Positive Body Image
This is a little list that I hope will help you develop a more positive body image. Now I know that this isn’t going to take away all the negativeity that may be surrounding your body image, but I certainly hope it will help. It will give you more positive ways to not only look at your body, but yourself as a whole. Peace and love~
1. Appreciate all of the wonderful things that your body can do. It’s like Regina Spektor said in Folding Chair - I’ve got a perfect body, but sometime I forget. I got a perfect body ‘cause my eyelashes catch my sweat~♪ If we just take a step back and think, we’ll realize our bodies are pretty amazing!
2. Make a list of five things (not related to your body) that you love about yourself. You’re a great poet. You know how to make people smile. You tell a joke like nobody else. You’re good at photography. Write them down. Write down more than five. Write down all that you can think of. Whenever you’re feeling negative about yourself, take out this list and read it. And as you think of more things, write them down. Watch your list expand.
3. When looking at yourself in the mirror, take four steps back. I think a problem that a lot of us have is that when we look in the mirror, we slice and dice our body apart. We zone in on the slightest imperfections and that brings us down. But when we look at other people, we don’t tear them apart, do we? We look at them as a whole person. Shouldn’t we be doing the same thing for ourselves?
4. Surround yourself with positive people. If you have a friend who is constantly negative, either directly at you or in general, it might be best to cut ties with that person. I know it’s hard, but your mental health and wellbeing are the most important things. Surrounding yourself with supportive, loving people will help you to create a safe space where you know you don’t have to worry about being judged.
5. Do something for your body to show how much you love and appreciate it. Take a relaxing bath or get a massage.
6. Become critital of the media. Remember how I told you that we shouldn’t tear our bodies apart and look at them? Well, the media does just that - they sell things with just body parts attached. An arm, a leg, a butt - they take us apart and try to sell “perfection”. Keep that in the back of your mind when you’re watching tv or reading a magazine or something online. Understand the tricks they use and know that you’re above them. You could even write a letter or email to the advertisers, telling them the harm that they’re doing by trying to sell an unrealistic image of perfection.
7. Wear comfortable clothes that you love. Wear clothing that makes you feel good in your own body. Wear your favorite colors.
8. Whenever you catch yourself saying something negative about yourself, imagine x-ing out that thought with a big red marker and say to yourself, “I do not need this negativity and I will not let it bring me down.” I know that it’s hard to take control of our thoughts, but hope that with this little technique, things will get a little easier. After you’ve x’ed out that thought, pull out that list of positive things about you and read it. Remind yourself of all the good things about you!
