From a young age, you have received many mixed messages about food and your body. You are told how you are supposed to look, how much to exercise, what to eat, when to eat and how to feel about your size and shape. If you are like most people, your relationship with your body is a difficult one. It is complicated by pressure to meet the thin ideal, constant comparison with social and cultural images and the need to be perfect in your roles as a partner, worker, parent, or student.

Body confidence is something that many strive for, but never achieve due to unrealistic and unhealthy standards. This continual striving creates feelings of failure which really damages self-esteem and self-confidence and affects other areas of life like relationships, performance and health.  A positive body image includes appreciation for all parts of yourself. It goes beyond your body size and shape to things like connection with friends and family, hobbies, talents, goals, and interests that create intrinsic self-worth.  Chronic body dissatisfaction is a major contributor to disordered eating patterns like anorexia, bulimia and binge eating.

Your relationship with your body should not be marred by health, fitness or fashion industry standards, family norms, or social comparison. Our bodies are vessels through which we experience the world. They are not ornaments for others’ enjoyment, judgment, or condemnation. Restoring your relationship with your body is part of a larger journey to reclaim your right to enjoy life unrestricted by internalized messages of how you should look.

At Laird Counselling Services, we strive to support body confidence by helping you reconnect with your inherent self-worth that goes beyond the thin ideal. We will help you explore underlying issues that make you vulnerable to body image dissatisfaction and provide you with practical tools and skills to cope differently with life’s challenges.

Reach out to us for a no-fee consultation to learn more about how we can help.