Name: Akanksha Anshu Stephen
Born: Cambodia & Malaysia⠀
Lives: Canada
Handle: @fillyourjar
I believe self-awareness is where foundational changes find their roots.
It has been a journey for me to truly accept and celebrate my body in all its deviousness from the “norm”.
Growing up it didn’t take long for me to realize that my big chest was nothing to be proud of; as strangers, sometimes even family and friends with ease gave me their dismissive looks causing my gut to sink and then their unconsented comments would paralyze my reactions.
I wanted to fight back, get angry and scream that my body is not public property!
Instead, I covered up my chest with layers of clothes and walked hunched over to hide from unwanted attention.
I internalized others’ negative thoughts, words and actions to blame my chest for taking away from who I really am.
I am kind, brilliant and resilient.
I want to love my whole body that I was born into, for allowing me to run, to dream and most importantly to laugh at the ridiculous expectations and misrepresentations of our bones, muscles and skin full of breath.
