This woman used tights to show the reality of “before and after” Instagram pictures
Social media is saturated with “before and after” photos — whether someone is on a weight-loss journey, working to improve their flexibility, or “improving” some other aspect of their body, many people are eager to share images of these changes. Although there’s certainly nothing wrong with celebrating success that’s achieved in a healthy manner, this woman showed the reality of “before and after” shots on Instagram with the help of a pair of tights.
Milly Smith, a 23-year-old nursing student and new mom, posted a fake transformation photo to to promote body positivity and provide proof that “before and after” photos can be deceiving.
In the first photo, Smith wears control-top tights high on her waist, and in the second, she wears the same tights low-slung to expose her stomach.
In her caption, Smith sends a powerful and important message to her followers:
"I am comfortable with my body in both [photos]," she wrote. "Neither is more or less worthy. Neither makes me more or less of a human being...We are so blinded to what a real unposed body looks like, and blinded to what beauty is, that people would find me less attractive within a 5-second pose switch! How insanely ridiculous is that!?"
This isn’t the first time Smith has posted fake before and after photos — she’s open about the fact that she struggles with depression, anxiety, self-harm, eating disorders, low self-esteem, and endometriosis.
But, instead of using social media to create a curated image of a perfect body and life, Smith opts to make it a therapeutic outlet as she works towards recovery and accepting her body.
Smith has shared posts that illustrate how images can be quickly altered, and how optical illusions are easily created through strategic positioning and sucking in.
Smith is a rockstar for using her painful experiences with eating disorders and body image distortion to educate her followers about the deceptiveness of before and after photos — and she provides the powerful reminder that every body is beautiful and we deserve to love ourselves as we are.
