{"id":16994,"date":"2016-02-24T10:16:31","date_gmt":"2016-02-24T10:16:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.anfocal.ie\/?p=16994"},"modified":"2016-02-24T10:16:31","modified_gmt":"2016-02-24T10:16:31","slug":"love-your-body","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.anfocal.ie\/index.php\/love-your-body\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Love your Body\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"love<\/p>\n

By Ciara Corcoran<\/p>\n

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Ask anyone how they feel about their body and there\u2019s usually a list of complaints a mile long.<\/p>\n

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Your body image can be influenced by your own beliefs and attitudes as well as those of society, the media and peer groups.\u00a0 It\u2019s easy to start feeling bad about the way you look when you remember we\u2019re surrounded by images of perfection.<\/p>\n

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Celebrities always seem like they\u2019ve perfect make-up, perfect figures and shiny white teeth. Magazines are full of tall, thin, glamorous models who never seem to have bad hair days. We see unrealistic body images in the media every day –\u00a0watching TV, reading magazines, and\u00a0going to the cinema to name a few.<\/p>\n

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Trying to live up to those standards is not only stressful, it\u2019s pointless.\u00a0Celebrities and models not only have personal trainers, nutritionists and stylists but are also subjected to photoshopping. Photos in magazines are usually air-brushed to perfection. Any extra curves, spots, wrinkles, fuzzy hair (anything that\u2019s normal really) are gotten rid of by a computer. Fashion designers also often use models that are several sizes smaller than the average person.<\/p>\n

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Men are not immune to this issue. For men, the \u2018perfect\u2019 muscled body is still held up as a model for readers to follow. Some experts believe that the media\u2019s message about male body image is causing a rise in the number of eating disorders in men. The issue of male body image can be seen as silly and not a real issue but men across the world feel pressures to look a certain way and live up to social expectations.<\/p>\n

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Between body, height, hair and clothes men can often be as self-conscious as women who are subjected to the same social pressures. Men often feel like they shouldn\u2019t be affected by body image concerns, that they should be the \u2018tough man\u2019, but this does not need to be the case. For example, men feel an expectation to be trim and toned. When they are told they\u2019ve put on weight or need to \u2018bulk up\u2019 it can be seen as banter but it can make men very self-conscious in the same way women are affected.<\/p>\n

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Remember: healthy bodies come in all shapes and sizes, big and small, and these are all beautiful. It\u2019s okay to be who you are! No matter what shape or size you are, the main thing is to be fit, healthy and happy with your body!<\/p>\n

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Impact on self esteem<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, when it comes to looks, we’re often our own harshest critics. Self-esteem is the answer to the question \u201chow do I feel about myself\u201d and when we\u2019re harsh on ourselves our self-esteem takes a major hit. Research carried out by the personal care brand Dove in 2010 found that only 4% of women across the world considered themselves beautiful.<\/p>\n

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What is more frightening is the statistic that 6 out of 10 girls are so concerned with the way they look that anxiety forces them to exclude themselves from social occasions, daily rituals, even failing to attend school. Body confidence and self-esteem are very important particularly regarding general and mental health. Low body confidence is a serious issue which has been linked to depression, obesity, low aspirations and eating disorders.<\/p>\n

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Accepting yourself<\/p>\n

We might feel better in the short-term to think models we see in magazines don\u2019t really look that good, or we see them in snatched images without their make-up coming out of the gym. But, that\u2019s not what learning to love the skin you\u2019re in is really all about. That means learning to be happy with your appearance, whatever anyone else looks like. It means accepting yourself, imperfections and all, and learning not to compare yourself with other people. If you truly accept yourself, you won\u2019t need to compare.<\/p>\n

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Easier said than done right?<\/p>\n

Yes, and it won\u2019t happen overnight. There\u2019ll always be times when we look at ourselves in the mirror and wish we could change something about ourselves. But, having a healthy body image means we can soon forget about it, and move on. People with a healthy body image don\u2019t really need anything about their bodies to change in order to be happy.<\/p>\n

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How to learn\u00a0to accept the way you look:<\/p>\n