Why I'm wearing a bikini on the internet

So, I started doing this whole thing where once a year, I put on a bathing suit and go in public. I thought, yes. This feels brave. This feels strong. And it was, until one day it wasn't.

It doesn't necessarily feel less strong or less brave, it just feels... normal. Which is amazing.

I'm a woman, I wear a swimsuit, I climbed the mountain. Rooooaaaarrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

But the thing is, I get bored easily, and mountain climbing... it's addictive.

I needed a new mountain. A bikini.

Now, this was a serious mountain, y'all. It had cliffs and caverns and stretch marks and gall bladder surgery scars and love handles and saggy parts and a belly button that was so totally lower than I remember it being before. Oh, and a stupid amount of cellulite.

But it turns out, putting on a bikini was so much harder than just, well, putting on a bikini. I had been so focused on the actual act, I never even considered the difficulty in finding one that fit. There is so much to consider, especially with a curvy body. I need a bottom that comes up high enough to hide my pouch, and a top big and supportive enough to handle my 38DDDs. That made for slim pickings. Also, I'm not, like, 16 years old, so there's that, also.

So, I took to the Internet, because heaven forbid us plus-size gals need to try anything on in a store, and ordered an absolutely obscene amount of bikinis. Ironically, most of them ended up being quite obscene themselves, and the majority of them went back, but that's the thing with any shopping experience. I easily had 42 breakdowns on my bedroom floor, but I took another shot of tequila and got back on the horse, because if I had just given up, I never would have found two looks that make me feel crazy swim suit confident and positively gorgeous.

I love this suit. Not only am I still totally crushing on all things navy, I really like to mix up patterns. This top made me nervous, because halters don't typically work for me, causing neck pain and 24/7 back fat parties, but the double strap ties were super comfortable, and the thicker sides made things way smoother and supported. The bottoms are way lower than I assumed I would have liked. I am so used to jacking things up super high on my stomach, camel toe be damned, because it felt held in and secure. But, when it comes to swimwear, doing that makes this weird shelf above my butt, which is the opposite of appealing. So, I tried a mid-rise bottom, and I think it created a really great hourglass shape. I have hips and thick thighs and an ass, you know, girl stuff, and I might as well get to know them.

At first, this suit terrified me. Like, terrified. The strings and the youth and the oh my God, right? My boobs basically took one look at it and cackled all, girrrrl, I hope you like your nipples touching your navel, because this shit is about to happen. But you know what? I loved it. I really did. I loved the color, and it was really comfortable, and it legitimately held my boobs up. It's a little showy, but it's, like, a bikini? So that's basically the point. I mean, they're made for beaches and rap videos.

To some, this may not be beauty or strength. To some this may be gossiped about or pitied. Maybe even labeled gross or pinned as motivation for what not to be.

To them I say, get your own mountain. This one's mine.

Do you feel uncomfortable wearing a cossie? Have you ever tried to get your swimsuit confidence back? How?