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Body ImageBy Barb Lydon1http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IWzbIVwGd1E&feature=player_embedded

Confidence & Self-Esteem Building in Young Girls Dove Video clip.

2What is body Image?Body Image is how you see yourself when you look in the mirror or when you picture yourself in your mind.

What you believe about your own appearance (including your memories, assumptions, and generalizations).

How you feel about your body, including your height, shape, and weight.

How you sense and control your body as you move; how you feel in your body, not just about your body.

3Negative Body Image isA distorted perception of your shape you perceive parts of your body unlike they really are.You are convinced that only other people are attractive and that your body size or shape is a sign of personal failure.You feel ashamed, self-conscious and anxious about your body.You feel uncomfortable and awkward in your body.

4Positive Body Image isA clear, true perception of your shape you see yourself as you really are.You celebrate and appreciate your natural body shape and you understand that physical appearance says very little about a persons character and values.You are proud and accepting of your unique body.You feel comfortable and confident in your body.5Self-Esteem is defined as an individuals perceived feelings of value and self-worth. A person with high self-esteem is more self-accepting, possesses high self-worth, and has a positive self-image.A person with low self-esteem is often self-critical, has low self-worth, and has a negative self-image.The way we feel about ourselves affects the way we view ourselves. Body image distortion is when we perceive ourselves as being heavier (or smaller) than we actually are. Body image distortion occurs more frequently for women than for men. Research suggests that the distortion that women have over the difference between how they currently look and how they think they should look (perceived ideal beauty) is the cause of various disorders and appearance-related practices.

6QUIZ TIME!

78 million women in the U.S. suffer from anorexia and bulimia (NIH 2005)42% of 1st-3rd graders want to be thinner.Approximately 90-95% of anorexia nervosa sufferers are girls and women (American Psychiatric Association, 1994).Between 0.51% of American women suffer from anorexia nervosa.Anorexia nervosa is one of the most common psychiatric diagnoses in young women (Hsu, 1996).Between 5-20% of individuals struggling with anorexia nervosa will die. The probabilities of death increases within that range depending on the length of the condition (Zerbe, 1995).A 2003 study found that 40% of newly identified cases of anorexia are in girls 15-19 years old.

FYI8FYIEating Disorders Not Just a Girl Problem

About 1 million men in the U.S. are struggling with an eating disorder.

9AnorexiaAnorexia nervosa is a serious, potentially life-threatening eating disorder characterized by self-starvation and excessive weight loss..

104 Primary Symptoms of AnorexiaResistance to maintaining body weight at or above a minimally normal weight for age and height.Intense fear of weight gain or being fat, even though underweight.Disturbance in the experience of body weight or shape, undue influence of weight or shape on self-evaluation, or denial of the seriousness of low body weight.Loss of menstrual periods in girls and women post-puberty.11What can we do as teachers?Dramatic weight loss.Preoccupation with weight, food, calories, fat grams, and dieting.Refusal to eat certain foods, progressing to restrictions against whole categories of food (e.g. no carbohydrates, etc.).Frequent comments about feeling fat or overweight despite weight loss and or Anxiety about gaining weight or being fat.Denial of hunger.Development of food rituals (e.g. eating foods in certain orders, excessive chewing, rearranging food on a plate).Consistent excuses to avoid mealtimes or situations involving food.Excessive, rigid exercise regimen--despite weather, fatigue, illness, or injury, the need to burn off calories taken in.Withdrawal from usual friends and activities.Eating disorders experts have found that prompt intensive treatment significantly improves the chances of recovery. Therefore, it is important to be aware of some of the warning signs of anorexia nervosa.12Be ProactiveListen to our students.Pay attention to the warning signs.Utilize school counselors especially when in doubt.Affirm your students worth.Model healthy practices.13Resources for parents and teachers14