This Open Letter From A Daughter To Her Mum Will 'Hit You Right In The Heart' | HuffPost Life

This Girl's Open Letter To Her Mum Will 'Hit You Right In The Heart'

Ellen Wallwork— The Huffington Post UK

A powerful video exploring the impact a mother's words can have on her daughter's self esteem has prompted an online discussion about whether we are always aware of the impact our words have on our children.

The video opens with a girl handing her mother a letter, which begins:

"Mama says you're a pretty girl.

"You're my angel, my baby, my star, my world.

"But if this is true mama, if this is fact, then why do you say such hurtful comments to me? How can you do me like that?"

The girl then lists the hurtful comments her mother has made to her about her body, weight and the the way she dresses, including:

"If you leave my house looking like that everyone will think you're just another loose girl."

The video, which was made by BuzzFeed, ends with the message:

"Women need to learn to live in harmony.

"Divide and conquer that's how they keep us down, that's how they hold us back.

"They make you feel shameful about the skin that you're in and make sure you pass it on to the next of kin, but that's got to stop mamma, we can't be about that life any more."

SEE ALSO:
What My Mother Taught Me
All Women Are Real Women

Posted on YouTube on 30 May with the caption "I need you to have my back", the video soon started attracting comments from moved viewers.

"This hit me right to the heart," wrote one.

Others added that the clip touched on their fears about becoming a parent:

"I'm scared that one day when I become a mum, what if I'm one of these mums," wrote another commenter.

"My mum supports me and calls me beautiful but what if I shame and criticise? That scares me."

And the video didn't only resonate with women, with one man requesting: "Could you do a male (dad and son) version of this please?"

How To Teach Positive Body Image

#1(01 of10)

I kept superficial comments about looks on the low down -- theirs, mine and other peoples. Looking well-kempt and co-ordinated was noticed rather than looking beautiful. (credit:Getty)

#2(02 of10)

I didn’t ban Barbies or princesses, but I added to the mix some real proportioned dolls. Check out Lottie Dolls or Lammily. (credit:Getty)

#3(03 of10)

Story time included books like The Paper Bag Princess or anything recommended on the Amelia Bloomer Project created by the Feminist Task Force of the Social Responsibilities Round Table of the American Library Association.A Mighty Girl is another great site. It's tag line is: the world's largest collection of books, toys and movies for smart, confident, and courageous girls. (credit:Getty)

#4(04 of10)

I made sure my children understood the word diet meant the food you eat. A monkey at the zoo has a diet and so does an athlete. Diet doesn’t mean losing weight.We all have to watch our diet to be healthy. We need to be in a healthy weight range as recommended by our doctors, not our peers or magazines. (credit:Getty)

#5(05 of10)

As puberty approached I discussed genetics, hormones and the challenges that I faced, as had my mother before me. (credit:Getty)

#6(06 of10)

My girls used their allowance to buy "J-14" and "Tiger Beat" magazines, but I would give them a subscription to "New Moon" as my Christmas gift. Also check out "Shameless" magazine. (credit:Getty)

#7(07 of10)

We discussed how the human form comes in all shapes and sizes. Check out Queen Latifah and Beyonce. They are both proud women who embrace their shape and size. (credit:Getty)

#8(08 of10)

When their bodies blossomed we looked online at what REAL breasts look like. Reality is very different from the porn sites or fashion magazines. (credit:Getty)

#9(09 of10)

I educated my daughters about how models are Photoshopped by watching and discussing the Dove Self-Esteem campaign. (credit:Getty)

#10(10 of10)

As they entered into high school we discussed friends who were developing eating disorders and who followed fads such as “pro-ana”, “thigh gap” and “thinspiration.”We talked about the political power to create change, as demonstrated by some magazines and organizations in the fashion industry that banned size zero models from the runway after several deaths of severely underweight models. (credit:Getty)

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