Struggling with your body image can show up in so many different ways. It could be a general dissatisfaction with your appearance, preoccupation with how others may perceive you, thoughts of comparison, isolation, and so many other factors that influence body image. At the Wellful, we’re here to support you in developing a more neutral, appreciative or positive relationship with your body. Whether you’re recovering from disordered eating and working to improve your body image, or just working on your body image, this post will cover several signs of body image struggles but also offer some helpful tips on what to do about them to help you feel more confident and secure in your everyday life.
What is Body Image?
Body image is a reflection of how you feel about your body and how you see yourself. This includes thoughts and feelings around the size, shape, and associations that come with your body.
Body image can be positive, negative, or neutral – a mix of all three! – and many people struggle with acceptance due to societal “norms” and unrealistic beauty standards. The way we perceive our bodies and the relationship we have with food and our bodies can change over time. Body image isn’t static – what a relief! Still, body image struggles are real and can greatly impact your quality of life, self confidence, and the way you interact with the world around you.
Common Signs of Poor Body Image
Keep in mind that while these are several common signs of a poor body image, this list is by no means exhaustive. There are many other ways body image struggles can show up in your life. If you’re experiencing these or others, just know that your feelings are 100% valid and remember they can change. Even more importantly, your feelings deserve to be addressed with the compassion and care of a registered dietitian for body image issues. More on that later.
Sign 1: You’re body checking
Body checking might look like seeing how your clothes fit, looking at old photos of your body and comparing to current pictures, looking at certain parts of your body in the mirror or touching or feeling your body in different positions. Often these behaviors are part of ‘evaluating’ how you feel in your body, if your body is feeling ‘good’ or ‘bad’ or trying to assess changes in your body. These behaviors might feel automatic, repetitive or compulsive.
Sign 2: Getting dressed is an exhausting ordeal
Body image struggles can make it hard to get dressed or feel comfortable in the clothes you’re wearing. Physical changes in your body or how clothes fit can also impact this discomfort. Some people describe the feeling of trying on an outfit and feeling like nothing looks ‘right’, feeling worry or distress about how they will be perceived. Body image support with a professional, in addition to reorganizing your closet, and adding in some supports to your getting dressed routine, can help make this part of the day a bit smoother.
Sign 3: Feelings of jealousy or comparison
We can all relate to feeling jealous or comparing sometimes – that’s human! If you notice that your comparison is body-specific or feels like it consumes a significant amount of your brainspace, it might be preventing you from feeling present when spending time with friends or going about daily tasks. For instance, when you go to a group fitness class you are preoccupied with noticing what the people in the class look like compared to you, or when scrolling instagram you find yourself fantasizing about looking like someone in your feed, or feeling a narrative come up of “if I looked like them, then I….”
Sign 4: You feel judgemental about everyone else’s body or food
For the most part, people aren’t paying much attention to other people’s food choices or their body. However, those struggling with disordered eating, strong food rules, or critical body thoughts themselves, might feel acutely aware of other people’s food choices and body. If you notice yourself thinking a lot about other people’s food or body, it might be a sign that your own relationship with food and your body could use some support.
Sign 5: Avoiding social events
Saying no to going out with friends, going on dates, or just being around people in general due to body image discomfort is a common sign of body distress. You might notice that what you do in the day is determined by how you feel in your body, perhaps a day you feel better in your body means you give yourself more permission around food, and a day you feel uncomfortable means you feel ‘all or nothing’ around eating, exercise or self-talk. This cycle can be exhausting and isolating.This is a tough cycle to break out of: you feel lonely because you feel uncomfortable in your body, but then you don’t go out because of how you’re feeling in your body.
What to do About Body Image Struggles
The path towards self-acceptance isn’t alway straightforward but there is a light at the end of the tunnel. As a registered dietitian who specializes in body image issues, I’m here to show you the way. If you’re experiencing a poor body image and want a way out, here’s what I recommend.
Take some of the pressure off of “body love”
I find that sometimes when discussing body image, we have a common assumption that to ‘improve’ our body image means getting to a place where someone feels wonderful and positive about their body all the time. And that is not really realistic for…anyone, all the time. Just like we feel a range of emotions or thoughts throughout the day or week, it makes sense that we would experience a range of feelings about our bodies too. If you feel moments or periods of time of body love or appreciation that is wonderful – and feeling neutral or less distress is also a huge win. I invite you to think about how you would like to feel in your body throughout the day, even if that is 1% better, having more tolerance for hard body image days, having tools and strategies you can use when experiencing body image distress, or how to reframe the way you speak to yourself about your body.
Acknowledge when it feels hard
Increasing awareness is a first step to making a change. Be honest with yourself instead of trying to pretend that everything is okay. Letting yourself acknowledge that this feels uncomfortable or hard or distracting can validate your experience and give you the opportunity to add in support. This could look like making a mental note or even writing down the times you feel distress in your body, notice yourself body checking, comparing your body to someone else’s or feeling uncomfortable in your clothes.
Make a list of things that help
You might be thinking “Brenna, if I knew what helped I wouldn’t be reading this blog!” Just like you made a list of the times you notice are hard, it can be helpful to also take note of the times you feel even slightly more neutral, positive or good in your body. This might mean fewer critical thoughts throughout the day, less body checking, or feeling like it was 1% less front of mind. Some examples might be a day you really liked your outfit, a day when you wore pants that fit and thought about your body less, going to a yoga class without mirrors and noticing you looked at your body less, or being around friends who didn’t engage in diet talk. What this does is it helps us to know what helps or changes your body image experience.
Interrupt the cycle
It’s common that body distress leads to engaging in disordered or extreme behaviors around food or exercise. We can point to thousands of examples of diet messaging, weight-loss ads and media examples that you have likely seen throughout your life that say “if you feel uncomfortable in your body, changing your body is the way to fix it.” Like we discussed earlier in this article, your body image and experience in your body is individual and personal, and body image is not just about our physical body. Think back to the times you have gone to extremes or engaged in those behaviors in the past, did it provide the relief that they promised, and what about it wasn’t sustainable? Interrupting the cycle means allowing yourself to explore tools and supports that meet you where you are now and are sustainable. This might mean letting yourself grieve past messages you’ve received about body image or your body, offering yourself compassion when body image is feeling hard, and pausing before entering the cycle you’ve been on in the past (because it ultimately hasn’t been sustainable).
Practice tolerance
Behaviors like dieting, starting a new exercise routine or other ways you’ve tried to respond to body distress in the past likely provided a feeling of control, illusion of control or some period of comfort or relief. If you’re no longer engaging in those behaviors or trying to change them, that means finding a new way to navigate the discomfort. That might be engaging in self-care, breathing, other coping mechanisms, intentionally trying to delay body checking behaviors. This might start with something like, feeling distress in your body and instead of re-downloading a calorie tracking app, you call a friend, journal, put on comfortable clothes or go outside for some fresh air. If you’re feeling body discomfort and wanting to body check, maybe you would tell yourself “I’m really wanting to body check right now, but that never feels very good.” and instead take some deep breaths, watch a favorite show or do something that feels grounding.
Know that this process is not linear
Working with a registered dietitian who focuses on your relationship with food and your body can offer you a safe space and support through body image struggles.
Our goal is to help you improve your relationship with food and your body. No matter where you started or where you are now, we’re here to help.
Get started on the path towards establishing a better body image when you schedule a free 15-minute consultation with me (The Wellful founder and your cheerleader) Brenna, RD, today. To contact the practice, call (925) 725-2761. Your body, your mind, and you deserve to feel better.
