ROBERT C. P. STEINER

GRADUATE HONORS HOUSE DI RECTOR

Body Image

Agenda

What is Body Image?What are Eating Disorders?What Causes Eating Disorders?Tips for Critical Viewing of the MediaStrategies for Dealing with Eating DisordersTips for a Healthy Body ImageM.A.I.D. Technique for Engaging ResidentsResources

What is Body Image?

Body Image is Made up of Two Components

1. How You Perceive Your Body

2. What You Feel About That Perception

Factors That Contribute to Body Image

FamilyChildren’s Toys & Fairy Tales (Disney)FriendsThe Media

Moving Towards a Positive Body Image

Interesting Facts: 25 years ago, the avg. female model weighed 8% less

than the avg. American Woman Today, the avg. model weighs 23% less than the avg.

American Woman

For men, the avg Playgirl centerfold has shed about 12 lbs of fat while putting on over 12 lbs of muscle over the past 25 years

What is your Healthy Weight?Link

What are Eating Disorders?

The two most common eating disorders are Anorexia Nervosa (Self-Stavation)Bulimia (Binging & Purging)Some consider compulsive overeating a

disorder

Signs of Eating Disorders

Spend a lot of Time Thinking About Eating, Food, Weight, & Body Image

Often Feel “fat” When their Weight is Normal or Below normal

Feel Uncomfortable After Eating a Normal Sized Meal

Often Feel Anxious When Eating Around OthersMake Judgments About Themselves and How They

Control What They EatBelieve That Others Are Judging Them By What

They Eat

What Causes Eating Disorders?

Factors Contributing to Eating Disorders Cultural & Psychological Issues Personality Traits Learned Behaviors Sometimes Biochemical Imbalances

People with eating disorders are often subject to Depression, Anxiety, and Low Self-Esteem.

Media Images Past & Present

Media Images Past & Present

Media Examples

America’s Next Top Model AuditionLink

America’s Next Top ModelLink

Tips for Critical Viewing of the Media

Media Messages About Body shape and Size Will Only Affect the Way We Feel About Ourselves If We Let ThemTo Be a Critical Viewer of MediaAll Media Images are Constructions, Not RealityAdvertisement Have Been Carefully Constructed With

an Intent to Send a Very Specific MessageAdvertisements are Created for One Thing: To

Convince You To Buy SomethingThey Create their Message Based on What they Think

You Want to SeeWe Can Choose A Filter that Protects Our Self-Esteem

Strategies for Dealing with Eating Disorders

If You Starve (Restrict) or Fast Learn what is a healthy weight for you. Then find out how many

servings of the different food groups are needed to achieve that weight. Make a daily meal and snack plan and stick to it whether hungry or not.

If You Binge & Purge: Work toward ending the cycle of binging and purging, feeling guilty,

dieting, getting too hungry, and Binging again. Increase the amount of calories in your diet and decrease the amount of calories in your binges

If you Overeat/Binge: Buy limited amounts of food/ Don’t shop when Hungry/ Avoid Impulse

Buying/ Stabilize your eating habits/ Eat Slowly/ Keep healthy snacks handy/ Stop eating as soon as you feel full

Tips for all Types of Eating Disorders

Learn About Good NutritionGet a copy of ACHA’s Brochure Eating 101: The Basics of

Good Nutrition

Finding Your TriggersFind the triggers that spur your urges to binge, starve, or

otherwise abuse food. You can reprogram your thoughts and plan other activities

Accepting That Setbacks are Part of ProgressLook at them as opportunities to learn more about your

eating habits. Feeling guilty only sets the stage for longer relapses

Tips for a Healthy Body Image

1. Attend to your bodily cues for Hunger & Satiation

2. Enjoy all foods.3. Use the food pyramid as a guide4. Eat for enjoyment5. Try New Foods6. Keep Nutrient-dense food readily available7. Avoid the Good/Bad food trap8. Focus less on Body Weight & Shape and

more on inner self

Engaging a Resident

M.A.I .D.

M = Misery, Sadness, Change in Mood, etc…A = Alienation, Isolation, Not Spending Time

with Friends I = Inefficiency, Not Being Effective In Class, Athletics, & Other ActivitiesD = Disturbance, Focus on Eating/Body Image is Getting in the Way of Other Parts of Life

Resources

University Counseling Clinic (UCC)

C.E.T.C. Counselor Education Training Center

Overeaters Anonymous

National Eating Disorders Organization