In this world we inhabit, the pressure to look good, have a 'perfect' body and wear the right clothes is interminable.
No longer just the fodder of glossy magazine covers and gigantic billboards in city centers, we're now confronted with images of filtered perfection practically wherever we look. Even our own phones provide no respite to the onslaught, thanks to the advent of social media.
One influencer had a plastic surgeon certify that her butt was 100% real:One scroll through the filtered corridors of Instagram shows a part-reality that does not resemblance normal life in any form.
Yet there are those who look to redress the balance between the endless body goals hashtags on Instagram and reality.
And Australian bikini designer Karina Irby is certainly someone who champions body positivity and embracing the skin you're in on social media.
At the beginning of the year, Irby posted a video to Instagram with the caption;
"POSE VS CANDID
"A public forum was brought to my attention last week. Someone had put a posed photo against a candid raw video screenshot of myself.
"They did this to try and portray me as some fake girl on the internet. LOL.
"No no. I’m real! And I’m sorry I’m not walking around holding my shit together and posing at anyone who looks at me from any angle. Although, that would be a GREAT workout."
And now, Irby has shared two side-by-side images revealing her body transformation over a six-year period. She captioned the post;
"6 YEARS TO NOW
"Facebook notified me of this memory this morning. A baby Karina from 6 years ago!
"It’s crazy to think that my mindset, goals, business and priorities have developed more than my actual physical body!
"Even my @moana_bikini designs have transformed
"I celebrate my mind and body everyday. I’m proud of what I have achieved both physically and mentally. I’m a much more happier, healthier and carefree girl!
"And just like my body, my business has never been injected with outsider money. It’s grown strongly and organically with lots of love and hard work.
"I can’t wait to see what the next 6 years will bring!"
And fans were delighted with her post. One commented, "you and you‘r body are amazing we need more strong women on this planet like you are! you go girl! [sic]" Another added, "You are a beautiful and a clever woman, I admire your strength!"
A third wrote, "You look gorgeous in both photos girl ♥️ Keep doin you"
With people like Irby reminding us all to be kind to ourselves and embrace our bodies, hopefully the endless supply of unrealistic body images can begin to be balanced out.