Posted on September 3, 2013 by Abby Stone
Photo credit: Cody Hoffman on Flickr
There’s this push happening, and for all intents and purposes it’s a good one. That push is that healthy is a must; that America is suffering an “obesity epidemic†and it has to be fixed. Being fat is just plain unhealthy and in order to be healthy you need to get skinny. If you’re not skinny you’re not healthy, and if you’re not healthy well then, you just don’t belong, right?
Most people think that a good body image is a happy end point. They think “when I’m healthy and skinny, I’ll like what I see in the mirror.â€Â
A growing amount of evidence suggests that it’s the other way around. If you can develop a positive body image, you will be more successful at becoming healthier and losing weight.
Are you committing social suicide?
Emile Durkheim
A French social theorist by the name of Emile Durkheim studied social integration theory in the mid-1800’s. He defined four different types of social integration “suicides†– ways in which individuals would fail to properly integrate into society – and two of these apply to the self-imagery issues in today’s world. Those two are defined as egoistic and altruistic integration.
Egoistic integration is defined as the lack of social acknowledgement or acceptance of an individual (i.e. an individual being shunned, bullied, shamed, etc. for any particular reason). For the intents and purposes of this article, the reason is that individual person not fitting into a specific physical mold.
Altruistic integration is the opposite – individuals who hold social values too strongly and take drastic measures to meet social standards at their own personal expense. In the extreme case it would be the anorexic or bulimic individual, someone sacrificing their own health (often leading to death – hence why Durkheim defined these as varying degrees of social suicides) in order to gain acceptance from society.
In either case, whether the individual is being accepted or shunned, as long as the acceptance/non-acceptance is based on appearance, it’s not healthy. The comparisons to the ideal and “perfect†physical female form are unhealthy. We’ve all been trained to do it; it’s ingrained as a part of our own self-identity and self-image – what sociologist Leon Festinger termed social comparison theory. We see ourselves in others and can’t help but define ourselves based on what we see in the images of those around us, which helps to explain why media has such a strong influence over our own self-image.
The key to having a positive body image (and staying healthy)
It’s hard to be healthy if you hate what you see in the mirror. Approaching your ideal healthy self image will be much easier if you start by being satisfied and pleased with what you see in the mirror right now.
You may ask why go through all this effort to change the perception of self-image. Why not just keep trying to meet the current social standard of body image rather than changing the body image standard itself?
Well first off current body image standards are unrealistic, and people are becoming unhealthy as a result of this unreachable “perfect†standard. Individuals with negative self-images tend to be distracted with things like calorie intake and the number on the bathroom scale. They put a lot of value on their looks as they compare to what they see in the media and in public. Their confidence spirals up or down based on how they measure up against the social beauty mold. If the number on the scale goes up, that equates to a bad day vs. if the number on the scale goes down, that equates to a good day, regardless of how that number got there or how they actually feel on a physical or emotional level. That person is dealing with some negative body image issues fueled by social distortion.
On the other hand, truly feeling happy about the person looking back at you in the mirror makes for a more fulfilled person; a less stressed person. A happier person generally equates to a healthier person. A healthier person is better equipped to put more into the world and give their life their best. Improving body image also fuels confidence. Having more confidence helps to share a positive, healthy body image with others and this in turn will help more people feel happier and healthier and more fulfilled in their own lives.
Steps to improve your body image
1. Stop internalizing media
At the very least stop listening to the advertisements and commercials telling you you’re not an ideal person. If you’re watching your favorite show, get up and walk away during commercial breaks. If you’re listening to the radio, change the station or turn it off when commercial air comes on. If you’re scrolling through Facebook hide the ads that tell you you’re not perfect, or that you need to be perfect. In today’s high-tech world it’s next to impossible to avoid media entirely, so just remember not to take everything the media tells or shows you to heart.
2. Reframe what is perfect
Whenever a negative word reveals itself, telling you you’re not “perfectâ€Â, whether it’s in your head, from your own mouth, or from others, ask yourself what it is that’s creating the imperfection, then re-label it into a positive. Your flaws are now your characteristics. Your imperfections are now your individual features that make you unique. In this way you’re training yourself to internalize a positive self-image by using new affirmative language.
3. Add good features over time
Pick one or several physical things about your body you value. It could be something as small as your eyelashes to something as big as your silhouette. Value those physical attributes absolutely. Take care of those parts of you because you value them absolutely. Respect those parts of you because you value them absolutely. As you grow in your own self-image, begin adding to those physical attributes.
4. Celebrate the real you
If you find yourself apologizing for something about your body image, acknowledge it, accept it, and then take action to re-label it (step 2 from above). This helps to shift the language perception of self-image.
What has worked for you to stave off the pressures of society and maintain a healthy body image? Please share them in the comments below.
I very much enjoyed the article, ‘How Safe is Your Body Image from Social Distortion?’ I thought it was spot on- self image according to you is more important that self perception according to society. What does it matter that you weight the ‘perfect’ 108lbs, have long blonde hair, blue eyes and straight teeth when you’re miserable keeping track of calories and keeping up with this look and that trend? No matter how hard you try to fit that unrealistic mold for the ‘perfect’ body image you’re always going to be unhappy not because you don’t look like the girl in that picture but because you don’t feel like what that girl is trying to sell: confidence, surety and perhaps even sex appeal. We all have to remember though that her job is not at all easy; she must be comfortable enough in her own skin long enough to have her picture taken and put on display with the full knowledge that the world will criticize her no matter what and not give a d*#$mn.
indeed @diana, models are doing a job. What if we tried to “sell” ourselves on better body-perception and stopped buying the blonde-blue eye-size 4 model brand?