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It was a tale of two bikini photos. Selena Gomez<\/strong><\/a> took to her Instagram Stories on January 22 to first share a picture of herself wearing a teeny leopard print two-piece in 2013. \u201cToday I realized I will never look like this again,\u201d she wrote. Next, the 31-year-old posted a snap from 2023, in which she covered her now much more womanly figure in high-waisted bottoms and a tube top. \u201cI\u2019m not perfect, but I am proud to be who I am,\u201d she captioned the second shot. \u201cSometimes I forget it\u2019s ok to be me<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n Self acceptance hasn\u2019t come easy for Selena. In the public eye since age 9, the Only Murders in the Building<\/em> star has been open about her struggles with body image, admitting to feeling \u201cembarrassed\u201d when she no longer fit into sample sizes and wishing she \u201clooked\u201d different at times. Making things harder? The Rare Beauty founder suffers from lupus, which can cause weight fluctuations,<\/a> and scars from a 2017 kidney transplant only added to her insecurity.<\/p>\n \u201cSelena is in a much better place now,\u201d a source exclusively tells Life & Style<\/em>. \u201cEven though she\u2019s gained weight and is curvier than she used to be, Selena feels sexy, confident and comfortable \u2014 and she refuses to hide her body.\u201d<\/p>\n According to the source, Selena is \u201cno longer hung up on what other people think about her.\u201d But that wasn\u2019t the case in the past. \u201cWhen she was younger, Selena felt like a prisoner to people\u2019s opinions,\u201d says the source. \u201cShe would read online comments about herself in her teens and 20s and become so depressed.\u201d<\/p>\n She has an improved support system these days, though. While a tumultuous, eight-year on-and-off romance with Justin Bieber, 29 \u2014 whom Selena once accused of cheating \u2014 led to self-doubt, she\u2019s said current beau Benny Blanco<\/strong><\/a>, 35, \u201chas treated me better than any human being on this planet.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBenny makes her feel extremely confident,\u201d shares the source of the Grammy-nominated record producer, who collaborated with Selena on the hit 2023 song \u201cSingle Soon.\u201d \u201cHe\u2019s always telling her how beautiful she is and how much he loves her.\u201d<\/p>\n Selena has more important things to focus on than her image, anyway. \u201cShe is happy with her career and her relationships and knows that these are the things that matter most, more than her dress size,\u201d says the source, noting that her new album is due out in early 2024, while she\u2019s set to film the movie Emilia Perez in France<\/em> this spring. \u201cShe feels more content than ever before.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\nFlipping a Switch<\/h2>\n