Peckham woman launches project to educate teenage girls on the importance of self-esteem

A Peckham business woman is on a mission to educate young girls on the importance of self-esteem.

Vivian Moyo, of York Grove, works with schools to teach young women and girls about eating disorders and body image.

The 36-year-old launched the You Are Beautiful Project to raise awareness of the impact that distorted images on social media can have on teenagers’ mental health

“I want to empower young women and show that there is light at the end of the tunnel,” she said.

“Healing doesn’t have to look magical or pretty. Real healing is hard, exhausting, and draining.

“Sometimes when you go through life you feel like you are the only one going through these troubles, but they are more common than people realise.”

Ms Moyo (pictured top) was born in Zimbabwe but moved to the UK when she was 11 to live with her uncle.

Her mother died when she was only three-years-old and she never met her father.

By the age of 17 she was living alone in Peckham, but “fell in with the wrong crowd”.

She said: “Peckham is my home, and the young girls in my area have had a big impact on what I do now.

“When I first moved out on my own I struggled and ended up in the wrong crowd.

“By the age of 18 I had suffered a miscarriage at five months and another one when I was 24.

“Building my business and launching the You Are Beautiful Project was something that gave me hope and helped me move forward.

“I felt like I had a purpose and I wanted to help people.

“Every time I see a young girl walking down the road I am reminded of my mission.

“I didn’t have anybody growing up, so I don’t want any of these girls to ever be in my position.”

Ms Moyo has also produced a magazine called She Inspires in a bid to change the perception of beauty by refusing to use airbrushed images.

She believes these images can cause a negative impact on young girls’ development and mental health by putting  increasing pressure on them to look a certain way.

She said: “I made the decision that the magazine will not include any airbrushed images because I want to celebrate women as they are and combat unrealistic expectations that are set by social media and other fashion magazines.

“I don’t think there is much awareness out there about illnesses like body dysmorphia and eating disorders and this is part of the issue.

“I used to think there was a lot of people doing what I am doing but there doesn’t seem to be.

“There are more and more girls suffering from eating disorders and other body image illnesses and photoshopped images are partly to blame.

“Parent’s should be made more aware of this too.

“Most of the women I speak to have grown up being insecure about their appearance or bodies and so they don’t know how to deal with when their daughters are suffering.

“We need to change this so a new generation of women can grow up feeling confident and happy with themselves.

“By sharing other women’s stories, I hope that anyone going through a similar struggle right now can be helped to move forward.”

For more information about Vivian Moyo’s campaign visit: www.sheinspireswomensmagazine.co.uk