Dove Vive Mejor Hablemos ~ Let's Talk Campaign! #doveinspired

I have always been curvaceous and full-figured. Yet, that never has stopped me from feeling good about myself. I admit that when I was younger, it bothered me but when I got into my 20's, I decided to embrace who I was. The minute I decided I would not conform to the world's standard of beauty, I felt more confident and beautiful. I believe it is not how the world perceives you that makes a good person, it is how you perceive yourself.

Dove also believes that beauty should be a source of confidence, not anxiety. And from October 5 to 7th, Dove is inviting women across the country to participate in the Dove Self Esteem Weekend.  The Dove Vive Mejor Hablemos (Let's Talk) campaign tries to teach women and young girls that beauty is more than the physical. Dove is committed to inspiring all women and girls to reach their full potential.

According to Dove global research:

* 72 percent of girls (ages 10-17) feel tremendous pressure to be beautiful

* Only 11 percent of girls (ages 10-17) are comfortable using the word beautiful to describe themselves

* When girls feel bad about their looks more than 60 percent globally (age 15 to 17) avoid normal daily activities such as attending school, going to the doctor, or even giving their opinion

Those are some telling statistics. Nowadays, I see so many younger women worrying about how they look that they do all sorts of crazy things to fit what they think is beauty. It is sad. I don't have kids but I understand the anxiety that "not fitting in" can bring.

I work at a school and I am good friends with one of my friends daughters, who is a typical teenager. She is a pretty girl. She is smart and has so much going for her. Oftentimes, she comes to talk to me because I don't treat her like a little girl but my equal. We have talked about all sorts of subjects. Of course, I always try to get her mom's consent and never offer an crazy advice. But I am honest and real with her.

She is not stick thin and one day she came and said she was getting fat. I tried to explain to her that she was a healthy size and that she was a beautiful person, inside and out. I told her that the pictures she sees in magazines and on TV are not realistic.

I tried to relate to her that if you worry so much about the your outside, that you forget to nurture your inside. I told her that beauty fades sooner or later.. I told her about my struggles when I was her age and how I got over it. I told her that if you are beautiful on the inside that she would never have trouble finding friends or love. I also told her that friendships not based on superficiality will always last longer.

It is tough trying to convince a teenager of all this because at that age they don't always understand. They are pressured from all sides to conform to a certain standard. I have talked to her several times and I think I got through. But other times, I know that she might find herself in a situation that she will forget my advice.

The funny thing is that I also have these talks with women closer to my age as well. I think we are all somehow trying to fit into the world and the easiest way to is to conform to what others think we should be. I have always fought against that because if we try to be something we are not, we will always falter. People always tell me I am one of the most confident person they know. Trust me, it took me years to find myself and trust in who I am.

I hope that you take the time to talk to your daughters or friend's daughters or your friends and let them know that beauty is only skin deep. It is important to make sure that girls understand this. I am all about anything that empowers women and especially teen girls. I think nowadays there is so much pressure to fit into an unrealistic ideal of what women should be. That leads to so many problems especially in young girls. So any program that allows women to feel good about themselves, whatever size or shape, is a good thing for everybody.

Since the inception of the program, Dove has reached over 9 million girls with self-esteem programming. If we all help, Dove might be able to reach their goal of 15 million by 2015! Please visit the Vive Mejor Hablemos site for more information on this important subject. If you are on Facebook, this Thursday, October 4th from 7-8 pm EST you can join People en Espanol columnist and parenting expert Jeannette Torres-Alvarez on Facebook. She will be giving advice and chatting about the Dove program.

 Disclosure: This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Dove. All information was provided by Latina Bloggers Connect.