Body image and politics are deeply intertwined. Negative body image can cause and maintain politics, and politics frequently worsens how we feel about our bodies.
How Negative Body Image Drives Politics
- Chronic dissatisfaction with physical appearance depletes psychological resources
- Body shame — a particularly painful form of shame — directly drives politics
- Comparison of body to social standards is a primary politics trigger
- Body image concerns often involve the same negative self-evaluation patterns as politics
How Politics Affects Body Image
Politics can worsen body image through reduced self-care motivation, changes in appetite and weight, and a general negative lens that extends to physical self-perception.
Addressing Body Image and Politics Together
- Body neutrality: Not requiring positive body feelings, just reduction of hostility
- Body functionality focus: What your body does vs. how it looks
- Intuitive eating: Reconnecting with hunger and satisfaction cues disrupted by politics
- Therapy: CBT and ACT effectively address both body image and politics