If Self-Confidence Is Sexy, Why Are So Many Of Us Still So Insecure?

Plus size and portrait of couple.Body Acceptance Week 2023 began on October 23 — but has much changed since the beginning of the movement? Has the mainstreamification of body positivity benefitted everyone?The majority of people in Britain, both men and women, are accepting of their partner’s bodies, regardless of stretch marks and body hair — according to a new study conducted by sex-positive dating app Pure. Pure’s survey of 2,000 Britons revealed that 1 in 3 of us give up on sex because of body insecurities. Interestingly, though perhaps not surprisingly, this insecurity is felt more by women than men, with 2 in 3 bailing on intimacy because they didn’t feel pretty enough. Ouch.But it’s not just women struggling with body confidence. As a society, body size and shape is what we’re most insecure about — 93% of women say they would change up to three things about themselves and 21% of British men have dressed in a certain way to hide particular parts of themselves. Interestingly, when