Tips for Improving-Your-Body-Image

If you have a problem with your body image, you may feel preoccupied with self-doubt, lack of self-confidence, and experience depression because you perceive that you do not look good enough. You may have a problem with your-body-image problem or body dysmorphic disorder. You may feel if your body were just thinner you would achieve all the happiness that you want.
Body Dysmorphic Disorder is a distorted body image in which often people who are already underweight see themselves as being fat. These people are tortured by their struggle to be perfect. Improving the way you feel about your body may be the secret to enhancing your life. Create a Journal and title it Tips for Improving-Your-Body- Image.  Use the journal when completing the following Tips. Go back to this page periodically and repeat the exercises keeping the information in the same journal to chart your progress.

Tips for Improving Your Body Image

1. Think about  When  You Started to Think Negatively about Body Image

Many people feel that problems with weight and body image come from the media. While there is certainly lots of pressure that originate from the press, however, sometimes people neglect to look at their history and situation. It can be very helpful to use your journal to think back to what shaped your thoughts and feelings about your body. Often parents or loved ones project their issues on to children. Using your Body Image Journal for self-discovery can be very helpful.

 2. Notice your Thoughts, Feelings, and Behaviors Related to Body- Image

Use your journal to keep a daily record of your thoughts feelings and behavior on your body. This will help you to become more aware of how often negative thoughts and feelings go through your mind, and that reinforces your negative self-esteem. See if you can notice when you are thinking negative thoughts and be more compassionate with yourself.

3..Use your Journal to Identify Patterns in your Thoughts

Many people avoid activities and feel less than others because they feel overweight. This can be called If then thinking. An example might be if I lose 20 lbs, my life will be happier, or If only I lost weight I could have the relationship of my dreams.
Other patterns they might emerge are all or nothing thinking. Often people who suffer from body image issues tend to say I look fat in this outfit or I look ugly in that picture.

4..Try to Be Objective

Look in the mirror and try to pretend you are looking at someone else’s body. You may want to avoid having your face in the mirror. In your journal write about the body you see as if you were giving information to your best friend

5.Invest Yourself

Find and reinforce the positive aspects of your body and your capabilities. These can include, your body
fitness, your ability to have relationships or your health.
Additionally, find ways to invest in your body. Notice body-related activities that you are good at mastering skills that show your body’s strength and give you pleasure Buy clothes that you feel good about and get gratification pride in the way you get your hair, nails or makeup done.Eating Disorder Advisor is now recommending and selling Ruby Ribbon a line of clothes specifically made for women to feel comfortable and confident.

Book Review

Intuitive Eating was published in 1995. As a therapist treating people who struggled with diet and eating issues it was revolutionary. The book allowed me to work more effectively with people who were emotional eaters. I started to ask questions that made sense to clients. 1. Do you know when you are hungry? 2. Do you know when you are getting full? 3. Do you have an idea of what you feel like eating? These questions helped clients begin to notice when they were eating and if they were just stuffing food to fill an emotional hole.

My favorite part of the book is the Guilt-Deprivation Scale. Over the years this has helped people who go on restrictive diets only to start binging and stuffing food. I have used this concept to help people evaluate food plans they chose, helping them to make sure the diet is satisfying.

The workbook was released in April 2017. It includes 10 simple approaches base on the principals of the book allowing the reader to have an interactive tool to utilize these ideas using quizzes, worksheets and questions. The workbook has only been out a month and has gotten a five-star review on Amazon!

There is not one negative review. I am excited to get this book and begin to use it with my clients it seems like it can be used as a self-therapy to enjoy a healthier relationship with food.

Intuitive Eating and Intuitive Eating Workbook