Therapist Shares Her Simple Trick For Feeling Better About Your Body
You may not love your body at all times, but you can feel better and better about it.
Oneinchpunch via Canva Many of us have had our struggles with staying body-positive, and who can blame us? Every time we're on social media, we are met with images of beautiful people with seemingly flawless skin.
This can be discouraging because, in reality, most of us don't look like that. So, in the age of unrealistic expectations, how can we boost our self-confidence and feel better about our bodies?
Licensed therapist Ryann Prentice has a simple trick to help you boost your body positivity today.
The One Trick To Boosting Your Body Positivity
Wanting to boost body positivity? Start by validating how you feel. Yes, it's normal to feel self-conscious from time to time. However, recognizing this fact doesn't mean throwing in the towel.
Prentice suggests, “Validate how you feel about your body while also recognizing that hating your body doesn’t change your body.”
You can't expect to go from hate to love in a matter of seconds — loving yourself is a gradual process. But we can slowly begin to appreciate our bodies. "After all, you don't have to love your body to appreciate it," says Prentice.
So, give this a shot: list things you're grateful your body does for you.
Say, "Thank you legs for helping me to run. And thank you hands for helping me to create." Through this, you'll learn to appreciate the little things your body does for you every day.
"When we can appreciate, we can like, and when we can like, we can love," says Prentice.
5 Other Things You Can Do To Become More Body Positive
1. Writing love letters
"If you want to boost body positivity, try writing yourself love letters and taping them on your mirrors or walls," says the Jet Foundation.
Think about what you love most about yourself. And whether it's your eyes or smile, write it all down and fill your mirror with these notes.
So, when we inevitably need a little confidence boost from time to time, having these reminders can be just what you need to feel a little more confident.
2. Exercise
Next, get your exercise on. Exercising is not only great for your mental health, but it's a great confidence boost too, says the National Library of Medicine.
Whether you do weight lifting or pilates, investing thirty minutes a day into yourself is key for boosting self-confidence.
3. Create a positive environment
Cutting off toxic people is key to becoming self-confident. The NHS writes, "If you find certain people tend to bring you down, try to spend less time with them, or tell them how you feel about their words or actions."
Building relationships with people who bring you joy and appreciate you is great for your mental health. And your mind and self-confidence will thank you for that!
4. Unfollow spree
Next, unfollow those Instagram goals celebrities. Are they absolutely stunning, yes! But this isn't going to help you feel more body-positive in the long run.
When you unfollow these models and replace them with body positivity influences, you're surrounding yourself with content that encourages self-love and acceptance, says Jet Foundation.
5. Dress Up
Finally, how many times have we opted for sweatpants simply because we were too tired to put on anything else?
More often than not, we end up feeling down about ourselves for the rest of the day. "I feel so ugly," you say while throwing your hair in a bun.
So instead, try dressing up in outfits that make you feel beautiful, advises the Jet Foundation. Even if you're only going grocery shopping, putting in that extra effort will help you feel more body-positive.
Loving yourself isn't easy, and staying body-positivity can feel like a challenge. However, by following these tips and making them part of your daily routine, you can start feeling more confident and comfortable in your skin.
Marielisa Reyes is a writer with a bachelor's degree in psychology who covers self-help, relationships, career, and family topics.