Lena Dunham Says Parents Gave Her Healthy Body Image

Despite the fact that Lena Dunham plays an insecure 20-something in HBO’s “Girls,” the actress doesn’t have body hang-ups in real life – a strength she says comes from having good parents.

In Marie Claire UK’s October issue, Dunham says that, even as a young child, she felt extremely comfortable in her own skin.

“This could very easily be taken out of context, and I think it’s funny now, but I remember looking in the mirror as a kid and it would be like for an hour at a time, and I’d be like: I’m just so beautiful,” Dunham said. “Everybody is so lucky that they get to look at me.”

Breaking the mold

And while Dunham says her perspective has changed since getting older, “that little-kid feeling” of confidence has rocketed her into one of highest dimensions of success for such a young actress.

The 27-year-old Emmy nominee also told Playboy back in March that she was glad she didn’t look like a Victoria’s Secret model.

“I don’t want to go through life wondering if people are talking to me because I have a big rack,” she said. “Not being the ‘babest’ person in the world creates a nice barrier. The people who talk to you are the people who are interested in you.”

‘Healthy attitudes’

Dunham says that her mom and dad are the ones who taught her that beauty comes in all shapes and sizes.

“My parents both have really healthy attitudes about their own bodies but also about the range of things that can be beautiful,” she explained.

And even though Dunham doesn’t have a rail-thin frame while parading around naked on episodes of “Girls,” she says her confidence comes from knowing there’s more to her than her body.

“[My parents] also just always made me feel pretty and cool and smart, even in the moments when I have known – and still know – that my body wasn’t fitting into a traditional Hollywood idea of the female body.”

Source: Marie Claire