Reversing the Damage: Rebuilding a Healthy Body Image

Building a healthy body image take a lot of time and energy, but eventually your hard work will pay off and you will finally be content with who you are.

The textbook definition of body image is: the inner perception of physical appearance, or size and shape. When you've built a healthy body image you feel good about yourself no matter how you look. A more in-depth definition of healthy body image is: how we believe whether our bodies succeed or fail to fit in with the expectations of our culture and ourselves. It all depends on how we feel we are "supposed" to look like. We grow up being taught that to fit in with everyone around us we must imitate them, this causes us to fight with our bodies, struggling to be thin, flawless, smooth, unblemished, and perfect. This is the cause of our unhealthy or bad body image, and why it is important to build a healthy body image.

In order to build a healthy body image, you must know how a negative body image is created. Negative body image is created partly by our experiences with others.. Anyone we interact with can influence bad body image; it could be because of a look, a thoughtless comment, or a hurtful remark. Our body image is influenced by images in magazines and commercials on TV. We constantly scrutinize and compare ourselves to perfect models, and we don’t’ measure up every time. Building a healthy body image is critical for a healthy, happy life. Building a healthy body image is about focusing on what we like about ourselves.

Reversing the damage made to our self-esteem and restoring a healthy body image is a long, but rewarding process. A few ways to reestablish positive feelings about your body is to focus on your strengths and positive qualities. To gain confidence in your appearance, notice what you love about your body! Building healthy body images means dwelling on your strengths. Disregard negative comments about how you look; surround yourself with supportive people that are encouraging rather than critical. Follow your dreams and do things you are good at and enjoy doing. Think about your future and what you want to accomplish in your life. What are your dreams, passions, and goals? When you focus more on positive things you are good at and have fun participating in, you are less likely to have the time to think about what you don’t like about yourself. Get healthy. Move your body around and try new physical activities that are enjoyable and not a chore to do. Enjoy the confidence movement and fresh air brings! Building a healthy body image is about being strong and active. Most importantly, be comfortable in your own skin! Learn to appreciate your body.

Remember: You are beautiful, no matter what they say! Don't let their words bring you down.

Even P!nk is Under Pressure

Although we hold celebrities partly to blame for the body image crisis our society is suffering from, some of those celebrities themselves are feeling the pressure of the Barbie epidemic. Songs like "Everybody's Fool" by Evanescence and P!nk's "Stupid Girls" illustrate the pressure all women are subjected to, pressure to imitate porn stars in bed, look like the model on a Chanel runway, and act like the rich, blonde bimbos that infest everything from our TV shows, to clothing advertisements. They are fighting back against the lies the media is shoving in our faces and are trying to reassert what self-esteem should be based on, being happy with yourself with no regards to what people tell you you should think about yourself.


"Stupid girl, stupid girls, stupid girls

Maybe if I act like that, that guy will call me back
Porno Paparazzi girl, I don't wanna be a stupid girl

Go to Fred Segal, you'll find them there
Laughing loud so all the little people stare
Looking for a daddy to pay for the champagne

What happened to the dreams of a girl president
She's dancing in the video next to 50 Cent
They travel in packs of two or three
With their itsy bitsy doggies and their teeny-weeny tees
Where, oh where, have the smart people gone?
Oh where, oh where could they be?

Maybe if I act like that, that guy will call me back
Porno Paparazzi girl, I don't wanna be a stupid girl
Baby if I act like that, flipping my blond hair back
Push up my bra like that, I don't wanna be a stupid girl

Disease's growing, it's epidemic
I'm scared that there ain't a cure
The world believes it and I'm going crazy
I cannot take any more
I'm so glad that I'll never fit in
That will never be me
Outcasts and girls with ambition
That's what I wanna see

Disasters all around
World despaired
Your only concern
Will it fuck up my hair...."

~Stupid Girls by P!nk

Billboard Bullshit

Death by Cosmopolitan: How the Media is Killing Women

Have you ever been waiting in a check out line and noticed the rows of magazines plastered with gorgeous women with perfect bodies on the covers? Did you gaze longingly at the picture wishing you could look half that good? Well, the truth is NO ONE, not even the model herself looks like that. That Barbie-esque figure is about as realistic as Barbie herself! Celebrities and Models hire professionals whose main job is to edit or "Photoshop" their images to make them look better, even if the subject is 5'8, 34-22-34, the average measurements of a super model. The most appalling fact is that the media's ideas of beauty are unattainable for most women. Our desire to look like Barbie and her wanna-be's is unrealistic and downright deadly.

Researchers created a computer model of a woman with Barbie-doll proportions, for example, found that her back would be too weak to support the weight of her upper body, and her body would be too narrow to contain more than half a liver and a few centimeters of bowel. A real woman built that way would suffer from chronic diarrhea and eventually die from malnutrition. Jill Barad president of Mattel (which manufactures Barbie) estimated that 99% of girls aged 3 to 10 years old own at least one Barbie doll. (Media Awareness Network)

Despite this daunting realization, women are still trying to attain the media's idea of a perfect figure and are losing their lives, or their health in the process. Why is it that we are so driven to look like malnourished bags of skin and bones? The answer is: Most women's self-esteem is directly tied to what people think of her and what she believes she is supposed to look like in order to fit in with the rest of a beauty-obsessed society. Repeated exposure to magazine covers screaming "How to lose 20lbs in 2 Weeks!", "Look 10 Years Younger," and stress numerous fad diets and workout plans will make any women believe she won't be good enough until she loses that last 15lbs or has the latest hair style.

Body Image, What is it?

Body Image. These two words will cause any woman to cringe. But what is the big deal? Why is body image such a touchy subject?

Well, lets start by defining it:

Self-image of body: Somebody's own impression of how his or her body looks

Now do you see why this is such a cringe-inducing subject?

The scary truth is, no matter how beautiful or popular you are there is ALWAYS something you don't like about how you look. Sadly, many women's feelings of self-worth and self- esteem rely soley on how they look and what others think of them. The worst thing you could ever tell a woman is that she is ugly or fat. It is not based on the truth, but in what you see as the truth. Body image is not only what you see when you look in the mirror, but also what you think and how you feel about your body.

The Psychology of Beauty - Media affects body image