Strengths and Weaknesses

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Strengths and Weaknesses of Body Positivity

Introduction

Is body positivity open to everyone? According to statistics, nearly 92% of women are not happy with their body appearance, leading them to diet to attain their preferred body shape. This shows that society has a long way to go as far as the body positivity battle is concerned. Body positivity is the assertion that everyone is deserving of a positive body image regardless of how popular culture and society view ideal size, shape, and appearance. It is a movement that refers to a physical and mental state which shifts focus from physical looks and emphasizes personal strengths. The term body positivity was first coined in 1996 when a patient and psychotherapist developed thebodypositive.org website when they were going through treatment for eating disorders. Some of the objective of body positivity movement is to address impractical body standards, challenge the way society sees the body and promote recognition of all body types. Further, the movement also aims at assisting individuals in building confidence in their bodies. Body positivity stretches beyond challenging society’s view of physical shape and size. It also recognizes that society makes judgments of people based on sexuality, race, disability, and gender. This essay highlights the strengths and weaknesses of the body positivity movement.

Strengths of the Body Positivity Movement

Body Positivity Movement Challenges the Beauty Standards Set by Social Media

One of the strengths of the body positivity movement is that it has helped challenge the standards of beauty that have been set by social media. Nowadays, when one scrolls through applications like Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, and Twitter, it has become a norm to see people with perfectly crafted bodies (Gibson, 32). Particularly on Instragram, the bodies of Instagram models tend to be unrealistically perfect. These images have now become standards of measuring beauty. Social media users should be careful as they go about their business online. They should know that the images they see online are always real. Today, lots of photographers and even social media users use photoshop and filters to modify their features and tune their photos to appear more slim and young. Consequently, many men and women end up succumbing to the pressure and modifying their bodies by undergoing dangerous surgeries hoping to be accepted in society. Luckily, body positivity advocates have made immense strides in retaliating against body-shaming culture. Additionally, they are using social media as a tool to create positive change. These advocates do this by posting positive content about all body types and challenging the narrow ideals that people have about beauty. In essence, the body positivity movement has proved helpful in promoting appreciation and acceptance of all body types.

The Body Positivity Movement Fosters Self-love

Secondly, body positivity is beneficial as it helps foster radical self-love. We live in a society that is obsessed with body culture, which thrives on ideals of what a perfect body what ought to look like. As such, it is not a surprise that many people end up feeling that their body is something to be ashamed of. Rather than learning to accept and love themselves as God created them, they choose to go on a mission to fix themselves. No wonder we see some women going for surgery after surgery in a desperate attempt to rectify a mistake that the previous surgeon missed. Accepting one’s body type is the ultimate act of radical self-love. Self-love stretches beyond what other people see on the outside. One should never feel the need to change a certain aspect about themselves just for the sake of fitting in. Fully accepting oneself and the God-given body type means fully embracing and honoring all aspects of who one is. It does not happen overnight, but once a person starts growing into themselves and accepting themselves, then one cannot be phased by other people’s definition of beauty. The body positivity movement emphasizes that a person’s body and choices are not anybody else’s business. Body positivity stresses self-confidence and living in one’s truth.

Body Positivity Boosts Mental Health

The third strength of the body positivity movement is that it contributes to mental health. How a person feels about their body can affect their self-esteem which by extension impacts mental health. The main challenge with negative thoughts is that once one starts ruminating on one aspect of their life, it gets easier for the individual to start doubting other areas of their life too. Research found that individuals with body dysmorphic disorders or weight preoccupations often demonstrate higher anxiety and depression symptoms. Additionally, they are at more risk of suicidal thoughts than other people. The body positivity movement stresses that the next time a person has negative and unkind thoughts about their bodies, they ought to check their emotional and mental state. Under such circumstances, some of the questions that people should ask themselves are if they are feeling anxious or overwhelmed and what aspects of their life makes them feel so and why. Additionally, when anxious it would be advisable to employ mindful-based practices as they are a great avenue for connecting to body intelligence. The practices also help a person tune into what they need to feel more grounded. One should be more kind to themselves and talk about their body in loving manner and give it the compassion, love and grace it deserves.

Weakness of the Body Positivity Movement

Certain Aspects of the Body Positivity Movement are Misleading

Although the body positivity movement is beneficial, it is not without criticism. One of the weaknesses of the movement is that it implies that it is okay for people to do what they think is right to make them feel better about their appearances. It is unfortunate that people are bombarded with popular messages that include the idea that fitter and thinner people are more beautiful, healthier, and happy. The idea of being thin leads people to take part in unhealthy practices such as extreme diets and work outs, all in the guise of body positivity.

The Body Positivity Movement in Non-inclusive

Another weakness of the body positivity movement is that it is non-inclusive. This is because the movement depicts messages that exclude minority groups, including people of color, the disabled, non binary, and lesbians gays bisexuals transgender and queer (LGBTQ) people. Jameela Jamil, an actress that stars in The Good Place series is deemed as one of the phases of the movement. Jamil talks about miscategorization and says that body positivity is important for people that are abused on streets, not believed by doctors, and can barely find clothing that fits (Frazier and Nadia, 18). She notes that the body positivity movement is not for everyone and that the body positivity conversation tends to shut out people. Actress Jamil instead advocates for body neutrality and body liberation. This approach entails removing a person’s body from the aspect of self-image. She insists that the only reason she takes such a stance is that she cannot be picked on because of her size. Worth noting the other people, particularly those that the body positivity movement targets, do not have the same luxury.

Body Positivity is based on Physical Appearance

Another criticism of the body positivity movement is that it concentrates on a person’s appearance as the most significant aspect of an individual’s self-perception. In so doing, the movement neglects all other aspects of identity in a person which are more important than the looks. In this regard Jamil’s position that suggests that individuals should refrain from using the body to determine self-perception and self-worth is a more inclusive and healthier approach.

Conclusion

In closing, body positivity is not open to everybody. While some individuals are in total support of the body positivity movement, other individuals criticize the movement to the core. Some of the strengths of the body positivity movement is that it helps people foster radical self-love and boost mental health. Additionally, body positivity is significant as it challenges the standards of beauty that have been set by social media. The body positivity movement is weak because it is misleading. It implies that it is okay for people to do what they think is right to make them feel better about their appearances. The movement also depicts messages that exclude minority groups including people of color, the disabled, non binary, and lesbians gays bisexual transgender and queer (LGBTQ) people. Another weakness of the body positivity movement is that it concentrates on a person’s appearance as the most significant aspect of an individual’s self-perception. The body positivity movement should foster appearance and love for one’s body and appearance. The main contribution of the movement to gender studies is that people need to change the way they feel about their bodies. Telling people to be resilient and accept their bombardment can be damaging. All in all, in future, people should try health-focused self-care and adopt body neutrality to build body positivity.

Works Cited

Gibson, Gemma Lucy. Body Positive Babes: An Exploration of the Contemporary Body Positivity Movement and the’Acceptable’Fat Woman’s Body. Diss. University of York, 2020.

Frazier, Cheryl, and Nadia Mehdi. “Forgetting Fatness: The Violent Co-Optation of the Body Positivity Movement.” Debates in Aesthetics 16.1 (2021).