Do you love your body? Do you love how your arms hang, the length of your fingers, or the wrinkles by your eyes? We are taught to hate our fat and try to change our bodies to meet ideals that honestly no one can achieve. Even those adorable little models often times have a great deal of makeup on or photo shopping to remove the flaws that make them them.
I have struggled all my life with hating my body starting with the first time I realized that I wasn’t going to get the boobs I felt everyone else had. I was a painfully scrawny girl with knobby knees and elbows who kept waiting for her body to grow into ‘what everyone else had’. But I wasn’t going to get that and neither was any of the other girls because we are all different. This didn’t get better when we all grew up either- now we just have more means to change our body, layer make-up on, or buy products that promise we will become what we wish we were.
But here is my question to you: Why can’t we appreciate what we are?
We are all different and different is beautiful. By appreciating our bodies and who we are inside, we are not stopping wearing makeup or the clothing that makes up feel cute. It is just feeling comfortable in our own skin. When you feel good about yourself, you can concentrate on what is going on inside your head and your personal goals. You can walk into to room with your shoulders back and a confident smile on your face.
How to learn to accept our bodies:
1) Pinpoint a part of your body you dislike or even hate.
2) Figure out a reason you appreciate this body part.
3) Remind yourself of this everyday.
For example: I dislike my small chest, but it is the chest that my preemie son laid his head on in the NICU and comforted him while we listened to the rain. I dislike my long spider fingers, but they have squeezed the bag helping countless people breathe on the ambulance. And I dislike my ballet worn feet, but they are the feet my daughters put their feet on when we dance.
I might wish that parts of me looked differently than they do, but they are mine and have lived my life with me. They have experienced things that I would never want to forget or change.
My Challenge to you: You are going to take time each day this week to learn to love your body. Now please note that this is a VERY simplistic exercise and in no way is a ‘fix all’. Seek medical and mental support as you need it. Remember that you are a wonderful person, and sometimes wonderful people need support too. Try these steps this week and let me know how it goes.
How to learn to accept your body:
1) Pinpoint a part of your body you dislike or even hate.
2) Figure out a reason you appreciate this body part.
3) Remind yourself of this everyday.
Happy body accepting friends!
-Jessie the Therapist
