Body Image Obsession

A Deadly Cultural Blind Spot

by Mimi Ellis

We're bombarded daily with images of women who fit the physical ideal-or at least someone's vision of ideal. Between TV, print magazines and billboards, you'll find a slender, sexy, twenty-something with invisible pores in-your-face nearly everywhere you turn. And nevermind that her looks are more a result of airbrush techniques and a great plastic surgeon than good genes. Deep down inside, we can't help thinking that we really should look more like her than like the woman who keeps showing up in the mirror each morning.

What it really comes down to, though, is not how closely we measure up to society's ever-shifting standards of physical attractiveness but rather our own feelings about the skin we're in. In fact, body image obsession is an enormous weight on the shoulders of women today. We hear the issue mentioned occasionally, but it's not talked about nearly enough-and I believe it threatens the independence and personal freedom of women in Western society.

Sure, Vanity Fair showed us a few years back that even Jamie Lee Curtis looks pretty much like the rest of us when she rolls out of bed in the morning, and Tyra Banks made headlines when she announced that she feels best at 10 pounds heavier than the "ideal" dictated by the modeling industry. Although these events got women rethinking their definitions of beauty and fitness, negative, body-hating self-talk prevails in most women's minds. The good news is, if the collective internal dialogue starts to change, the world around it will follow.

BODY OF EVIDENCE

What is body image in the first place? And what is wrong in a world where, as Naomi Wolf said in The Beauty Myth, "real women view themselves as cheap imitations of fashion photographs, rather than realizing that fashion photographs are cheap imitations of real women?" Body image, simply defined, is the internal view of one's external physical appearance. Obsessing on appearance is dangerous to us as individuals as well as to our culture as a whole.

This obsession drains women of valuable time, attention and financial resources, and it leads to a disconnection with that which is truly important. Intense preoccupation with thinness interferes with normal functioning in many arenas. Work can be affected by poor concentration and reduced productivity, and relationships are damaged by self-hatred or a sense of competition with others. Happiness, spontaneity, confidence and motivation can be diminished.

Nutrition and fitness also suffer when we place too much emphasis on the perfect body as the end result. Many women simply give up trying to eat well and stay active when they realize they'll never look like a Barbie doll. Weight gain, poor self-esteem and physical deconditioning are likely side effects, along with increased rates of physical health problems such as diabetes, heart disease and some types of cancer.

The risk of eating disorders also intensifies in a culture of body image obsession. "Ten percent of women with anorexia nervosa will die from the disease, and only one-third will recover," reports Lisa Bograd, a psychotherapist specializing in the treatment of eating disorders. "The rest will remain chronically impaired, in and out of treatment, and challenged by very serious health problems such as heart damage." Bograd adds that all eating disorders are on the rise, and even less "lethal" forms cause significant problems with emotional and physical health. These diseases often go undiagnosed because our culture has come to accept as normal the drive to be thin at any cost.

CHANGING THE WORLD

Fortunately, this bleak reality can be transformed. But only if women wake up and take notice of the body image-killing voice that has taken up residence in their heads. Only they can they begin to replace negative conversations with ones that build up rather than tear down. And only then can women come together and affect the change so desperately needed-a shift in the cultural agreement of what defines an amazing woman.

As famed anthropologist Margaret Mead wrote, "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed people can change the world. Indeed, it's the only thing that ever has." Together, we can begin to tackle the body image obsession that often robs women of joy and contentment, and each of us must begin with the woman in the mirror.

CHANGE YOUR INTERNAL DIALOGUE

• Deadly: "I can't feel good about myself until I'm thin."
• Healthy: "Confident, healthy women come in all shapes and sizes, and I am one of them."

• Deadly: "I don't deserve to eat today. I'm too fat, and I ate too much yesterday."
• Healthy: "My body needs fuel to function, regardless of my weight, and despite what I ate or didn't eat yesterday, I choose to feed it well today with a variety of wholesome, great tasting food. I am rewarded by the pleasure of a good meal as well as increased energy, productivity and vitality. I know that some days I'll eat a little more and other days, a little less, and the fact that this is okay is a sign of a healthy relationship to food. And, when I have an occasional splurge, I only go for the good stuff. No cheap chocolate for me!"

• Deadly: "Why bother exercising? I'll never get thin enough to look like one of those models!"
• Healthy: "I feel energized, strong and happy when I do physical activities I enjoy, and there are countless long-termbenefits tomy health. That is plenty ofmotivation tomake sure I get some exercise onmost days."

• Deadly: "I can't enjoy sex with my husband until I lose five pounds."
• Healthy: "A healthy, loving, committed relationship is context enough to enjoy a healthy sex life. I'm not required to look like a Victoria's Secret model to have great sex, even with the lights on!"

• Deadly: "I have great clothes, and I hate myself now because they're two sizes too small. I won't let myself wear anything nice until I drop the extra weight."
• Healthy: "I deserve to feel good and look my best right now, in the body I have. I dress in quality clothing that fits well and flatters me. My psyche is more important than the stuff in my closet."

• Deadly: "I can't possibly go out the door. I haven't done my makeup!"
• Healthy: "Wearing makeup is a fun thing about being a woman-it's a great tool for creativity and self-expression. But it's none of those things if I have to be a slave to it."

• Deadly: "I need to go weighmyself now so I know if I need to exercisemore and skip dinner."
• Healthy: "I refuse to let a number runmy life. How I feel inmy own skin is all I need to know. I amactively doing things that contribute to my health and well being."

• Deadly: "That woman has a better body than mine. I'ma fat,ugly and useless person."
• Healthy: "That woman has a beautiful figure. Although I don't look like her, I have features that are beautiful, too."

• Deadly: "I have to watch my daughter's weight so people won't think badly of me."
• Healthy: "I have no control over my daughter's natural body type. The greatest thing I can do for her is to consistently model healthy behavior and appropriate attitudes toward weight, fitness and beauty. Unencumbered by body image insanity, she will have limitless possibilities for living life powerfully. That will be my ultimate satisfaction as a mother."

Mimi Ellis is a Physician Assistant who has worked in obstetrics and gynecology for more than eight years and practices in Chandler and Scottsdale. She has also worked as a Registered Dietitian, and is founder of Take A Hike, Take A Stand Inc., a non-profit organization designed to empower people in the area of body image, through education, fundraising and activism.