“You’re having a bad day, aren’t you?”

These were the first words someone said to me on a gray, cold Thursday morning. First, I was confused about why a boy in my biology class said that, but then I realized when I looked down at what I was wearing.

That particular day, I chose to wear sweatpants and a baggy sweatshirt, but I’d thought nothing about it. It was just another day, and I didn’t feel like putting on jeans or a nice shirt.

The comment hurt me–it wasn’t just that this guy thought I was a slob, but that he didn’t realize his words had any effect on me.

Whether we like it or not, we are judged by what we wear and how we present ourselves. Sadly, women get the short end of that stick when it comes to “looking presentable.”

Whenever I walk on campus first thing in the morning, I am immediately self-conscious, and I start to wonder if what I chose to wear that morning was the right choice.

I begin to feel the eyes stare at me on my short five-minute walk to first period.

I applaud every girl who steps out of their comfort zone, who doesn’t warp themselves to fit society’s standards of what the “perfect woman” looks like.

Girls need to know that that there are people in this world who will look down on you for no reason and judge you before they even ask for your name, but you have the choice to give those stares the power to make your day good or bad.

Pleasing people isn’t worth it. At the end of the day, you have to be happy with yourself. So don’t be afraid to wear sweatpants and a baggy shirt if you feel like it–it’s you who is in control of your life, and no one else.