We form our first impressions of ourselves as infants. At that time, most are about our toes and roughly translatable as, “Heh, these taste alright!” They are remarkably uninformed by our own reflections, which we happily gaze at despite not recognizing; although we are already receiving feedback: “What a cute baby!” “He’s so strong!” “She’s gorgeous!” “So tiny!” and learning that to some extent, appearances matter.
Arguably, your value as a human-being is immeasurable; indisputably, its scope is greater than whatever dance of light you see in the looking-glass. Yet we are constantly body-shamed: reminded that our two sides don’t match up perfectly; told that we are taking up too much space. Often we do this to ourselves. Artist Molly Crabapple has observed, “Beauty is Zeno’s paradox. We should endlessly strive for it, but it’s not socially acceptable to admit we’re already there.”
It is high-time we develop a new habit: body-love. Our bodies are our realities; let’s focus on how they feel, not seem. We should take care of them: feed them well, move them around, let them outside, rinse them off—to enjoy them fully.
To make our bodies safe and comfortable places to be, we need to change the environment we inhabit. We can begin by refining how we speak to or about others: Compliment their behaviour—not fixed traits. Be mindful that how a person looks tells you nothing beyond that. Eliminate all unkind or unwanted language. Express interest in others’ minds and what exists on the inside: Ask meatier questions.
Then examine your own humanness. Away from the mirror, record ten things you like about your body—and mind. Follow the Embolden Rule: Talk to oneself as one would talk to others. We listen to ourselves all day long! When we care about our bodies and minds, we practice health-promoting behaviours more naturally; and we make body-love socially acceptable by practicing it.
Written by Manon van Mil
