Reader Request: Weight Worries

by Sally on April 16, 2020 in the category: body image, reader requests

Allison popped this question into the suggestion box:

I would love to see something on maintaining a weight you feel happy with without stressing/keeping your emotional well-being in check while eating what you want and not gaining weight.

Eating and weight are incredibly personal, and there’s no single way to deal with either that will work for everyone. Maintaining a certain weight will mean different actions for different people. “Eating what you want and not gaining weight” is especially tricky for many people, myself included. (What I want is generally deep-fried, and a steady diet of fried items probably won’t help me out in the longevity department. Or the self-love department either.) I wish I had an easy answer to this one, but I’m afraid I don’t. I’m not a psychologist or a nutritionist or a fitness expert. All I can do is share what’s worked for me and hope that will spark a larger conversation. So let’s take this a chunk at a time: read more

Originally posted 2013-04-11 06:32:22.

I Shall Never Be

by Sally on March 19, 2020 in the category: body image

I know a lot about my body. I know its strengths and its graces, its quirks and defining traits. I know that I have strong legs and an elegant collarbone, pert breasts and dainty wrists, luxurious hair and an angular little nose. I know that I’ve got a lot going for me.

I also know that there are loads of things that I shall never be, and that many of them are considered beautiful, attractive, desirable, enviable even. Tall, flat-bellied, blemish-free, in possession of slender and toned arms. I’ll never be voluptuous like Halle Berry or delicate like January Jones. I’ll never be gamine like Michelle Williams or Amazonian like Charlize Theron. read more

Originally posted 2012-12-06 06:19:36.

Beating the Body Blues

by Sally on February 28, 2020 in the category: body image, psychology

how to beat the body blues

Body blues can hit for a thousand different reasons. Many of those reasons are big and heavy and far-reaching and nothing that can be “fixed” by a simple behavioral change or shift in consciousness. Body blues vary in depth and breadth, and I’ve no intention of minimizing the challenges posed by that constant, low-level drone of self-loathing that can settle into your life and linger for ages.

But some body blues are more fleeting. Sometimes you’ve felt good for a nice, long stretch then get hit by a surprising setback. Sometimes you can feel leaden and discouraged, but sense that a shift toward positivity is within reach. Sometimes you know that taking action will help. Maybe just a little. So here are some suggestions for activities and ideas that might help you beat the body blues. read more

Originally posted 2012-10-11 06:37:27.