👖 The Co-op #18: Dressing for the Body We Have

What do we do when we're struggling to feel like ourselves in a new body?

What is The Co-op?

It’s no secret the Swipe Up community is one of the best corners of the World Wide Web, and that is because of you. Since a girl’s girl doesn’t gatekeep, it would be wrong of me to hoard all that goodness for myself when we could be using our powers for the benefit of one another. Thus, the Co-op was born. Have a puzzling co-worker dilemma or a weird landlord or landmine faith question? Together we lasso the power of the Lil Swipes Hive Mind to help one another with our tricky conundrums and provide helpful judgment-free answers or suggestions. Like Wonder Woman, but a lot of us and with comfier pants.

How does it work?

Every so often, I gather questions from the Lil Swipes and choose one to post. We then open up the comments and watch as the wisdom and experience roll right on in. Maybe you recently listened to a podcast episode that would be helpful, or you walked through something similar, or your job happens to make you an expert in the field! Maybe you made a mistake in your own life and you want to share how you learned what not to do. Or maybe you just want to lurk in the comments because you have the same question. The Co-op is part tool, part crowdsourcing advice, and part “oh thank goodness I am not alone.”

Today’s question!

In the last 2.5 years, I've gained around 50 pounds and don't really know how to dress like myself anymore. Ultimately, the weight gain is a great thing! The stress and anxiety I experienced while teaching kept me pretty underweight for a long time and leaving the profession has helped resolve a lot of that. It just all happened so fast after not gaining for so long. I'm struggling to recognize/get to know/dress this new body. I make a lot of my own clothes, so getting dressed has been harder in part because things don't fit how I remember or picture them in my head. Like, I actually have boobs now! I've gone from a B to a DD and am just so lost. I've been getting rid of things that don't fit and adding ones that do, but I'm struggling to feel like myself in my clothes.

Ok, I feel like I've rambled more than asked a question but if you have any thoughts or advice I'd love to hear it.

Ah yes, the clothing store with its dressing room. We’ve all cried here.

Reminders/Grains of Salt:

Don’t be judge-y or creepy.
Keep each other’s confidence well.
Resources, wisdom, experience, and general solidarity are all welcomed.
Disrespectful comments will be deleted post haste.
Even though we’re sharing personal struggles here, we’re probably not privy to the whole story.
We’re not anyone’s pastor or therapist, just well-meaning internet strangers.

Take a look at previous Co-op posts:

⛪️ The Co-op #1: Helping Your Kids with Questions of Faith
🌆 The Co-op #2: Making Friends in a New City
💼 The Co-op #3: Changing Careers
🧯 The Co-op #4: Taking Care When The World is On Fire
🦺 The Co-op #5: Setting Boundaries with Adult Parents
✅ The Co-op #6: Parenting a Kid with ADHD
✈️ The Co-op #7: Sending Your People Off Into the World
✝️ The Co-op #8: Struggling with a Changing Faith
❤️ The Co-op #9: Cultivating Hearts of Mercy
🪡 The Co-op #10: Managing Expectations with Adult Children
👯‍♀️ The Co-op #11: Discerning the End of a Friendship
👶 The Co-op #12: To Parent or Not to Parent
🤝 The Co-op #13: Talking About Faith When You & Your Partner Aren't on the Same Page
📊 The Co-op #14: Navigating Different Friendship Capacities
🫶 The Co-op #15: Making Friends as a Grown-Up
💪 The Co-op #16: Making Decisions from a Place of Strength
🥊 The Co-op #17: Respectful Disagreements in Matters of Faith

Make your own suggestion for a Co-op discussion!

Alright, let’s see what we’ve got for our Lil Swipe today in the comments! See you there!