Women, Don't Feel Pressured by Society to Wear a Bikini

By Leslie Quan

About two summers ago, I decided to buy my first bikini as a grown woman (I did own two-piece bathing suit sets when I was a young child but you'll see that that doesn't really count for this article). I thought wearing a bikini would be like wearing any other bathing suit. I've seen other girls my age wearing bathing suits and they seemed confident enough to post a picture of themselves on social media. So how hard could this be?

I premiered my first bikini at a nearly empty outdoor pool. There were probably 5 people there, including myself and my mom. Once I stepped out of the changing room I felt so vulnerable. All I wanted to do was hide. While I did make it out to the lounge chair that was about 8 feet away, I had a hard time trying to relax.

To give you some background, or if you don't know me already, I tend to dress modestly. The least modest thing I've ever worn is probably a sports bra and shorts for a hot summer run. Besides that, I stay away from provocative clothing and feel most comfortable in a t-shirt and shorts.

Anyways, this experience made me realize how society is so good at objectifying women and telling us how we should and should not dress. On social media, we see a recurring theme of women in bikinis for summer photos. While I commend women who have the confidence to post pictures of themselves in bikinis on social media, I worry that other girls may think of these photos as a standard for how "women in the summertime" should look like.

I don't think there is anything wrong with posting a bikini picture, but for women who don't feel comfortable wearing a bikini or posting a bikini picture, the pressure of doing so is overwhelming. When people like our pictures, it makes us feel good and there's nothing wrong with wanting to experience that feeling. The issue is when women feel pressured by society to do something that they do not feel comfortable with, in this case, wearing a bikini.

Wearing a bikini when you don't feel comfortable doing so has nothing to do with not being able to embrace body positivity. It's about setting a boundary between what you feel comfortable with and what society wants from you. At the end of the day, if it makes you uncomfortable, don't wear it. If it makes you feel confident, then wear it.

It's your life so don't let society, your friends or your family tell you what you should wear or what would look good on you. Wear whatever you feel comfortable in and embrace the fact that your clothing is an expression of who YOU are.