Reclaiming Our Bodies Through Self-Love

I'm going to step back on my usual soapbox for this post because last week was "Love Your Body Week" 2014, otherwise known as Eating Disorders Awareness Week.

Much of my life has been spent around women (cheerleading, sorority, female-dominate majors and professions) and, because of that, I've been exposed to a wide range of body image issues. I've also worked to increase eating disorder awareness during my time in student recreation and have counseled clients who were experiencing disordered eating and a negative body image. I believe disordered eating is a spectrum and that, due to several cultural factors, many people exist somewhere on that spectrum. And....um....it's so easy to see why:

Every single day in the media (tv/internet/magazines), I am bombarded with messages like:

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These are just the magazines, but I PROMISE you that the internet and TV are not any better, and are sometimes worse. What are all of these messages I'm being fed? 

From what I gather, the general consensus of society is that I need to be fixed. There is something wrong with me. 1) I'm not thin enough. Everyone on these magazines is thinner than I am. 2) I'm not sexy enough on my own. Clearly, I need a magazine to teach me. 3) I'm not constantly flaunting my midriff. What must be wrong with me? 4) Apparently my abs and butt require a lot of work to be acceptable. Why else would all of these magazines be telling me how to fix these two specific areas? In fact, we could probably reduce me to my abs and butt altogether. Those seem to be what matters. In Fact: I bet if you did a word analysis of these magazine covers, the top words would be: abs, butt, sexy, sex. REALLY?!?! Even though it is not much better on the men's magazine side, women's bodies are more frequently objectified as something to be consumed.

In this kind of cultural climate, it is so difficult to combat body hatred and disordered eating. Everything around us supports that and we have to put forth actual work to combat it. There are lots of articles out there about how to love your body, but I thought I'd offer up some ways I'm currently loving my body.

1. REST. It sounds easy, but letting my body rest when it needs to is something I have to practice at. Yes, naps are included.
2. MASSAGES. I found a really great DC massage place and massage therapist! I used to think paying for massages was extravagant, but it makes such a difference in how I feel.
3. EATING WHAT I WANT. This is something I still struggle with. I always think (because society tells me so) that I need to be watching what I'm eating or on a diet or not eating dessert. WHY NOT?! I will tell you (and Mike will tell you) that I am a better person when I've had my dessert....on the daily. I strive to eat what makes me feel good. Sometimes that is two bowls of ice cream. Sometimes it is steak. Sometimes it is a caesar salad. Sometimes it is apples and peanut butter. Mostly it is chocolate. 
4. MOVING. I have a pretty good habit of exercise (mostly because that's how I best deal with stress/thoughts), but have not incorporated nearly enough "PLAY" into my life. A few weekends ago when I played ultimate frisbee, I realized I needed some more PLAY time that wasn't purely for exercise purposes. 
5. WEARING WHAT I WANT. I really like wearing dresses and skirts (mostly because I hate wearing pants). If I'm not wearing dresses and skirts, I prefer workout clothes or leggings as pants because they are comfortable. I don't like heels. Given my wardrobe preferences, I often get self-conscious that I'll either be way over-dressed or under-dressed for everything, but not self-conscious enough to wear pants.
6. AFFIRMATIONS: I know you were probably hoping I'd leave these off the list, but really how do you expect to combat the negative messages you are getting every day unless you enact your own positive message campaign? Sometimes affirmations come from journaling or positive quotations. They can also be the antithesis of negative thoughts. For example, if you regularly have the thought of: "I'm not good enough", an affirmation could be: "I am enough". 

I'll leave you with some relevant websites and articles, but I just wanted to make sure I acknowledged an awareness week that I'm super passionate about. Next post will be more pictures and less soapbox!:)

Further Reading:

Lupita Nyong'o on Racism/Beauty

Operation Beautiful

Healthy is the new Skinny (Disclaimer: I support this org's mission, but don't think an obsession with health should replace and obsession with skinny. That is also an eating disorder and is called orthorexia.)

This article made me laugh in agreement. I can't believe the messages we are sold every day by the media. Eventually, we forget how abnormal they are. And why can't we just say MUSCLE!?

NEDA Infographic on Media Literacy and Body Image