*Picture is of my 37.5 week pregnant bump
So, I have a question for you - when is it OK to comment on someone else's body weight/shape...pregnant or not?
Pretty much never.
Unless you know every single OUNCE of that beautiful someone's mental and physical health, and you have a chat with them in a loving/caring way that will only benefit them, because you are basically their Siamese twin...then the answer is N.E.V.E.R. And PREGNANT BELLIES!? Don't get me started. They are bloody beautiful and perfect and come in all different shapes and sizes. Every. Single. Woman. holds their bub differently!!
This is no dig to any human in my circle because I surround myself with absolute legends, BUT I do hear it often from patients that someone in their life feels the need to comment on whatever physical appearance of theirs. This blows my mind.🤯
There is SO. MUCH. MORE. to life and our HEALTH than that number on the scales, or what size clothes we are, body shape and weight etc. We are all different and unique amazing individuals and we all function as individuals at our own personalised, natural weight, whatever that is for you 🤸 AND weight fluctuates - that is a fact of life my dear people, and normal and NATURAL and bloody OK. If we all stayed the same size our entire lives, there would be something seriously wrong.
You know when you are functioning at your best and you don't need anyone to tell you when this is...ESPECIALLY if it is based solely on your appearance 🤦🏼♀️ I mean COOOMMMMMME OOOONNNNN!!! Can we move past that please? It is 2022, time to move on from this obsession. Ok, that is my rant over (it felt good). Whether comments from other people are affecting you, or perhaps those comments about your glorious body are coming from yourself, what does it come down to? How can you move forward?
It's all about body and self appreciation <3
I know body LOVE, sometimes even like, can be hard to achieve. It is unrealistic to think we can love all of our bodies all of the time. But respecting, appreciating, admiring and acknowledging how amazing our bodies are!? How epic. I now live my life reminding myself of how brilliant my body is...I mean heck, for starters, it has DEVELOPED AND GROWN AN ENTIRE HUMAN BEING!!!
Even when we feel like our body is "failing us", giving us symptoms, aches, pains, not what we "want" them to be etc. It is not failing us, quite the opposite. Our bodies are working every single second of every single day to keep us in balance.
To help get you started, here are 5 of my favourite ways to start embracing body appreciation;
Each time you catch yourself speaking negatively/nitpicking about your body/ a certain body part, stop yourself and instead, thank it for all that it does for you. Where would you be without that body part? What does it do for you? ❤🤸♀️
See yourself as a WHOLE, not a sum of all these different body parts. Take a step back and look at the bigger picture. You are a WHOLE human not a sum of all its smaller parts.
If a certain part of your body is giving you signs/symptoms/sensations etc - ask yourself “what is my body trying to tell me?” Our bodies are incredibly smart and all the different signs and symptoms they give us over time are their way of saying “help me out here, give me some more love and attention”.
Keeping clothes that no longer fit? Holding on to them as a just in case/goal etc? Get rid of them, please. They no longer serve your powerful body. Wear clothes that are comfortable and make you feel good.
Throw out your scales. You are so much more than that number on the scales. There are so many other factors that can signal and help you determine your health, and help you achieve better health and well-being. We need to put more focus on all these other factors of health, and less on that (pretty insignificant) number on the scales.
Body appreciation and admiration is certainly what I choose, what we plan to instill in our children and what I help my glorious patients with <3.
Nutmeg xx
