Jessica]

Hey Dacora, speaking of wax, I just tried a wax called Nad's Body Wax Strips for Normal Skin and I just love it so maybe you will too. The strips are pre-waxed. It comes with a couple pre wax skin relaxing wipes and a few post wax calming oil wipes. And you can get it at Walmart or Target for $6-$7. It's really easy to use. And when I shave, it grows back the next day but I waxed probably 2 weeks ago and the hair still hasn't grown back yet. The only down side is the wax doesn't come off with water and only comes off if you use the calming oil wipes or baby oil. Hope this was helpful.

[AniaR]

I thought Thom made Gaga's tail for "gagaween" and Eric made the one for "You and I"? The fluke in "You and I" look more mertailor than tailman that's all. not trying to defend his actions past or present, just making sure

Gagaween isn't really Gaga. it's a fan video, and yes thom made that tail. Eric did not make the You and I tail. It was made by this company: http://www.rmfx.co.uk/tv-and-film.html (more info here: http://www.therpf.com/f45/lady-gaga-...d-tail-132452/) the one Eric made is here: http://gagafashionland.com/2011/07/l...-in-mertailor/ extremely different. And it wasn't so much made for her as it was a modified one he already had, that Gaga in turn modified even more when she got it.

[MermaidSaku]

I had no idea you ever felt this way Lanai. I think your amazingly beautiful and your so confident in the pictures of you in your tail. i am having the same issue of eating my feelings it's hard to control.

[Elle]

Gagaween isn't really Gaga. it's a fan video, and yes thom made that tail. Eric did not make the You and I tail. It was made by this company: http://www.rmfx.co.uk/tv-and-film.html (more info here: http://www.therpf.com/f45/lady-gaga-...d-tail-132452/) the one Eric made is here: http://gagafashionland.com/2011/07/l...-in-mertailor/ extremely different. And it wasn't so much made for her as it was a modified one he already had, that Gaga in turn modified even more when she got it.

Thanks for the clarification. I'm much less confused now

[AniaR]

Mermaidsaku your body screams sexy. Just saying

[Thalassa]

So many amazing mers!

I'm very blessed that I don't have debilitating (or even terribly inconveniencing) conditions.

I have social anxiety and generalized anxiety. This basically means that every minute of every day I'm worrying about what people think of me. I worry about doing the wrong thing. I have this negative dialogue in my head all the time that tells me if I don't do everything absolutely perfect for every person that might possibly be watching or interacting with me, I'll ruin any chance at happiness and look stupid. If someone doesn't like me I feel absolutely terrible. I'm working with a therapist to improve my self-image and taking medication, but it's hard to interact with people. It's also hard to know who I am when who I am wants to be everything that everyone else wants her to be. It's actually easier when I'm my mersona, because I know who she is and I can interact with people "outside" myself.

My physical stuff...I have asthma that makes me cough all the time, which can really put some people off being near you. They think you're contagious or something. XD

Other than that, I have problems with exercise because I'm just LAZY. I can't seem to get up the gumption to exercise. ;-P I'll keep trying to fix that, it's an ongoing battle to "trick" myself into exercising. Mermaiding is great because I have to (pardon the trite phrase) sink or swim. It's boring holding onto the edge, so I'm forced to exercise.

So, those are my little things. Just to reiterate, you all are so inspirational! <3

[Dacora]

Hey Dacora, speaking of wax, I just tried a wax called Nad's Body Wax Strips for Normal Skin and I just love it so maybe you will too. The strips are pre-waxed. It comes with a couple pre wax skin relaxing wipes and a few post wax calming oil wipes. And you can get it at Walmart or Target for $6-$7. It's really easy to use. And when I shave, it grows back the next day but I waxed probably 2 weeks ago and the hair still hasn't grown back yet. The only down side is the wax doesn't come off with water and only comes off if you use the calming oil wipes or baby oil. Hope this was helpful.

Thanks Jessica!! I will look at those.


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[Lois]

I hate being tall (tallest out of all the girls mean its awkward trying to hug short people. and hey, i hug everyone). "i wish i had bigger breast"? i was once in a group with this girl called May, who was like "truth or dare? everyone has to say what their bra size is." she was looking at me while i said it, and it was the most embarrassing moment of my lie -.-
i struggle with acne too, just when i feel like im overcoming it, it decides to become immune to all the products i use :L
and when i started posting pictures of my tail on facebook, there were several people who thought it was strange, but as it happens, its the BEST conversation starter!!! i have had so many message from people asking about it ^.^ the positives will always outweigh the negatives!!!!
its hard moving isnt it :/ you can chat to me whenever! <3

I had terrible acne when I was younger my cheeks were covered in it there wasn't a smooth bit of skin on there - people used to shout spot face at me when I walked around school Then I went on this medicine called Roaccutane it was amazing I was only on it for six mounths and it cleared up my acne and its never been as bad since I now only get one or two spots when its the wrong time of th month. You can get it quite easily in the US but it the UK they are super fussy about perscribing it I had to go to the hostpital for blood tests and pregnancy tests every month u only get it as last resort

[AniaR]

It can actually cause very serious health conditions which is why they make you take so many tests

[Capt Nemo]

That's terrible I hope you messed them up

If this happened to me those boys would have broken noses, and NEVER feel safe coming around me again. But I'm a really aggressive person with a very very short temper and I'm not afraid to take people down even tho I'm smaller then them most the time

Oh They know I'm the kind to fight. Last year this boy was hitting 1st graders or their sleds with a shovel and he wouldnt listen to me when I told him to knock it off. So there was a fist fight. I totally got out better. He ended up getting expelled, I didnt even get in trouble.

But there were six of them and one of me. I managed to body flip one of them. (I worked on flipping people over the shoulder all summer, especially my brother.)

A good nickname for you should be merTaz! This mermaid beats up cats, bats, dogs, hogs and especially bullies!

[Jadestone]

I had terrible acne when I was younger my cheeks were covered in it there wasn't a smooth bit of skin on there - people used to shout spot face at me when I walked around school Then I went on this medicine called Roaccutane it was amazing I was only on it for six mounths and it cleared up my acne and its never been as bad since I now only get one or two spots when its the wrong time of th month. You can get it quite easily in the US but it the UK they are super fussy about perscribing it I had to go to the hostpital for blood tests and pregnancy tests every month u only get it as last resort

They do this in the US too, actually. I'm on it now. I had my monthly bloodwork yesterday : P It's a real pain to get qualified to be on it.
But yeah, I was on different meds/topical creams for years, so this seemed like the best option. And my dermatologist is more likely to underprescribe than over, so I'm not overly concerned about lasting health problems (though of course I am watching out for any signs of them).

[Capt Nemo]

For all you BBM's out there! Never fear, Chubby Mermaid's here!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OSXpW...eature=related

LOVE IT!!!!

[roamingmer]

Agreed; that was indeed a clever short. No matter who you are inside; Gummy rules.

Always enjoy being who you are - we only get one lifetime with this body!

[AniaR]

that's right

[Spindrift]

Man I wish I was tall. Like, maybe 4-5 inches.
I used to be pretty fit, it's hard to keep it up and I'm in a little bit of a rut right now. Mostly because there's just too much work to do in a day and I can't keep a decent schedule.
My lack of exercise has actually been giving me some problems - severe back pain and stress.

Also I hate it when I've obviously gotten flabbier/chubbier/jigglier and people are just like "oh no, you're still skinny!" or just "YOU HAVE NOTHING TO COMPLAIN ABOUT". Like... I'm not overweight. But I'm definitely not in shape. And I'm definitely not healthy looking with the sudden weight gain.

As for body image. I go back and forth on it. Sometimes I feel great, and sometimes I just hate everything about myself. I hope that's a normal thing though.
A good way I found to deal with it personally was to set something to work towards - I'm not pageant material (I don't even know how to use makeup or choose clothes), but I started doing them to get myself motivated and it's helped a lot. The girls are really nice and supportive, and even give me tips and great critiques on my progress. It's a pretty nice to have female friends I guess haha (I'm too used to intellectual guys as I attend an engineering university).

I do have a really bad problem with comparing myself to other girls though. It's something I know I have to snap out of. And it makes me too... catty, maybe. I guess I'm just paranoid that I'm not good enough and that someone else will get chosen over me (hypothetically this example would work in a situation involving my ex or a guy I'm interested in, not people in general).

[spottedcatfish]

For all you BBM's out there! Never fear, Chubby Mermaid's here!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OSXpW...eature=related

LOVE IT!!!!

I love this video! Great animator too!

[Usagi]

So I have a question.

People tell me I'm skinny/thin. I could understand "thin" when I have clothes on. They can't see what's going on underneath. When I'm standing up, my stomach is meh okay, but once I sit down, it's like thanksgiving with all the rolls I've got going on! Is it just from not being toned? I was always overweight growing up (8th grade I was about 145 at around 4'11"-5'), but dropped 20 lbs my freshman year of high school, and have lost another 15 since then and grown about 2" (14 y.o. then, 18 now). I'm about 110 lbs. I asked my mom if I might have loose skin from the weight loss, but she said it wasn't enough to cause it. So what's with the rolls? And the love handles? Do I just have too much fat and not enough muscle? The best way I can describe my stomach is that it feels like water in a ziploc. You can move it around all fluidly. I hate it when my boyfriend touches my stomach because I'm so insecure about it. Are there any specific exercises that could help with this?

[SeaGlass Siren]

i have the same problem as syd lol... you and i have the exact same body type. i was much thinner before but i had high metabolism back then. now it's slowing down and i cant eat alot (though i do get the munchies when i'm bored)

nowadays i don't even bother to work out (even though i should). i just wear a corset and i'm good.

[Usagi]

I used to be able to eat A LOT. My nickname was "The Feaster" lol now I can eat an avocado for breakfast and I'm good...although this past weekend, I scarfed down A LOTTTT of food! =P