MANILA — Actress Ria Atayde was glad that she was able to empower a lot of women with her calendar girl stint.

In a press conference, Atayde said she encountered a lot of people who said she inspired them to be who they are.

"I think, for me, sexy has always been being confident and comfortable in your own skin, being able to embrace it and celebrated because of and inspite of its flaws and I think the calendar strengthened that even more for me," Atayde said.

"It didn't change it. If anything, it made it even more real for me. When the calendar came out, there were negative comments but more than that there were people that would reach out and be like 'thank you because you embraced your body and I want me to embrace myself too,'" she added.

"Little things, I think in those little moments, I feel like the mission has been completed in a way na I was able to make a difference."

• New calendar girl Ria Atayde has message to body shamers

Atayde reminded the public that people might still criticize others for their bodies but those comments should not matter.

"Given how society works, especially in our industry, it can be very ruthless when it comes to physical attributes. Parang that's something they put at the forefront," the actress said.

"At the end of the day, it should only be the opinions of people that matter to you that should matter and if okay naman 'yung health mo... I have hypothyroidism, I have no gallbladder. Losing weight is a lot harder for me than it is for other people," she added.

"So, go ahead. Call me fat. Anong magagawa niyo? I’m sick with stuff I can’t fix."

Asked for her advice to people struggling with their bodies: "It takes a level of embracing yourself and understanding yourself. Kasi kung magpapa-apekto ka lang, then your whole life will just be affected by everybody around you even when in at the end of the day, it’s only you with yourself."

RELATED VIDEO:

Watch more News on iWantTFC