I Am Much More Than “that Label “: Overweight And Health
Probably seeing the photo of this girl (Tess Munster, a 120 kilos model), you will have thought that she is really beautiful and attractive, but that… “she is fat”. This is the label with which millions of people around the world must meet every day, also because the index of overweight people in recent years has been continuously increasing.
However, we must not forget that obesity carries with it very high health risks and that it is something that must be controlled and avoided. Nobody can deny it. And this is an effort that all people who are overweight undergo.
If the effort to lose weight is combined with labels, often derogatory, and the rejection of a society based on exclusive beauty standards, we understand that people who suffer from this problem often feel despondent.
Think of adolescents, overweight young people who are victims of school bullying, unable to get out of that circle of low self-esteem, social isolation and distorted thoughts about their own image, they turn into a prison in which “eating” often becomes the only form of possible relief.
For this reason, it is not only important to treat the issue of overweight from a nutritional point of view, with strategies that lead to changes in habits, food intake and a sedentary lifestyle…. It is also vital to offer psychological tools to build bridges, to resolve external conflicts and to deal with the situation effectively.
Let’s see how.
Psychological strategies for dealing with overweight
First of all, it must be remembered that each person has his or her own story, context and personality which, without doubt, will lead to the need for certain tools rather than others. This is why it is important to take into account all these situations.
1. The support of the people around us
Obesity, in most cases, is a genetic component. This is why it is also interesting to know the habits regarding this context.
You may decide to go on a diet, improve your diet, and avoid things that are bad for you. However, if there is no support from the people around us, it will be difficult to succeed. If this is your case, put boundaries between you and the people around you who don’t understand you.
Do you think that losing weight means improving health, quality of life and having a better opinion of yourself. You will therefore gain health and self-esteem!
2. Correct distorted thoughts
“I am as I am, and I will always be fat.” “Other people don’t like me, no one will ever notice me.” “I’ll never be thin like my friends, like that actress, like that model ..”
They are all distorted thoughts that do not help us at all. They devour our motivation and destroy self-esteem. Your goal is to reach your ideal weight, the one that will not cause you health problems and, for this, you must be aware that you must not be excessively thin like models. That is not beauty, nor is it health.
3. Communication strategies and social skills
How do you relate to the world? Do you feel insecure ? Do you oscillate between moments of passivity and moments of aggression? It is important that you learn to express yourself, to control your emotions without isolating yourself and without getting angry. Anger and despair may make you want to eat more.
Manage your emotions, develop your social skills. Take as an example if you want the model that appears in this article. Tess Munster suffered a lot in childhood and adolescence and had to change states to start from scratch, to put aside suffering and move on.
He studied photography and gradually realized that his face was attractive and that his body was not a prison and that he was not ashamed to put it on display. Nowadays she appears in magazines, and her face conveys balance and satisfaction. This is why it is attractive.
4. Do you suffer from anxiety or perhaps “unconscious” depression?
On many occasions, being overweight hides more serious psychological processes that go unnoticed. He often goes to a specialist to get advice on the diet to follow. However, one realizes that one is unable to follow the nutritionist’s directions. Because?
-You eat to satiate anxiety or frustration.
-Because we are unable to overcome pain, loss, failure, unrequited love or any other process that we have not been able to handle properly.
Behind the extra pounds and overweight there are often internal processes that you need to know how to recognize, in order to be able to deal with them. Ask for help when you need it. Seek the strength and motivation in yourself and never stop loving yourself. You are more than a label!
Take care of yourself both inside and out.
