On January 30th I was able to share resources with KSL Studio 5 on Body Image. Brooke Walker, co-host of the show shared a very moving interview on media images. I love seeing the media pick up stories that inspire us all! Below are the tips I talked about on air
5 THINGS MOTHERS CAN DO TO PROMOTE A HEALTHY BODY IMAGE FOR A DAUGHTER
1- Start with your self: In order to help a daughter, mothers should first evaluate how she feels about her own body and self esteem. It is very difficult to help someone when you feel low yourself. Mothers often get put very last and find themselves depleted and looking to exterior changing things to find a sense of identity. Mothers should go through the process to find self acceptance. If a mother is confident it will help her daughter to be confident.
2- Believe in unseen potential: Treat your daughter as the amazing woman she will become. Create a self fulfilling prophesy by building her up and telling her positive comments about her potential. If she hears something enough she will begin to believe it and become it. During the times you feel like she is not listening and doesn’t want your advice don’t give up. Those are the times she may need you the most. You may try sharing personalized notes in her backpack, or stuck to her bathroom mirror that share her positive traits. “I just wanted you to know you are great at art, you are fun to be around, I love the kindness I see in your eyes, and I am glad you are my daughter.
3- Create a healthy environment: What atmosphere is in your home? Think about ways you can make your home a safety zone from all of the bombarding messages. Get rid of or lessen the exposure to fashion magazines, scales in every bathroom, diet books, or diets pills. Focus on health verses “getting skinny”
4- Identify criticism: Take a step back a look at the conversations you have had with your daughter. Think about comments you have made in effort to be helpful but in turn may be making her feel unaccepted. You may be encouraging her to look her best by ironing her clothes, or to be healthy by not going overboard on the pizza. She may be interpreting that to mean my mom does not approve of me and my body. When you recognize what comments make your daughter feel attacked you can make the necessary changes to help her feel safe.
5- Celebrate our body for what it can do: Remember our bodies are what take us through life. We should be able to celebrate being able to dance, skip, jump or move verses feeling “fat.” We can learn to appreciate our health verses compare our body size to others. We can replace respect for our bodies instead of self loathing when we remember to focus on what our bodies do.
