All Bodies Are Beautiful

There's a lot to learn from stars who are redefining what confidence looks like — and inspiring Us to do the same

- by SHARI GOLDHAGEN

There are more than 8 billion people on the planet, in all different shapes and colors. But scrolling through curated Insta feeds or watching the streaming show du jour, it can feel like everyone looks the same. And that's a major bummer. “When only a narrow type of beauty is consistently represented, society begins to view anything outside that 'standard' as undesirable,” University of Florida advertising professor Robyn Goodman, Ph.D., tells Us. Seeing an A-lister buck those beauty tropes can be a huge morale boost for the rest of us, says Virgie Tovar, a body image expert and host of the GLP-1 Truth Serum podcast. “Watching someone who looks like you portrayed with confidence and glamour tells you that you belong exactly as you are.” That's easier said than done, even for celebrities who encounter the same pressures to be pretty in prescribed ways. “Showing up confident in your own body can be hard,” says Amy Harman, LMFT, CEDS-S and author of Perfectly Imperfect, “but it's truly an accomplishment.” Here are some of the stars doing just that.

Difference Can Be a Superpower

As a contestant on America’s Next Top Model in 2014, Winnie Harlow was a fan favorite because of her unique looks. But growing up in Canada, the supermodel, now 31, was ruthlessly teased for her unusual skin pigmentation caused by vitiligo. “I often felt misunderstood,” shared Harlow in a November social media post announcing her forthcoming children’s book,