Remaining confident and body positive in high school isn’t always an easy thing to do. Lalia Wenrich (9) realized how happy her confidence made her.

“[Being body positive is] being comfortable and happy with how your body looks no matter its size or weight. For a long time I was very uncomfortable with how I looked, and then I realized that everyone wasn’t skinny. That definitely changed my mindset a lot,” Wenrich said.

Confidence problems can sometimes stem from stereotypes or unrealistic standards of beauty.

“You need to know that not everybody is going to look the same. Your body does everything it needs to keep you healthy and strong. You can wake up and move your legs and your arms, you go to school every day.  Your body does so much for you. I just realized that things aren’t all just a world for people who are stereotypically beautiful,” Wenrich said.

The path for self-confidence and self-acceptance can be challenging, but once a person can learn overtime to be confident and positive their outlook on life can drastically improve.

“I would try to change a lot about myself. I just wanted to change everything. It took a lot of effort and acceptance.  Once I realized that, I got more confident.  There will hopefully be a time in everybody’s lives where they can have a breakthrough, realizing that you’re different and maybe your body functions differently.  Find how you can be confident, it’s really important that you are because it will get you so many places in life.  You’ll be able to find out who you are,” Wenrich said.