Teenagers want to feel accepted and feel like they have a place in the world and in society. That's really hard sometimes. You're always comparing yourself. Especially as girls, we're always comparing ourselves to other girls, like, "Oh, she's so pretty." The big secret is, you can't have the confidence without the companionship of the Holy Ghost.
My confidence has changed so much since I was baptized, because before, I guess, with boys especially, I just wanted them to like me and like what I looked like. I think, honestly, it's when my self-confidence hit rock bottom. I came to a point in my life when I realized that I really didn't have the personal relationship with my Savior that I wanted to. I was praying for answers, and I knew that Heavenly Father heard me, and I could feel His love as I was praying. If I didn't have that, I wouldn't be here today. Because I have that knowledge, I'm able to be happy. Once I figured out that I don't need to have the acceptance of other boys, the only person that needs to tell you you're beautiful, the only person who needs to tell you that you have so many wonderful talents, is the Lord, because that's what He's blessed you with. He will tell you that if you ask Him. And then that confidence will come in time. Not at first, maybe, but it'll come eventually. When you make that commitment to be sexually pure, it makes a huge difference in your life. It's changed a lot about me because when people talk to me in a way that they shouldn't, it just makes me think that I'm a daughter of God, and I know who I am, and that's not OK. You can't say that to me. I deserve a lot more than that.
Sexual purity is totally important when it comes to confidence. When you break the law of chastity, you lose that confidence. You're kind of looking to yourself, like, "Why did I do this?" To choose to be sexually pure, it's more than just something that's like a restriction to us. I think that it's something that you choose because it makes you more confident, and knowing that I don't need to do these things with the opposite sex to make me feel better about myself. Breaking the law of chastity is a huge sin. But there are ways to come back. And I know people who have done that, and they said it was the best decision of their life. And yeah, it's hard to walk down to that office. But they come out feeling so much better. And you're not going to take that step unless you feel that loss of the Spirit and unless you recognize that and you realize, "This is not good. I don't feel right. I can't have the companionship of the Holy Ghost. Then I need to make a change." Gaining the Spirit back in your life is everything. You want to have the Holy Ghost with you all the time. I guess when you're following the commandments and you really know that you're loved and that you have the Holy Ghost with you and that He's not going to leave you, if you are doing everything with, like, "an eye single to the glory of God," then you can be confident, because the Holy Ghost really can be with you.