Aspire Magazine: Inspiration for a Woman's Soul.(TM) June/July 2018 Aspire Mag Full Issue | Page 59

~Astrid Alauda
If you are feeling critical and frustrated
you are not alone. Many women and girls
struggle with body image issues and do not
have high body esteem. The 2017 Dove
Global Girls Beauty and Confidence Report
showed that over half of girls around the
world do not have high body esteem. This
lack of confidence in their bodies impacted
their assertiveness, belief in themselves,
social behavior, and even their health.
Many women end up undermining their
health and well-being by being critical
and judgmental of their bodies. The more
judgmental we are, the less nurturing
choices we make. Over time our confidence
in our bodies is diminished and we become
stuck in a pattern of blaming and shaming
our bodies, which only leads us to make
less nurturing choices.
This cycle of body shaming is reinforced by
our culture and the media, and feeds our habit
of self-neglect. When we neglect ourselves,
we tend to not follow up with preventative
health care, exercise consistently, manage
our stress levels, eat mindfully, or pay
attention to early signs of illness. Neglecting
our bodies has ripple effects on our health
and decreases our likelihood of making
nurturing choices.
We may come to believe that our bodies are
betraying us. This is especially true if we are
experiencing an ongoing health challenge,
health crisis, live with chronic pain, or as our
bodies change through the aging process.
In order to break free of feeling stuck in
our own judgment and shame, and make
new empowered and nurturing choices in
our lives, we must develop a new loving
relationship with our bodies.
HERE ARE FIVE
WAYS TO BEGIN TO
LOVINGLY NURTURE
YOUR BODY:
1. Start with compassion
No one has ever made a positive and
sustainable change in their lives from
judgment and shame. Choose instead
to become friends with your body by
treating your body with more kindness
and compassion. When you find yourself
judging and criticizing, pause and respond
to yourself like you would to a dear friend.
Intentionally release your criticism and
bring kindness and tenderness to your
body. Ask yourself what would be the most
supportive and encouraging thing you could
say to yourself. Then create a loving and
compassionate response or mantra like “I
love and accept my body” or “I am in the
process of creating positive change” and
repeat it over and over to transform your
judgmental and critical thoughts.
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“Your body is a
temple, but only
if you treat it as
one.”