Patsy Kensit on why it’s important to be comfortable in your own skin
A few years ago I read the results of a survey that asked women what time of the year they feared the most. What do you think the overwhelming answer was? If like me, your first guess would be Christmas, when stress levels are running high and there seems to be a never-ending list of jobs to do, you’d be wrong. The large majority of people said summer. The reason? Because they were worried about going on holiday and showing parts of their body they usually covered up.
I remember being shocked about this and sad about the state of our society. There’s so much body shaming going on in magazines, newspapers and through social media, and this seems to have really compounded the fear of getting into a swimsuit.
I’ve always been an advocate of loving yourself but I do understand how hard it can be. There was a time when I lost all my self confidence and that coincided with the years when I put on quite a bit of weight – I was called ‘Fatsy Patsy’ by newspapers and saw countless headlines about me scoffing food. It really affected me. But, I came to realise that it didn’t matter what other people thought about me – it was what I thought about myself that was important. Having a strong sense of self has a huge impact on both your inner confidence and the way other people see you and I used meditation to reconnect with that and rebalance my relationship with myself.
Of course, getting older brings its own body confidence issues too. This year is the last year of my 40s and I’ll be welcoming in a new decade next March. I’ve always worn a bikini on the beach, but now I’m starting to wonder whether that’s the right thing to do. Should I be moving gracefully into a onepiece and embracing my older age? Is that what society tells us?
My body is certainly not the same as it was 30 years ago, but I actually feel more confident and happy in my own skin than ever before.
Us women do store fat in certain areas and our bodies change as we get older, but it’s a fact of life and I believe as females, we should band together and help one another to love ourselves. Instead of criticising and shaming, we should be encouraging, supporting and inspiring others, whatever their shape or age. The motivation women can give each other is phenomenal and to me a woman’s approval is worth much more than a man’s.
I think now is the time to focus on this more than ever. We’ve got such a responsibility to give the right impression for the younger generation – and the fact that eating disorders are at an all-time high among teens shows how important instilling a positive attitude is. My point is that you have to love yourself and we’ve all got to accept where we are with our lives. The most important relationship in your life is the one you have with yourself and I feel that is key to wellbeing. So, maybe I will wear a bikini this year or maybe I won’t – but whatever I decide it will be because that’s how I feel comfortable.
Patsy’s beauty range, Preciously Perfect, is available from Ideal World (idealworld.tv/search/Preciously-perfect-by-patsy-kensit ) or on Sky 654, Freeview 22, Virgin 747 or Freesat 812.
