Numbers on Tags Don't Define Us

Today, I walked into my closet, and I found a shirt that I had just recently bought. I remember that when I saw it in the store, I had to double check to make sure it was an extra small because it looked so big. It was, so I decided to buy it without trying it on.

I'm sure you could imagine the surprised look on my face this morning when I buttoned the shirt up, and I felt like I was swimming in a sea of clothing. I went back into my closet, found another shirt made by the same company, and I compared the two articles of clothing. The older shirt was smaller than the one that I had just purchased. Ever more surprising, I looked at the tag and saw that it was a small. 

So, how could a shirt that was made by the same company and was a size larger than the shirt that I had just bought be smaller? Within the last year, by the power of social media, many companies have been scrutinized because of this same problem. A small shirt that was produced in 2015 is not the same size as a small shirt that was produced in 2016. Many images of shorts with the same waist size but different numbers printed on the tags on the inside have been viewed by thousands, yet it still continues to happen. Many people have connected this issue to a decrease of self image, and how wouldn't they. One picture showed a pair of shorts from one year as being a size 5, and the next year they were a size 11. I'm sure that would hurt anyone's self confidence to think that they grew 6 sizes within one single year, but this isn't a story about self image or self confidence. 

Yes, I agree that sizes should be regulated not only within a single company, but across all clothing manufacturers. It not only would eliminate a decrease in self confidence, but it would also make shopping more convenient. If you know your size, it would be easy to just walk in and pick it up without worrying whether it would fit. When I go to a store, I have to try every single thing on. A small in a certain shirt will fit, but in others I have to get a medium. Yes, it is an issue, but it is unrealistic for that to ever happen, so why dwell on something that is very unlikely to change. 

Instead, a change of mind might help. First, I think it is imperative to know that this type of thing does happen all the time. Before we get discouraged with ourselves, we should compare our clothes. Second, we should think about what we are letting define us. In today's society, everyone makes a big deal about a number on a tag in a piece of clothing. It is hard not to let that get to you, and yes, that number is important to me too just like it is to most of you. But maybe, instead of that number being a label, you can make it a motivator. Maybe you do compare your clothes and realize that your size has changed,and that is more than okay. If you still think that you are a fabulous, beautiful person, then who cares what that number is or what other people think about you. 

If you do feel like maybe you ate too many sweets or that maybe you didn't eat enough and you want to change yourself, then do not look at that tag as the enemy or the bearer of bad news. Make it a motivator and work to make yourself feel great in your own skin. No one's approval is worth more than your own. Be selfish with your body because you're the one who has to live in it. 

image taken from: https://wunderlabel.com/