Bree Lenehan showed how lighting could make all the difference. Photo / Instagram/breeelenehan
Bree Lenehan showed how lighting could make all the difference. Photo / Instagram/breeelenehan
An Australian woman shown how differing lighting in changing rooms has drastically affect how you look, urging other women to "smile back" at their reflection.
Bree Lenehan, who regularly shares messages of body positivity, posted a series of photos to Instagram showing how different her body looked in differentchanging rooms.
"It can be a confronting and confusing experience trying on clothes. Seeing yourself so exposed, under harsh lighting, with mirrors showing so many angles that you usually don't see yourself in," Lenehan wrote.
"In one store, you might feel great, but the next makes you feel worse. One store you're a size M and the next you're an L. One mirror makes you look taller, another wider. The list goes on."
One comparison photo showed how the soft light in one room compared to a harsh overhead light in another that highlighted her cellulite.
"Fitting rooms would tear any confidence I had left to shreds," Lenehan shared.
"I'd always end up in tears or completely deflated for the rest of the day.
"I wanted to leave these photos here to show you that it IS possible to eventually smile back at that reflection and not have it ruin your day. It is possible to not feel ashamed of being seen."
Lenehan also showed how different her body could look in the changing room by posing her body instead of standing relaxed in front of the mirror.
In this image, Lenehan showed how posing could dramatically affect how a body looks. Photo / Instagram/breeelenehan
"It's possible to be at peace with your body and everything you've grown up being taught to hate. And it has nothing to do with actually changing your body… Just your mindset!," she added.
"I know that most of the time, our own harshest critic is OURSELVES, so when it comes to our body image, it's about how WE view and speak to ourselves."
