Body satisfaction still a ‘massive issue’ for young women

A workshop on women’s body image later this month hopes to help women ignore the pressure of the scales.

The workshop, called Body Satisfaction is Not a Number, is being run by the Auckland Women’s Centre in Grey Lynn, an organisation that promotes the empowerment of women.

The purpose of the workshop is to inform women about how body stereotypes are formed and how it affects the way women look at their own bodies.

Eating issues counsellor Jane Tyrer, a tutor for Auckland Women’s Centre, will be leading the workshop, which will cover the issues around negative body images for women, where they came from and what the alternatives are.

Ms Tyrer said there is a “massive issue” around body satisfaction where women feel judged by their body instead of their qualities.

“The workshop focuses heavily on looking at an alternative to body dissatisfaction. I think often women’s sense of wellbeing is indexed heavily to body, but there is a lot more to it than just numbers on a scale or looking in a mirror,” said Ms Tyrer.

“I think we can find other ways to value and appreciate ourselves. We need to minimise the exposure to unrealistic images, and focus more on what our bodies can do rather then what they look like.”

Ms Tyrer believes that the idea of body satisfaction through appearance starts at a young age and can lead to eating disorders.

“I think one of the things we do is that little girls are often encouraged to see themselves by their appearance which include comments such as, ‘You look so pretty’ and ‘You look so lovely’.

“It would be really useful for young girls, women and older women to be valued by other things at a young age, such as their flexibility, their strengths and their resourcefulness,” said Ms Tyrer.

Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA) team manager, Kendal Collins, runs the future leaders programme for the association and teaches young women about being body positive.

“As role models for young women, it is important to convey a strong message of self-worth, especially as it relates to a young woman’s body.

“Young women are told frequently that their appearance should conform to various standards whether it be in size, ethnicity or general appearance. In order for a young woman to feel empowered in her decision-making for the future, she must first feel that she is one of a kind and unique,” said Ms Collins.

Body image blogger Poppi Tucker-Low is open to showing her body off on social media to help promote positive body image.

“I post a lot of images of my body on my account so that women can look at my pictures and think, it’s okay to express your body freely no matter what size, age or race you are,” said Miss Tucker-Low.

Miss Tucker-Low's Instagram is filled with images of her body. Photo: Schariona Parker-Potoi

Miss Tucker-Low believes that expressing her body freely on Instagram will hopefully encourage women to express their bodies freely too and promote positive body image to young girls.

Ms Tyrer said she hopes the upcoming workshop can help benefit women’s knowledge about the history behind a lack of body satisfaction.

The workshop will be held on June 18 at the Auckland Women’s Centre in Grey Lynn. For more information visit http://awc.org.nz/.