I think its super important to learn to love your body, as
it is. However, it’s becoming a
harder and harder task, given the environment we live in (our culture and more
specifically the media). It seems like it comes down to our self-esteem, not
only how we feel about ourselves, but where those feelings come from and what
they’re based on.
I read an article on the APA’s website (American Psychological
Association) that highlighted research done by Jennifer Crocker, PhD, a
psychologist at University of Michigan’s Institute for Social Research, and
that was published in the Journal of
Social Issues (Vol. 58. No 3). Crocker found in her recent studies on
self-esteem that “that college students who based their self-worth on external
sources--including appearance, approval from others and even their academic
performance--reported more stress, anger, academic problems, relationship
conflicts, and had higher levels of drug and alcohol use and symptoms of eating
disorders”. Likewise, she found that “students who based their self-esteem on
internal sources-such as being a virtuous person or adhering to moral
standards-were found to receive higher grades and less likely to use alcohol
and drugs or to develop eating disorders”.
Self-esteem directly impacts our
mental and emotional health, and therefore our physical health. I think it’s
really important to be actively engaged in self-reflection. If we sit down and
think (or write) about how we feel about ourselves, consider where we are on a
spectrum of positive to negative self-esteem, and then furthermore, what we
base our self esteem on, we can perhaps make the appropriate changes necessary
to really love ourselves and to re-focus our thoughts and feelings on being a
happier person. I don’t think that comes easy or naturally for most people, it
takes (sometimes hard!) work, but it can be done.
I really wish everyone could love themselves. I wish I could love myself the way I should. But it's downright difficult sometimes when our culture is constantly telling people they're not good enough or setting impossibly high standards that not one, save Kate Moss, can accomplish. I guess what we really need is a cultural revolution, a rebellion of people standing up for themselves and others and declaring that our culture and ideals today ARE NOT OKAY. That would sure make it easier to love one's self. However, the greatest change we can make is within ourselves. I believe the change DOES start there, and then the ripple will extend outwards. So I'm calling on everyone, ALL PEOPLE, right here and how, to LOVE THEMSELVES, THE WAY THE ARE AT THIS VERY SECOND. FOR WHO THEY ARE, NOT WHAT THEY LOOK LIKE. FOR THEIR MINDS AND HEARTS AND FOR WHAT THEIR BODY CAN DO INSTEAD OF WHAT IT IS.
References: http://www.apa.org/monitor/dec02/selfesteem.aspx
