CREATE A POSITIVE SELF-IMAGE

The process of building a positive self-image can take a lifetime. Your self-image is the mental image you have of both your physical body and yourself as an individual. Feelings and images that come to mind when you think about yourself are important. A healthy body image means feeling good about yourself and accepting yourself as you are. Self-image also includes how you view yourself in terms of your strengths, weaknesses, and abilities. The way we view ourselves impacts how we feel about ourselves, how we relate to others, and how we interact with the world around us. A positive self-image can contribute to our physical, psychological, social, emotional, and spiritual well-being.

Bullying or peer pressure can negatively impact a person’s self-image. It can lead to symptoms of low self-worth, anxiety, depression, and a feeling of not belonging. Cyberbullying, social media, and images in the media can amplify this. Advertising and the media, in general, often restrict the idea of beauty to one interpretation; it appears that you have to look or act in a certain way to be successful or attractive. In this way, we can be pressured to conform to someone else’s idea of what is good or attractive. Having a healthy self-image starts with accepting and loving yourself and to be accepted and loved by others.

Dr Ora Marx