How To Have A Loving Relationship With Your Body

How To Have A Loving Relationship With Your Body

Healing your relationship with food and body image.

Our Bodies

Our bodies are the most valuable asset we have, all through our lives. A positive relationship with our body is an important source of happiness, satisfaction and growth. This is however, vastly impacted by outside influences such as cultural, societal and family environment. This means that, in the current climate where diet culture and body image have overloaded the societies, a positive relationship with one’s body comes with a level of deliberate effort and often appropriate support.

Like most western nations, Australia has experienced an increase in eating disorders with an estimated 1.1 million Australians over the age of 5 years living with one. This equates to roughly 4.45% of the nation’s population and concerningly, of this cohort, 27% are within the age range of 10-19 years old. This number has almost doubled in the past 13 years and indicates an alarming trend in eating issues for our young people.

Relationship With Food And Your Body

Just like any relationship, our relationship with our body and food is one we can nurture and model to others. These relationships have their challenges as well as beautiful moments, but ultimately, they do require work, sometimes a lot of work. With a better understanding and help, it is possible for a harmonious even easy relationship to prosper.

It could be helpful to take a moment and reflect on how your relationship with your body is currently. Would you describe it as positive, negative or neutral? Do thoughts of your body consume much of your daily mental load? What language is used when thinking about or discussing your body? What influences how you feel about your body? Like all messaging, if we spend long enough thinking negatively about our body we will quickly internalise and believe this. This can lead to challenging behaviours such as extreme dieting, over exercising, compensating or disordered eating. These actions can not only harm us but can be inadvertently modelled to others, like the young people in our lives. Getting support for unhelpful body image, relationships with one’s body or disordered eating can likewise be impactful not just for ourselves but also for those young people around us who learn from our words and actions.

Diet Culture

In a world of ever-changing beauty standards, it is impossible to keep up. The term diet culture is used to describe the collective social belief that value thinness above all other body types. Diet culture is maintained by individual beliefs and actions that align with prioritising being thin as well as social commentary and reinforcement on bodies. 

 Being diet culture aware can help to ease some societal pressure to conform to beauty standards. This can start from reflecting on your values and creating value statements for yourself that can lead your plans and action. Once you have clear values defined, you can protect yourself and your children by filtering out excessive diet culture exposure, and following a diverse range of content creators online including some that are body neutral. Check in on your home environment and see if excessive diet culture talk has found its way to your dinner table. Simple things like talking about weight or calories, comments like ‘that’s a big meal’ and using ‘bad’ or ‘naughty’ food labels can slowly impact your children’s relationship with food. 

Early Intervention

Early intervention involves addressing eating issues before they can develop into an eating disorder. Early signs can include an increase in physical exercise, negative body image comments, a strong desire to alter one’s body, comparing bodies, monitoring food, growing disinterest in foods that were once enjoyed and/or increased anxiety or disengagement around meal times. With early intervention eating issues can be swiftly addressed and a stronger relationship with one’s body and food can flourish. This can start in the family home, with creating a safe environment to discuss the issues. However, given that often times adolescents experience the times of their lives that they want to decide things independent from their parents, one-on-one support with a counsellor familiar with the topic can be extremely beneficial. 

Neurodiversity and Eating 

What can often seem like fussy eating can be a bit more involved than that. Fussy eating should not be punished, but explored with curiosity. Taste is a core way for children to explore and discover, with each child responding differently to food. For neurodiverse children, this exploration through food can come with heightened sensory input resulting in overwhelm or distress. Neurodiverse individuals have an increased risk of experiencing eating issues or a diagnosable eating disorder. Their experiences are unique and as such require an individualised approach to support. With such support, it can be expected that their palate and food options expand. 

Practical Tips

Take a moment and reflect on your current relationship to your body. Would you describe it as positive, negative or neutral?

• If thoughts of your body consume much of your daily mental load; can you write down a value statement for yourself that helps you guide how much engagement with food and body would be aligned with your values?
• Consider the language you use regarding food and body. Whether you do this out loud around others, or internally. Can you be non-judgmental around the topic?
• Notice how you feel about your body and eating habits. Does thinking about it give you anxiety, shame, fear; or joy and pride?

Laura, our Therapy House Counsellor

Our lovely counsellor Laura has extensive experience helping people with eating challenges and she is here to help. She promises to be non-judgmental and safe.

If you live in Brisbane or are happy with using Telehealth, we are here to support you. Get in touch today.