What is Body Neutrality? — Evansville Indiana Boudoir Photographer
I don’t want to promise you that your body is beautiful, no matter what. That doesn’t heal body image. What does is learning that you have value and worth regardless of your outside appearance.
— Krista Murias / @kristamurias on Instagram
❤️ content warning: this post talks about body image and things of that nature, so please read at your discretion if topics like this are sensitive to you ❤️
Can I be real with you? I think most women can agree that we’re socialized to believe that our value is directly related to our appearance. Unfortunately, it’s so embedded in our society that it takes a lot of work to undo those internalized thoughts and beliefs. With the rise of self-love movements, we’re seeing a much wider variety of types of bodies and people in the media, which is a great thing, and has had a huge impact on our society already. Now we’re seeing people who are bigger than a size 0, who are people of color, who have disabilities, who are pregnant or new parents, who are queer, who have cellulite and stretch marks on billboards and advertisements... which is soooo different than what I saw growing up in the early 2000’s!
It’s so far from the perfectly airbrushed models I grew up seeing in magazines and aspiring to look like. Models who didn’t even look like those glossy images of themselves because they were retouched so heavily. And that’s just scratching the surface. Can we take a moment for the annual best and worst beach bodies magazine issues? That gives me major ick feelings just to think about now, but I think these collective shifts are helping to change our thoughts about our bodies which I am 100% here for.
I believe we are each inherently valuable and worthy regardless of what we look like. I want our confidence to come from within, not only from what we see in the mirror. On days that I struggle with body image — whether its because of a zit that appeared overnight, some bloating, or a less than ideal hair day — I don’t want my confidence to drop drastically. I want my body image to be one of many factors instead of the most important factor, which is why I’m striving to move away from thinking so much about how my body looks.
So let’s break down what exactly body neutrality is, and what it isn’t.
From what I’ve read and understood (resources below!), body neutrality is about respecting and caring for your body. It’s about thinking less about what your body looks like and more about what it’s capable of. It’s about embracing the good days and the bad days alike, and not spending too much time thinking about either one. It celebrates progress and self-improvement beyond body-based goals, and centers self-love that looks like taking care of yourself.
"Too often, we fall into the black-or-white trap of either loving or hating our bodies, and I think this movement provides an opportunity for a middle ground," psychotherapist Alison Stone told the Huffington Post. "It provides an opportunity for acceptance."
And that’s exactly it: an opportunity for a middle ground. There are days for me when it feels so daunting to try to love how I look. Body image and our perception of ourselves is a tricky thing, and love is a big emotion. I feel a lot of (self-inflicted) pressure to love my body, especially in my profession! I mean, it’s my job to capture you, to help you appreciate and love yourself. And it does feel a little hypocritical on the days when I struggle to do that myself. But I’m only human, and I’m on this self-love journey right alongside you.
Our relationships with our bodies can be complicated, to say the least.
It takes a lot of work to undo years of societal conditioning and expectations, thought patterns, and beliefs. And in my experience the learning is far from linear — there are ups and downs and definitely plateaus. Some days I think about my body all day and can’t silence those thoughts for anything, and some days it doesn’t even cross my mind. Some days I’m obsessed with myself, feeling myself, and love how I look and feel. Some days I can hardly quiet the negative voice in my head that endlessly criticizes myself.
Regardless of the negative thoughts, I’m trying to place less importance on my body image, and focus more on building my confidence so it comes from within. I’m working to accept my body, to think less thoughts about my body, and to make choices regarding my appearance that make me feel good. To be honest with you? I think it’s always going to take work. My goal is to feel at peace with my body, and I want that for you too if you struggle like I do.
continued below: more about my journey and how I’m changing the narrative for myself
I hate to say that over the years I’ve thought so many negative thoughts about my body.
I used to think about my body every single day; I can’t even count how many thoughts I’ve had about my body on a daily basis. Whether they were nice thoughts or not, I was always so aware of my body. I would have loved to be on board with unwavering body confidence for myself, but that was difficult mentally. Through my journey with body neutrality over the last couple of years, I can see so much progress just by trying to be kind to myself. Don’t get me wrong… I still have days where I struggle. But those days are farrrrrr fewer than they were a few years ago.
I’m writing another post now about three ways you can practice body neutrality if you think it will help you too. I just wanna remind you that your body shouldn’t be your happiness gatekeeper. You deserve peace in your body, love for yourself, and all the happiness in the world.
On this journey with myself, I came to terms with the fact that how I look is absolutely the least interesting part of me.
Do you ever feel this way too? Although I obviously want to love my body, it’s much more important to me to accept and appreciate it. Not only that, but I want to focus more on my skills, strengths, talents, and accomplishments. I want a positive inner voice that’s stronger than the negative one. Body neutrality is a step on my self-love journey. I’m constantly evolving and changing my opinions, but for me, self-love is a journey. I hope to move from a place of neutrality and acceptance, to compassion, to confidence, to uninhibited love.
Our cultural shift away from always striving for the “perfect beach body” has been a positive movement, make no mistake. However, when women free themselves from focusing so much on the way their body looks — regardless of whether those feelings are positive or negative — and focus more on finding inner peace and wisdom, they set themselves free to pursue what genuinely makes them feel happy and fulfilled.
— Kate Harveston for Bust.com
I want how we feel about ourselves and how we view ourselves to be less attached to our physical appearance and more attached to who we are as people. We all have days that we don’t feel great about our appearance and we all have insecurities, but let’s try to turn it around and focus on the things we like about ourselves. All the things that make us really cool people. My hope for you in your self love journey is that you can create a space in your life that is full of compassion, acceptance, and love for yourself — all parts of yourself. I want all of us to feel at peace in our bodies; I think everyone deserves that.
below: resources for my info, and resources for you to start or continue your journey with body neutrality — if you want them!
RESOURCES FOR YOU:
Instagram Account | Beyond Beautiful Book
POST SOURCES:
Body Neutrality Is A Body Image Movement That Doesn't Focus On Your Appearance | Huffpost.com
What is Body Neutrality? | Bustle.com
Inside the "Body Neutrality" Movement | Bust.com
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