Body image and women

“Body Image” is a phrase used to describe how one feels about their body. It includes not only physical appearance, but also the psychological feelings one has about being in their body in general. Women tend to carry the burden of a negative body image, which can lead to depression, addictive exercising, and disordered eating in an effort to fit the norm portrayed by fashion magazines, movie stars, and television programs.

Anxiety about body shape and size begins early. Cindy Manyard, in her article, “Body Image,” writes that “body image dissatisfaction is so epidemic in our society that it’s almost considered normal....Kids as early as third grade are concerned about their weight.” In a culture that equates thinness with success, happiness, and wealth, “the number one magic wish for young girls age 11–17 is to be thinner.” (Jean Holzgang, for the Body Image Project)

Furthermore, the models on the covers of magazines represent .03% of the population (Manyard, “Body Image.”) and when they aren’t “perfect,” their images can be changed. As Manyard reminds us, “most ads are reproduced, airbrushed, or changed by computer. Body parts can be changed at will.” (“Body Image”)

As adults, the quest for an ideal body becomes an exercise in self-control for women. Having internalized the messages that thin is attractive, and fat is lazy, greedy, and/or sloppy, the body becomes something that must be subdued at all costs. Trusting the inherent wisdom of the needs and messages of the body is pushed aside in favor of rigid diets, excessive diets, and cosmetic surgery. Thinness becomes one more tangible goal in our achievement-oriented society, and the body is seen as the one thing that can be controlled when nothing else can.

How can these attitudes be changed so that one can make peace with their body? Since it is unrealistic to cut off all connection with the media and other cultural purveyors of the cult of thinness, it seems like fostering resiliance is the best weapon for transformation.

For parents of young girls and pre-teens, it makes sense to foster self-esteem by pointing out the incredible abilities of the body. Things that we take for granted, everything from movement to digestion, involves an orchestra of muscles and highly specific communication with the brain. This should be celebrated with wonder. It is also important to instill healthy attitdues toward food and exercise, with “moderation” as the mantra.

For adolescents, it is important to challenge the things they read in print, see on televeision or in the movies, and listen to on the radio. Something as simple as pointing out that an ad can be airbrushed, can help to dismantle the aura of infallibility that the media often basks in. Eating disorders can also begin in adolescence, and staying observant to their symptoms, can make early intervention possible.

For all women, the following suggestions can help with the peace-making process. They are adapted in part from Cindy Manyard’s work on eating disorders:

1. When you look in the mirror, encourage yourself to find at least one good point for every piece of criticism you give yourself. Become aware of your positives.

2. Decide which of the cultural pressures –glamour, fitness, peer group, etc– prevent you from feeling good about yourself. Try to lessen your contact with these things

and surround yourself with people and images that empower you.

3. Emphasize your assests and give yourself credit for positive qualities.

4. Become friends with the person in the mirror. Say, “I like what I see,” or some other affirmation. Do it until you believe it.

5. Challenge size–bigotry and fight size discrimination whenever you can.

6. Be an example to others by taking people seriously for what they say, feel, and do rather than for how they look.

7. Explore feminist analysis of weight and body image. Is there truth to the statement that keeping women preoccupied with weight control robs women of energy and keeps women “from taking up space”?

8. Exercise and eat nutritious foods to feel healthy, and let your body set its own weight.

Bodies can’t be exchanged for new ones. Since your body is where you’re going to living for the rest of your life, isn’t time that you made it home?

References

1. Costin, Carolyn. “The Thin Commandments.” from the Eating Disorder Referral and Information Center website.

2. Holzgang, Jean. “Facts on Body and Image.” Just Think Foundation – Body Image Project website.

3. Manyard, Cindy. “Body Image” in Current Health 2. September 1998. Found online at the Eating Disorder Referral and Information Center Website.