I cried as I watched the video posted below…for all the times in my life when I felt body shame; because I had decided one part of my body or another was not thin enough, not sexy enough, my breasts not perky enough, upper arms too fat for sleeveless shirts and dresses, my legs not shapely enough for shorts, too tall, hips and thighs too wide, stomach too protruding, posture not good enough, hair not straight or shiny enough, nose too big (plastic surgery on that one), ankles too thick, toes ugly in sandals, head too small on my large body and neck not long enough to wear pretty scarves, face too long, ears too big, teeth not white enough or perfectly straight.
You get the picture? I decided my “imperfect parts” made me less than everyone else, unacceptable in a thin-obsessed word, unloveable…all of which, ironically, drove me to more emotional eating.
But it wasn’t the whole picture! I was taking my body, one disembodied part at a time, and vilifying it. Body dissatisfaction; body shame was a habit that started for me as I watched my mother do the same. Body shame is learned. It grew to be a habit that distracted me from my life and from more interesting gifts and pursuits on which I could have been focused.
Today I know I am so much more interesting and am of much greater value than even the sum of my individual parts and my outward appearance…and so are you!
I hope you’ll watch this video and share what it evokes in you?
What did you feel as you watched? Leave a comment below…
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I, Ellen Shuman, am in recovery from Body Shame! I’m also a Coach who specializes in helping people overcome negative body image, emotional eating and binge eating. I am the founder of A Weigh Out & Acoria Binge Eating Disorder Treatment (1993-present), Past President of the Binge Eating Disorder Association (2011/2012), and Co-Founder of the Academy for Eating Disorders Special Interest Group on “Health at Every Size“. Have a question or need help. Please get in touch…ellen@aweighout.com, 513-321-4242.
