How to Reverse the Body Loathing Epidemic

Alison BurtonI hope you’ve had a good week. I’ve had a very full week. We have lots happening at Simply Natural at the moment and it can sometimes be a challenge to know where to direct my energy.  Chasing six rabbits at once doesn’t always work well and sometimes it feels like we do far too many things. The problem is I love every one of them.

There are two principles that guide my work and what we do at Simply Natural. One is the idea of bringing common sense back to health care.  If we start with basic nutrition, managing stress and detoxing our bodies most health issues resolve themselves.  In fact the results of a recent study showed that in 30% of cases of severe depression, switching to a Mediterranean diet totally reversed the symptoms.  Unfortunately the first step for most doctors is to prescribe anti-depressants. To my mind, this defies common sense.

My other guiding principal is that true health depends on the health of our mind, body and soul, not just our body.  It’s not just about being symptom free it’s about being enlightened, vibrant, empowered and joyful.  That’s why we don’t “discharge” our clients once they are free of pain, we direct them to Yoga and Meditation and workshops to connect them to their heart and soul and their intuition.

On Sunday night I watched the movie Embrace by Taryn Brumfitt.  Taryn became increasing disturbed by the pressure women are under (and put themselves under) to be beautiful. This pressure has resulted in an epidemic of body loathing and fostered a multi-billion dollar industry of fad diets and cosmetic surgery.  Some of the disturbing statistics in the movie are:

  • 70% of girls are dissatisfied with their body
  • 45% of women in the healthy weight range think they’re overweight
  • Australians spend around $1 million a day on fad diets
  • More than 50% of 5 to 12 year olds want to lose weight
  • Of all the cosmetic procedures in the world 86.3% are performed on women
  • 4 million women in the US have cosmetic surgery every year

After the birth of her first child Taryn went on a strict diet and underwent a gruelling training regime to recover her pre-baby body. She succeeded and actually entered into a body-building competition with a perfect bikini body.  She ended up realising she simply wasn’t happy and the other girls in the competition still weren’t happy.  The dream they had all aspired to was a nightmare and they were still critical of their bodies.  She decided she and her family had made too many sacrifices so she could fit the media image of what a woman should look like.

Taryn said that her obsession with looking good had taken up too much time, too much energy, too much head space and she decided it wasn’t worth it. The very next day something switched in her head and she realised that her body wasn’t an ornament, it was a vehicle for her to live her life. She wanted to be healthy and active and enjoy life. She also wanted to enjoy food and love her body whatever shape or size it was.

She also wanted to encourage other women to make peace with their bodies.  One night she posted a before and after photo on Facebook.  The before shot was her perfect bikini body and the after was her post baby shot.  Her message was to love your body.  It went viral and she virtually became a celebrity overnight.

Taryn’s message is one I’ve been passionate about for many years.  I truly believe that if women want to be liberated, empowered and step up in the world we HAVE to stop obsessing about our looks and we HAVE to stop hating our bodies.  There are so many more worthwhile things in life to focus on. Imagine if we spent those million dollars a day on eliminating hunger and poverty.

Now, having said that it might sound hypocritical to tell you that we offer a Weight Loss Program at Simply Natural.  If you’ve experienced our approach to weight loss you’ll know that we have a very different approach to other programs.  Over the years I’ve found that weight issues often go hand in hand with depression and poor self-esteem.  That’s why it’s so important to address the underlying emotions rather than just help you lose kilos.

Here are our Dos and Don’ts for a healthy approach to weight loss:

DON’T:

  • Don’t weigh and measure yourself
  • Don’t “body shame” yourself
  • Don’t obsess about your physical appearance
  • Don’t be critical of others appearance or weight
  • Don’t do restriction diets
  • Don’t count calories
  • Don’t talk with friends about weight and dieting

DO:

  • Stop measuring your self worth on the scales
  • Work to become the happiest, healthiest version of yourself
  • Love and look after your body
  • Nourish your body well
  • Make sure your digestion is working well
  • Make sure your hormones are in balance
  • Reduce your stress
  • Move your body regularly

If you’re unhappy with your body I strongly suggest you watch Embrace. We’ll be screening it at Kindred Spirits on Thursday morning next week. It should be compulsory viewing for everyone in every developed country in the world!

And if would like to know more about our team approach to help you make peace with your body, make peace with food and be as happy and healthy as you can then book your Free Health Assessment here. CLICK HERE

Have an awesome week,

Warm Regards,
Alison Burton
Health and Happiness Guru

Simply Natural Therapies
41 Tunstall Square
East Doncaster
VIC 3109
03 9842 7033
info@simplynaturaltherapies.com.au
www.simplynaturaltherapies.com.au

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Alison Burton is one of Melbourne’s leading Hypnotherapists and owner of Simply Natural Therapies. Alison is a sought after public speaker and has appeared on ABC National Radio, SBS Radio and is a regular guest on 3WBC Radio. She has also featured in The Age, Herald Sun, Insight Magazine and local news media. Alison has a keen interest in all aspects of natural health and wellbeing, energy medicine, human consciousness and bringing more common sense and kindness to the planet.
Alison’s interest in energy healing is often incorporated in her work through the use of Reiki, Kinergetics and acupressure techniques including Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT).
She has three adult children and 2 adorable grandchildren.
Alison lives Melbourne’s Eastern suburbs and runs a Natural Health Centre with 15 practitioners, an extensive range of classes including HypnoBirthing, and a retail shop.

Alison offers a FREE 60 Minute Health and Wellbeing Consultation to clarify your needs and design a strategy to help you achieve your health and well-being goals

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