Making peace with your body by taking advantage of the many types of media at our disposal IS possible. It just takes some curation and thought.
Think about all of the types of media that you’re exposed to. What comes to mind? You might be thinking about social media, digital media, print media, and television. Does the media that you expose yourself to contribute positively or negatively to the way that you view your body?
I’d venture to guess that most of you reading this would say that media contributes negatively to your body image. You might also agree that the content you are consuming does not promote “making peace with your body.” However, we can change that!
In our tech-driven world, it can feel like you have little control over the content that is served to you. What even IS “the algorithm?” I’m not here to tell you – that is far outside of my wheelhouse. But I am here to tell you that we can take more control over what images, video, and text that we take in.
So without further ado, here are my recommendations for cleaning up the content that you take in so that you can continue on a less-interrupted path to making peace with your body.
Table of Contents
TV Shows & Movies
If the shows and movies that you’re choosing to watch all feature the same straight-sized, thin (and often white) bodies, then there is room for you to diversify your screen. Shows like Orange is the New Black, Insecure, and Parks and Recreation include actors of different races, sexual orientations, and body sizes. Movies that come to mind are The Holdovers, Hairspray, Joy Ride, and Hidden Figures.
I like these shows and movies because body diversity is not the main plot point. These are simply people having human experiences. Some of the characters just happen to be in bodies that have not often been represented on the big screen. This is significant because body size is a topic that can be dealt with negatively. That’s definitely something to be on the look out for when consuming television and movies.
If something you are watching is making you feel badly, notice that and move on to something better! Lord knows we have a wealth of shows and movies available at our fingertips, so don’t spend your time on something that isn’t contributing to you making peace with your body.
Social Media
Now, onto the giant that is social media. Depending on who you are following and the type of content you are engaging with, your algorithm might be a negative mess.
Luckily, you can take control in a number of different ways. A good first step is to go through the accounts that you are following. Unfollow those that are making you feel a certain type of way. Replace those content creators with accounts that DO make you feel represented and affirmed. If fashion interests you, this might look like following creators that look more like you. If you are on social media for cooking content, follow chefs and recipe creators that speak neutrally about food.
You can also use some tricks to avoid seeing content that contributes to negative body talk. For example, on Instagram, let’s say you get a sponsored post or see a post on your explore page that you don’t want to see more of. Tap on the three dots in the upper right hand corner of the post and then click “Not interested.” This will tell the app that you don’t want to see more content like it.
Another trick is to go into your app settings and select items like “content preferences” and “hidden words.” This allows you to filter out specific words and content that you don’t want to see.
Print and Written Media
Remember print media? When it comes to blogs, news, and other forms of written content, I think we have much more control over what we are consuming. There is no shortage of health and wellness writing at this particular point in time. But does all of it contribute to our “wellness?” If it’s not adding to your journey of making peace with your body, then I’d say not so much.
My best piece of advice here is to take note of which columnists and bloggers are speaking about larger bodies, or bodies that look like yours, neutrally or positively. For example, Christy Harrison is a contributor to many newspapers and websites. Check out her articles titled ‘It’s the Way We Were All Born Eating’ and ‘How to Make Peace With Sugar.’ As a journalist and an anti-diet dietitian, Christy creates written content that is affirming and helpful for folks in all bodies.
The Bottom Line
At the end of the day, it’s going to be impossible to completely avoid seeing harmful content. BUT – you have the power to change the ‘media waters’ that you’re swimming in so that you can continue making peace with your body. And let me tell you, it’s a worthwhile pursuit.
For more from me on body image and nutrition, continue to peruse my blog here.
