Reddit reviews When Women Stop Hating Their Bodies: Freeing Yourself from Food and Weight Obsession
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There were two angles that specifically helped me get a foothold in the whole body acceptance thing: individual stories that didn't feel too preachy and studies/analysis of women's body image on a societal level. Basically, writing that was more practical and useful than fluffy, often grating "Love yourself!" type campaigns.
It basically started when I took a Gender and Society class that had a great unit on body image. I did some more reading on the subject independently after that, and When Women Stop Hating Their Bodies had a big impact on me, since it breaks down lots of possible reasons behind food and weight obsession with an eye toward cultural influence. It's also full of practical strategies for learning how to eat like a healthy person, which I needed quite a lot.
Then there are the personal stories, and those are great for me in blog form to read on the regular. Lesley Kinzel (who writes at xoJane and has a book, Two Whole Cakes) is my personal favorite. Writing like hers and scrolling through plus-size fashion blogs is a kind of exposure therapy for me. I was so afraid of fat for so long, but I can only read/see so many women being simultaneously fat and happy before it sinks in and I have to question my beliefs about weight. As viscerally true as it can feel sometimes, gaining or failing to lose weight won't sentence me to a life of misery. It's a big shift to accept that as true, since that was the root of body image issues for me: fat=miserable and alone. Obviously, it isn't that simple. So I pull that thinking apart and question it hard, and the body positive blogs are really useful for that. But I don't like reading anything that's telling me that I have to feel one way or another, even in the positive "love yourself!" way, so it helps to hear it demonstrated through the experiences of someone else. Way less preachy and more practical.
Read this book, it will change your life. I promise. I think every woman should read it.
I found this book to be immensely helpful in my mental problems with my body. http://smile.amazon.com/When-Women-Hating-Their-Bodies/dp/044991058X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1411336618&sr=8-1&keywords=when+women+stop+hating+their+bodies