_{Do you speak to yourself with kindness or judgement?}

Have you noticed the tone and content of your negative body image thoughts? Are they harsh, disrespectful, judgemental? Is this the sort of tone you’d use when speaking with a friend?

Often people think they need to talk to themselves in this manner in order to create change and to feel better about themselves. They believe that harsh criticism will help them to eat healthier or exercise more. But does it? Or does it just perpetuate the very beliefs that sustain a person’s negative body image?

It’s common for people to say, “I’ll be kind to myself once I reach my goal weight. Everything will feel better once I’ve reached my goal weight”. But at what cost?

You don’t have to wait until you feel better about your body to start speaking to yourself with kindness and respect. What would it be like to adopt a more compassionate tone? Or to speak to yourself like you would speak to a friend?