The Perimenopause Body Positivity Predicament

I've been treating patients with eating disorders and body image struggles for many years. I've been teaching young women about the importance of striving for and maintaining a positive body image. I have spent hours training to become certified in facilitating these conversations. I have always felt capable and qualified to have these conversations. I am transparent with my students, patients and clients that I have a history of body image struggles that I have overcome using many of the strategies I am teaching them.

Enter Perimenopause ~ Perimenopause is weird and annoying. Just when you think you have a handle on what is happening in your body, a new obscure symptom pops up just to throw you off. The changes I am struggling with the most, however, are the changes in the shape and size of my body. All of a sudden, my clothes fit differently and the types of food and beverages significantly affect the way I feel. Over the last several months, I have found myself researching supplements, changing my diet and avoiding certain clothes. And while some of this is appropriate, as my body needs different nutrients as it changes, many of the reasons behind my research have been related to my negative body image. As a result, I've also been experiencing a sense of hypocrisy as I talk with my current clients about maintaining a positive body image, knowing that I am struggling, as well.

So, I decided to flip the narrative. I have decided to follow my own advice. I am focusing on what my body can do for me. I am engaging in the activities that make me feel strong and confident in my body's abilities. I am making yoga a priority. I am celebrating every pose. I am pushing through the physical therapy for my knee to regain my previous abilities. I am reminding myself that my changing body has different nutritional needs and I'm trying to provide those. Protein, anyone?!?!?!? I am also consciously noticing features I am happy with every day. Lastly, I am reminding myself that this is normal. Change is scary, but it can be beautiful.

As I am navigating these doubts and practicing the tools to regain a positive body image, I am sharing with my clients. We are all human and we will all have good days and days where we can't seem to get off the struggle bus, so let's talk about it. I describe to them how all of a sudden my social media algorithm is showing me tons of advertisements and reels about the various insecurities I have developed. Sound familiar? I then move that into a conversation on how we can manipulate our algorithms to display more positive and helpful information. I have noticed myself falling into the traps these social media influencers set. I'm having to remind myself that they are selling a product. Has this happened to you? If my 40-something year old brain is having difficulty separating the emotional from the rational thinking when it comes to my self-doubt, how especially challenging must this be for a developing adolescent brain. Tween and teen girls want to feel understood and just telling them to "feel good about your body" isn't going to work. As adult women, many of us are starting through the perimenopause journey, and we should be having open discussions with our girls on why body positivity is so challenging and how we are going to navigate it together. It is so incredibly important that we love ourselves. Life is beautiful and so are we.