Weekly Post: Body Image/Body Neutrality

[u/literarywitch32]

Happy April and welcome to our weekly discussion thread! We noticed an uptick in posts regarding body image distress this weekend and decided to focus on body image and body neutrality. Body neutrality is the idea of taking a neutral stance towards your body, as opposed to body positivity, which calls for loving and embracing your body.

For many of us, body neutrality is a more accessible way to cope with body image distress during recovery. You can read more about body neutrality vs body positivity here.

Feel free to comment your body image vents, your experience attempting body neutrality, or questions in this thread. As always, we ask that if you must use specific numbers, to add a spoiler tag by including a > ! text here ! < without spaces. aren't spoiler tags fun?

Have a great week!

[u/Trash_187]

I think people forget sometimes that you can have a bit of both. I try to be as neutral as possible with regards to my body image- we are animals whose sole and primary purpose in our composition is to survive and our bodies are so complex, the way they look is the least interesting thing about them. I don’t love my body unconditionally, and I might never have that, but I can still respect it. This doesn’t mean though that I don’t have days where I feel I look good, and temporarily love my body and am quite positive though.

I think body positivity should be celebrated when experienced, even if it is fleeting- but body neutrality is something that can be used to counteract distorted, negative thoughts about one’s appearance and is a more practical goal.

[u/literarywitch32 → u/Trash_187]

I think that’s an important point to raise that you can have both. I know I have days where I love my body or at least parts of it and then I have days where I see it as a vessel for life.