How to Encourage a Good Body Image in Teen Girls
Body image plays a large part in a girl's overall self-confidence. You may feel that your physical appearance is lacking in areas you have no control over, such as a large bone structure or freckles to something controllable such as weight. Having a negative body image increases the risk of eating disorders, depression, and an obsession with weight loss. Encouraging a teen female to have a healthy body image is crucial as they develop into young adults.
Other People Are Reading
Instructions
-
-
1
Focus on her strengths instead of allowing her to focus on what she wants to change or where she's lacking. If she can't play soccer because she can't run fast or consistently, perhaps she hits a killer home run in softball. Encourage her to explore all her areas of interest to find where her expertise is whether it's in sports, art, music or education.
-
2
Monitor her media viewing and talk to her about it. The media plays a large part in how a teenage girl develops a body image. Approximately half the advertisements and one-third of all articles in teenage magazines focus on something related to the body or self appearance. The contrast between advertisements geared toward women's television shows and men's television shows is vast. Some 56 percent of commercials shown during women's television shows focuses on beauty, compared with only 3 percent for men's shows.
-
-
3
Compliment your teen girl frequently, not just when she looks good physically. While you may think she's gorgeous with makeup and a new dress for a formal dance, does she still feel as beautiful when she's in other clothes around the house? Let her know how shiny her hair is, how enlightening her latest essay she wrote was or how creative her newest story is. Compliments make men and women of all ages feel good, but frequent compliments teach teen girls to continue to excel.
-
4
Seek out positive role models. Instead of focusing on fashion models or Barbie-like women, encourage her to strive to be like her favorite female musician, artist or writer. These types of messages show her that she can excel in life and be positive about her self-image, while learning to embrace not only her strengths but her weaknesses as well and develop them.
-
1
References
- Photo Credit BananaStock/BananaStock/Getty Images
