Every Year on My Birthday, I Take a Naked Photo—Here’s Why

Giving "birthday suit" a whole new meaning.

It’s birthday season here on Laugh Lines! I’m turning 34 this Saturday, which means the next two weeks are all about celebrating—me, yes, but also you. We’re diving into self-love rituals, what it means to age out loud, and why growing older doesn’t mean dimming your sparkle. Expect beauty, vulnerability, body talk, and probably some glitter.

My birthday has always been my favorite holiday.

I love glitter and attention—I’m a Gemini, after all—so why *wouldn’t* I love a day that’s all about celebrating me?

When I was younger, that meant throwing massive parties: a Sweet 16 at a nightclub (three friends got kicked out for stealing bottles of vodka), a backyard graduation bash with both an a.m. brunch and a p.m. DJ set (same story, new bottles), and a rooftop rager for my 21st where no one got kicked out—because, finally, we were legal. Throughout my 20s, I threw huge joint birthday parties with my college roommates and invited every person I’d ever met. I loved being in a room surrounded by people (some I knew, some I didn’t) telling me I didn’t look a day over 20—which was objectively untrue, and deeply appreciated.

But after I turned 30, things changed.

That year, I realized I didn’t need a bunch of strangers and loose acquaintances celebrating me—what I really needed was to celebrate myself.

My parties got smaller (we’re talking five friends max, plus my husband and my dog), and my priorities began to shift. My birthday stopped being about external validation, and started being about soaking up my own sparkle.

Now, I book myself a solo spa day. I buy myself flowers and all my favorite little treats. I write a letter to myself recapping everything that’s happened over the past year—the highs, the heartbreaks, the weird little victories no one else would notice.

Then, I take a naked photo.

Not for Instagram. Not even for my husband. For me.

👀 Keep reading as a paid subscriber to find out how this birthday tradition helped me heal my relationship with my body—and why I never compare the photos year to year.