This may sound horrible, but people can go BEEP themselves if they don't like my stretchmarked thighs in my side-the bikini.

I have stretch marks on every square CENTIMETER of my upper legs, thighs, calves, butt, hips and just a few on my actual tummy. (Go figure.)

I'm not trying to be all over the top, but I feel really good. Maybe it's because my scars are all from being pregnant, so I look at them as forever battle scars. They don't remind me of being heavy. I refuse to wear a skirt again now, because I would need Capri pants to truly cover them all up, not just a swim skirt!

ChickieChicks I LOVE your attitude.

I had a similar revelation, and it's why I have two bathing suit bottoms and one top. My fiance bought me the top and I went and bought a high waisted bottom. They don't match and it bugged me, and finding a high waisted bottom was hard.

Finally I said "SCREW IT!" and bought the boyshort bottoms that go with the top I have. I figure if people don't like my loose skin and stretch marks then they can look away! I worked hard to get here, so I'm going to enjoy it!

I bought my first two-piece ever just a month ago. It has a skirted bottom but it's too short to hide much of anything. I got it skirted simply because I love skirts. Always have. If the option exists to get skirted, you bet I'm going to get skirted! (My friends might worry the apocolypse was nigh if I didn't and I can't be responsible for that kind of panic. ) Even at goal I'm sure I'll always get a skirted two-piece or a swimdress. They're just too cute.

My problem was really with the top. A thin halter just wasn't going to cut it. I altered that baby and now I have the cutest, quite supportive blue gingham print, retro-looking suit. It makes me happy and I never thought a swimsuit would.

i bought a swimsuit last weekend for the first time in my entire life (because i dont swim and also live in AK where's it's COLD lol) ....but i have been going to the hot tub more now (or plan on going more now) and dont want to keep wearing a tee and shorts...

i bought a black tankini top with a tie around the neck, with little silver dots on the tankini and a separate boycut black bottom...not a high-waisted cut though, but with the boy-leg cut...it looks pretty decent on me and i'll probably wear it to the aquatic center soon also

im comfortable in it....i look decent enough to be seen in it in public lol...and frankly i dont really care what most anyone thinks of me anyhow as long as i'm comfortable lol

I hate bathing suit season. Unfortunately my children love the pool. I have been doing the shorts bottoms for the past 2-3 years. Any time I shave my bikini line, it almost looks worse than without shaving...all the irritation & bumps. Yuck. I keep it trim but until I can afford to get laser hair removal down there, no regular bottoms are happening.

I really don't think I will ever be a full bikini wearer. I gained 50lbs with each pregnancy, I've had my appendix removed, an emergency surgery to have a ruptured fallopian tube removed, and a c-section. Even if I weighed 115lbs, my stomach is in no condition to be bare in public. I guess I wish I had the confidence of others to bare it but I don't, so many stretch marks & loose-ish skin. Blah. But, once I can be comfortable in a cute tankini, I'll be happy!! and hopefully not miserable for the whole summer.

I bought this bikini from Victoria's Secret w/a different bikini top. I love it!! It wasn't so much b/c of my size as my age. At some point, I'm not a teenager/20 yr old. I'd like to keep it flattering, yet appropriate

Yeah that bottom pic looks exactly like the one I bought.

I hate the feeling of wet suit on my legs and also hate how they poof out when you sit down in the water but so far that hate hasn't overcome everything else. Maybe next year.

I hate to hear any woman (or man for that matter - my hubby was very self-conscious about wearing shorts or swimming suit - because of his weight and scarred legs), avoid swimming suits and swimming because of body imperfections.

We've really, as a culture, screwed with people's (especially women people's) heads to believe that only perfect people should be allowed to expose any skin at all.

And when it comes to swimming, it's an especially heinous shame, because the people who NEED swimming the most (those who are morbidly obese, for whom swimming not only is the best exercise, it's often the only exercise possible) are socially discouraged from accessing it.

As a child (a very fat child) I could almost never convince my mother to come swimming with us. Knowing that I was "fatter" than my mother, I also knew I was supposed to hate swimming too, but I loved it. It was the one place where I could "race" my friends and win.

I hated getting to the water, feeling that my fat was on display, but once I was in the water, I had freedom.

I would wish that freedom on every person on the planet.

I think it's insane that we have social taboos that force people to socially isolate to "protect" others from being forced to see someone or something unattractive.

We're sending the message "if you're not attractive - stay home, no one wants to see scarred, fat, old, imperfect people."

I like the skirt to avoid the bikini maintenance, and because pretty much all the skin from my lower stomach is now hanging in my crotch. (Lovely picture, right?) I would rather feel comfortable at the pool than worrying about my crotch. I have this skirt from Target