For Photoshop or not for Photoshop, that’s the question. Kim Kardashian is not a plus size woman, but she is known for her voluptuous figure. Complex magazine created a buzz when he inadvertently placed an unaltered photo of the reality star on his website, then replaced it with a retouched version later. The new and improved Kim had smaller breasts, a shorter waist, and of course slimmer thighs without cellulite. The entire photo had been cleared, including the background and Ms. Kardashian’s complexion. Side-by-side comparisons of the two images appeared all over the web.

Kim immediately took to her blog to defend herself. She brushed off all the fuss by replying “So what? I have a bit of cellulite. What curvy girl doesn’t?” Okay, that works. But then after claiming to be proud of her curves and body, she lets everyone know that she has worked hard to become acceptable once again. Kardashian continues, “At the same time as this Complex session, I was preparing for my fitness DVD and you should see my thighs now! Ha ha!”

All of this is disturbing on some levels. For starters, the fact is that using Photoshop to turn real bodies into fakes is a common practice in the industry. It’s ridiculous, but it’s also old news. So why do women keep believing in the “this is how should look at “magazine drama? And if Kim is so proud, why ruin a perfectly good answer by saying she doesn’t look like that anymore?”

What bothers me the most about all this is that people think it’s okay to criticize their figure, whether it’s Photoshopped or not. There is no perfect or ideal body. Yet women continue to make headlines for gaining or losing weight as if it were a matter of national security or something. Oprah was so embarrassed that she put her own comparison on the cover of her magazine. Tyra Banks ranted on her show about her weight gain after critics criticized her. Jennifer Love Hewitt blogged about the negative response to her bikini-laden vacation photos. And weight loss companies like Jenny Craig and Nutrisystem keep making comeback stories of people like Valerie Bertinelli and Marie Osmond.

So what can a full-figure girl do? It can seem almost impossible to disconnect from all the negative body image messages out there. It is time for us to learn to accept all bodies for what they are. Let’s eliminate competitiveness. Beauty does not come in a shape or size. If you are larger, work. If you are slim, work. If you’re somewhere in between, work. Just don’t let someone else’s standard of beauty determine how you feel about yourself.