I am the last person to criticize anyone for being preoccupied with their looks. At 50, full disclosure, I enjoy exploring options to turn back time. I love my skin procedures and all the quality lotions and potions that claim you will look young forever (so long as they’re not full of JUNK).

There are those my age that are pretty pumped up on fillers, Botox – you name it. No criticizing them at all – I believe it’s everyone’s choice to do whatever they want with their own face and body. And while fillers may not be my thing right now, I reserve the right to change my mind, as does everyone else.

As with everything in my life, I believe in balance. With a consistently shitty diet you can’t possibly have good skin. When you drink too much alcohol or smoke, it will contribute to premature aging and will show in your skin. Without 7 hours or more sleep consistently, you will age prematurely. Water, well, that goes without saying. Our bodies are approximately 60% water – drink half your body weight throughout the day of good, clean, filtered water. These are all pretty well-known facts. I align with holistic health and living. But I’m far from perfect. Perfection doesn’t exist in real life.

I posted a photo of what celebrity 50 looked like back in the 80’s and what it looks like now. I think JLo looks great, but let’s not forget this woman has a TEAM to help her look like this. The majority of us do not. We also don’t necessarily want to look like this either because of the work involved. Let’s face facts – it would be a heck of a lot of work to do so when you’re over 40, average mom, with a family and no staff.

Don’t you just want to live the way you want to live without being judged? Look and act how we want to without someone whispering “oooooh that girl needs to tone down the botox”. We all fall victim to judgement, especially women. Especially as we get older. Oh she looks so old. Oh she looks so pumped up on fillers. Oh man, look how much weight she gained. We all do it. Wouldn’t it be nice not to judge and not to be judged?

Doesn’t personal improvement and growth come from within vs external forces? Many years ago, I used to be a smoker. When I tried to quit smoking because of the perception of smokers, I failed. It wasn’t until that desire to quit came from within me that I actually quit. I wanted it. Judgement sucks.

Sometimes I want to be a little crazy and act like a 28 year old. In Vegas I had the time of my life with my husband for my birthday, and we didn’t “act our age”. I hate that term. I’ve said it to my 14 year old – why the heck do I say such stupid shit sometimes? Sometimes we can’t control it. The judgement. The perceptions.

So how about this? The next time you judge someone on how they look, stop. Think “why am I judging?”. Am I actually just judging my OWN shortcomings? Why does it even matter what they look like? Why do women always HAVE to be a certain way. Look a certain way. Act a certain way. Act like a lady. Look like a lady. Be a lady. Fuck that.

Food for thought.