Operation Beautiful – (Virtual Book Tour: Day 7)
Operation Beautiful Book Tour: Day 7 – Superchick
When I was 15 I started a continual battle with an eating disorder because a boy said something to me that made me think I was chubby. I hear little girls as young as 8 years old saying they think they are fat. We as females are constantly being told through TV, magazines, advertising and our own peers what is supposedly beautiful and what size we should be. When are we going to stop listening to the world around us and take hold of the women we were created to be? When are we going to see our beauty through the eyes of our Creator? When is our self-esteem going to stop being dependent on other people’s opinions?
I think we – and by we I mean me and you who are reading this right now -need to grab hold of our beauty and stand tall, strong and proud so that future generations see what real beauty looks like.
Join me. Say it with me:
“I am beautiful just the way I am.”
Now share your knowledge.
- Melissa Brock <3
Some facts about Operation Beautiful:
- Operation Beautiful is a viral community effort to increase self-confidence and stop negative self-talk. Operation Beautiful has nothing to do with how much you weigh; it’s about who you are intrinsically as a person – and that is BEAUTIFUL! The website is www.OperationBeautiful.com.
- Operation Beautiful, the book is now in stores at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Borders, and Indie Bound.
- The site was started in June 2008 and they’ve received 5,000 plus notes from every populated continent.
- EVERY note that gets emailed to the site goes up on the Internet for others to see!
Share with us, a story of how YOU and YOUR IMAGE have been POSITIVELY effected by the act of someone else in the comment section for your chance to win a copy of “Operation Beautiful” the book!
Also, if you are at a festival this summer remember to look for the Superchick post-it notes out there! You should see a ton of pink ones floating around, with the exception of ONE yellow post-it per festival, aka the ‘Golden Ticket’! If you find the winning Operation Beautiful post-it, please email us to redeem your Superchick Merch Prize pack and the chance to win a Superchick guitar!
I know that Caitlin is pumped by your support and I am too!
PS as an ex-sound tech guy with hearing loss – be careful!
Comment by HTPDad — 8/7/2010 @ 7:04 am
I have always made self-deprecating comments about myself: how I look, how I act, how I eat, and especially, how I write. Since I am a writer, this “being my own worst critic” thing has started to wear me down over the last few years. A writer is such a huge part of who I am that by insulting my writing, I was insulting ME, and I didn’t like myself too much because of it.
A few days ago a friend of mine, Alyssa, who is a VERY talented writer herself, told me NOT to be so hard on myself – I’m a GOOD writer and people enjoy reading my work, including her.
Such a simple comment improved my self-confidence in leaps in bounds. I like my writing, I like my attitude, I like my body. I love ME!
(Thank you, Alyssa <3)
Comment by Tasha — 8/7/2010 @ 9:00 am
I used to be slightly underweight from excessive exercising. My body image improved when I started lifting weights. I became buffer. People at the gym noticed and complimented me. It really made me feel more confident.
Comment by Nikki — 8/7/2010 @ 11:55 am
i have had struggled with an eating disorder (anorexia) just like soooooo many out there. I contribute it much to the way i was treated poorly by old friends in the past and what added to it was putting my new friends problems on my own shoulders (sorry i know that is confusing). it was a way of solving my problems, by treating myself mentally and physically horribly wrong. But i have to say i have grown so unbelievably much in the past couple years, that i feel that it is a part of my past. I have a family and friends that love and make me feel beautiful just by how they treat me. My mom (sounds cheesy) tells me how beautiful i am just about everyday. All girls (and guys) are beautiful! We have to be positive and take care of ourselves, we are worth it!
Comment by Gina G — 8/7/2010 @ 12:37 pm
I recently read “Breaking Free from Compulsive Eating” by Geneen Roth and it gave me the courage to finally start loving my body the way it is. It’s just one more reminder of why I decided to become a writer; a sincere book can be like the author reaching out and hugging a million different people at once, changing lives. And guess what? You don’t have to be a size 2 to do that. You can make a difference in the world, and in individual lives, no matter what size you are. Inside and out, you are beautiful, and never forget it.
Comment by Melissa Lytton — 8/7/2010 @ 1:24 pm
I saw your post on Caitlin’s blog about Operation Beautiful! That is so awesome that you guys are supporting her. I have been a huge fan of your music for at least 8 years now! My favorite song is Barlow Girls. Everytime I hear it, it is stuck in my head for DAYS. Thanks for the awesome post!
Amanda
Comment by Amanda- The Nutritionist Reviews — 8/7/2010 @ 1:29 pm
I have to say that Caitlyn’s act of starting operation beautiful and everyone else being so passionate about it has made me feel so great about myself. I now carry post its with me and leave random notes places. Knowing that someone will be smiling because of it makes me smile, too!
Comment by Astrid — 8/7/2010 @ 1:57 pm
On a day where I was just feeling like I didn’t measure up to what the world wanted me to be, a good friend talked it out with me and then reminded me that instead instead of looking in the mirror, I should look in the Bible. It was great advice, and really made me step back and think. It honestly turned my whole day around. Then, to top it all off, I heard ‘So Beautiful’ by Superchick on the radio right after! Perfect timing! So, thanks to my friend and Superchick, I have a brand new outlook. =)
Comment by Jennifer — 8/7/2010 @ 3:34 pm
Operation Beautiful itself has inspired me to be kind to my body. The most special day was yesterday, when Angela at Oh She Glows posted a post on the Virtual Book Tour about recovering from disordered eating. That post really really hit home with me and I cried, vowing once again to treat myself right. I really hope it sticks this time, and that I can love myself and my body again. You guys are amazing
Wei-Wei
Comment by Wei-Wei — 8/7/2010 @ 4:39 pm
My husband knows how to get my out of my image funks (thankfully bad days comes wayyyyy less often). Recently, has started to say “that’s not very Operation Beautiful like is it?” I just love him for it and it really gets me back into my positive self that I know I am and always should be!
Great post!
Comment by Katie @ Healthy Heddleston — 8/7/2010 @ 8:31 pm
My body image has actually been effected by Caitlin Boyle, the Author of the Operation Beautiful book. I’ve been reading her blog, and many other food blogs, and they have really given me a positive outlook about my body and health. As a teenager, many of my friends fat talk. I tell them about Operation Beautiful, and they immediately begin to see a different side of things.(: I used try to diet when I was only about 8 or 9 years old. I thought I was fat and ugly at that young of an age. It breaks my heart to look back in the past and remember all of that negative fat talk. By the time I was 12 or 13, I was really thin and still trying to diet. I remember always staying under 95 pounds even though I was about 5’2. But, by the time I hit high school, I discovered food blogs, Operation Beautiful, healthy foods instead of 100 Calorie Packs, and running. My whole world flipped. I gained 15-20 healthy pounds, grew one inch, ran a 10k, and finally ditched the scale. All thanks to Healthy Tipping Point and Operation Beautiful(: Now I am healthy and happy.
Comment by Zelda — 8/7/2010 @ 9:08 pm
I absolutely love your band and I love your message. I was shocked to see you on Healthy Tipping Point with your Operation Beautiful post. It seems like all of the loves of my life are being combined!
Thank you so much for creating music that has really helped me and I know MANY others with self esteem issues. We truly serve an awesome God that gives us the message we need, when we need it.
Comment by Amber K — 8/8/2010 @ 10:00 am
This summer when I was on a missions trip I got really sick, and with my health went my self-esteem, and my desire to hurt myself that has been tamed pretty well at this point came on extremely strongly…A girl I had met earlier in the week wrote me a note telling me how glad she was she got to know me and had someone slip it under the door of the room I was sleeping in. That was probably what gave me the self-confidence to make it through the rest of the week without hurting myself or writing negative messages about myself all over my hands that I would then scrub off. She was just writing a simple note, but it meant so much to me that I carried it around with me for days afterward.
Comment by ~VA~ — 8/8/2010 @ 2:35 pm
On a day when I actually left work early because I felt so sick, I was complimented by a man working at a polling place (for voting). I definitely didn’t think I looked too great that day and felt pretty awful, and that one little encounter gave me a great boost and made me feel better!
Comment by Clare — 8/9/2010 @ 7:47 am
I love Operation Beautiful! I’ve been posting notes in restrooms and changing rooms whenever I get the chance and always carry a pack of Post-It notes and a marker.
Once, I was having one of those not so great self-esteem days. I was feeling down about my hair and my weight. My mom and I were grocery shopping, and this lady walked by us. I heard her say something to me about “beautiful.” I didn’t hear her and thought she was complimenting my purse, because I made it and get compliments about it sometimes. So I said, “Huh?” She said, “Gosh, you’re beautiful. I hate you.” Then she started laughing and said, “Really, you’re beautiful.” It was a completely shocking thing to come from a stranger, but it really made my day.
~Kristin
Comment by Kristin — 8/9/2010 @ 4:17 pm
My best friend from high school through college years (she left after graduating) definitely helped me through some tough times. As long as I can remember I always had something negative to say about myself.. that was until my dear friend showed me that that negative energy was effecting not only myself, but also the people around me (including her)! This was something I never realized and truly did not want to happen. We were so close that you we could finish the other person’s thought, and at a time we were both fighting a losing battle of being negative to ourselves. We finally decided that we needed to change or risk losing our friendship because the negative energy around us was just compounding the situation. She definitely opened my eyes and since then (and a few emails later) I decided to take a step in the right direction and change my thoughts. Even though I thought the whole “Tell yourself something positive while looking in the mirror when you get up” was not going to work.. it really did! I can’t tell you how good it feels to actually be NICE to yourself! There’s still days when “fat talk” makes it way through, but it’s all a process and I definitely couldn’t have been in this position without the help of my friend! I owe her alot!
Comment by Natalie — 8/13/2010 @ 8:56 am
I was never impacted in a “Wow-ish” way but I guess that I was always taught by people around me and (more recently) by Superchick that I don’t have to be obsessive my appearance and I’m beautiful in the eyes of God. I am very fortunate to have been raised with this outlook and I haven’t had much of a negative perception of myself.
Not the most epic of stories but, hey.
Comment by Eliza — 8/13/2010 @ 12:36 pm
I heard beauty from pain and it says everything about me,from my belief in god to hope and to despair if I ever get the strength to end my sorry life this will be the song ringing in my ears,please save others through your music and not let them end up like me. x
Comment by Bernadette — 2/27/2011 @ 1:30 pm
Like many have experienced. I went through and still from time to time deal with an eating disorder. Its rooted in family issues and not feeling accepted. But today i have the confidence to admit to my issues and reach out for help. Songs By Superchick helped me out a lot. Stand in the Rain, Beauty from Pain and Courage to merely name a few. I printed out the lyrics to Beauty from Pain and read them aloud to my philosophy class in high school. Its funny actually our teacher wrote a few words on the board and we had to write a paper surrounding the connection between those words. I chose Beauty, Betrayal and Courage. I stated that my quest for beauty and my turn to self demolition led to a betrayal within myself and i was finally taking the courage to write it down and seek some acceptance. I read the assignment aloud to a class of high school seniors and to my surprise they were nothing but supportive and let me know someone cared. A boy in the class wrote about me in his final paper saying that everyone has an issue it just shows how good of a person you are to seek help. I also found out that my opening helped another peer of mine admit to a drug problem and seek help. That was my eye opener and i couldn’t thank you more. Operation Beautiful is just another was to give young people the confidence to get through another day as a better person and i think its an amazing program.
Comment by Tracey Hammond — 6/21/2011 @ 7:39 pm