How does a woman getting naked and taking photos of herself equal empowerment?

When I was a little girl I was told my body was bad, a temptation, and that it was to be saved for someone special. I was wrong for having feelings of desire or passion or even lust. Normal, natural things that people will feel but this was taught to be shameful, wrong, and even evil. I was told that my body needed to look a certain way in order to acceptable. I need to have a certain size of chest, a certain size of belly, and a certain size back side. And I needed to hide all of these things because while my body was a temple, it was not *my* temple.

I grew up and believed that there was something so genuinely wrong with my body and also me. Every message I received told me to not put worth on my body and yet at the same time taught me that all I was worth was my body. I was "used" if I had been with someone. A "prude" if I hadn't. I was a tease or a temptress if I dressed a certain way or a "goody two shoes" if I dressed another. In the middle of class I was sent to the office because my sleeves were not appropriate which told me my education wasn't as important as my body.

I also had things, moments, and encounters forced upon my body as well. Things I never consented to. Moments that I never wanted. And somehow so many people told me it was my fault and I deserved to carry the shame and heaviness of those times likes chains. And that if I ever made peace with those times, I was still dirty, tarnished, used, and not pure. Horrible words and labels to allow myself to take on, but take them on I did. Like so many women.

The point of this is - it's not only about the sexual side of any of it. It's about the fact that so many women who have a boudoir session get to have a say about their own body in the way they want. For many of us, that is allowing ourselves to feel sensual and sexual. It's about taking a moment to say nothing about my body is wrong or bad. Nothing about wanting to be close, physical, and intimate with another human is bad. Nothing about wanting to wear clothes that keep me cool in the summer is bad. Nothing about how others people's poor, evil choices was my fault or my responsibility. That we truly do have autonomy and are allowed to say "yes" and to say "no". That is so powerful!

My body is not bad. It is not a reason for me to feel shame. It should not be a source of guilt. And it is a temple, but it is my temple to be decorated, adorned, and used as I see fit. That realization, that your body is yours, is the empowerment. And for so many of us, undressing and allowing ourselves freedom in our skin is a very real way for us to find plus experience it. And that is BEAUTIFUL.

So if you are ready for your own "sexy photos" session and you are feeling like you are ready to say no more to guilt, shame, and yes to your own autonomy, I'd love to talk to you and start planning your session today! Until next time, please enjoy the beauty and power that is Miss S. One of my final sessions at this studio and I couldn't have asked for a better client!