Morena beauty Gabbi Garcia on overcoming, embracing her insecurities

Gabbi Garcia | Image: Instagram/@gabbi

Gabbi Garcia is one of those celebrities who are effortlessly beautiful and glamorous-looking, even without trying so hard. But what not many are aware of, the so-called “Queen of the Morenas” has not always been confident of her Filipina complexion.

But in an interview at the sidelines of her newest skin product endorsement, Garcia opened up about her past insecurities in terms of her physical appearance and struggles to empower herself amid efforts to conform to society’s beauty standards.

“I remember when I was younger I would often be rejected [from] almost all of my auditions because I didn’t fit the standards of what ‘beautiful’ is before. Siguro by high school nagsawa na lang ako to be insecure (By the time I was in high school, I got fed up with being insecure),” she said.

Garcia said that it took time for her to be comfortable in her own skin, adding that having a strong support system also helped her to be more confident and eventually accept her own kind of beauty. 

Knowing that her struggle is not unique to herself, Garcia said she wanted to impart to fellow Filipinas that beauty is not a one-size fits all concept.

“Hindi ka nag-iisa (You are not alone). I also suffer. I have bad days also. But you just have to power through it. You create habits that will make you feel good about yourself. Like for me, I work out. I do breathing exercises just to feel good about myself. It happens. But it’s gonna be okay. You’ll get through it.” she told INQUIRER.net.

She also shared that she makes sure that the product she uses and habits that she does align with her vision in uplifting not just herself but also others. 

“One that supports my advocacy — loving yourself, embracing your own skin… Even if you’re morena, you also need to glow, to be radiant, to be comfortable about your skin,” she said. 

Despite the many challenges she’s facing in show business, Garcia admitted that she has learned to love her skin color when she started working in the industry, saying, “Mas lalo kong minahal ‘yung sarili ko (I have learned to love myself more). Mas lalo kong iniembrace na ‘Ah morena ako. (I have learned to embrace my brown skin). It’s okay. You stand out. It’s fine.”

When asked what advice she could give to the people who want to achieve their body goals this summer, the “My Destiny” star affirmed that having a healthy body is what body goals should mean.

“Dapat ang body goals, all year round, But of course, especially for the summer since all of us are going to the beach. But I feel like more than the body goals and the aesthetic, everybody should attain sustainability to be healthy para all year round siya,” she said.

“So kailangan ikondisyon mo ‘yung sarili mo na (you need to ensure the good condition of yourself) you’re not just doing it to look good but to feel stronger, to be healthier. Kasi ‘yan ang goal natin talaga (because that’s our goal) to be healthy.” added the actress.