If you’ve always looked at your body with disapproval, hatred, or disgust, it can seem impossible to look at it any other way. However, learning how to love your body is a journey that can begin as early as today–right now.
It takes initiative on your part and a good support system. Read on to learn five ways you can correct your perception of yourself and learn how to accept yourself for all that you are.
1. Dance in Front of the Mirror
And do it naked.
As someone who struggles with body image issues, you may find it difficult to look at yourself (and to not judge yourself) in the mirror, let alone dance in front of it, naked.
Get used to the freeing nature of dancing in your own skin, for your own pleasure. This is your time completely.
The point of this little daily exercise is to reconnect with yourself in your body and to find joy and acceptance in yourself. It may be uncomfortable at first, but it’s a process to learn how to stop hating your body.
2. Practice Gratitude for the Little Things
Learning how to love your body requires shifting your mindset and focus from the negative to the positive.
Instead of immediately pointing out things you don’t like about your body, try to look for qualities you appreciate. For example, you may not feel confident about the size of your arms, but you have strong legs that carry you everywhere you go.
Shifting your focus on the positive things and practicing gratitude can increase your self-esteem and support your overall psychological well-being.
3. Wear Clothes That Make You Feel Good
Many women learn to squeeze themselves into clothes that don’t actually fit. They can wiggle and manage to pull the pieces of clothing on, but it doesn’t sit well on their bodies.
That’s because they’re trying to fit in the clothes instead of having their clothes fit their body. Clothes are made to fit you, not the other way around.
Go through your closet and donate all the clothes that no longer fit. Keep this in mind the next time you go shopping for clothes.
4. Reframe Your Thoughts
Step two asked you to shift your focus from the negative to the positive. However, self-hating thoughts can still arise.
To tackle these thoughts, you have to be relentless in filtering out the mean, negative comments that you find yourself engaging in. As soon as you notice yourself spiraling into a fit of abusive self-talk, stop yourself in mid-track. Change directions.
Even mean, negative talk is a learned behavior and habit that you can break.
5. Work With Clinical Professionals
People start their self-love journey at very different points, coming from many different places.
As someone struggling with body image issues wanting to unlearn these thought patterns and correct this misperception, you may feel alone on this journey.
However, working with trained professionals with experience in helping clients to treat body image issues, can give you a good base of support. They have a proven track record of helping women like yourself unlearn thoughts patterns that don’t serve them and build a foundation for deep, lasting change.
The Journey To Learning How To Love Your Body
Learning how to love your body may seem unnatural at first. You’re not used to it. However, taking the initiative to unlearn any negative thought patterns and pairing it with professional support can go a long way to loving yourself.
For more tips and advice on self-love and self-care, be sure to check out more from our blog!