Build a Great Body Image In Spite Of Chronic Pain
You’ll receive many great benefits from appreciating, respecting, and learning to love your natural body shape, even if you are dealing with chronic pain.
You can learn to love yourself just the way you are while still working on becoming healthier and managing your pain. Try these strategies to increase your comfort with your body:
Appreciate everything your body can do for you, even if you are dealing with chronic pain. Consider that your body is still able to move, breathe, and perform daily tasks, even if it is more challenging. That's impressive.
List the top 5-10 things you love about your body, even if some of them are related to how it helps you manage chronic pain. It might be your resilience, your ability to rest, your support system, or your adaptive strategies. Take a few minutes to think about it or ask your loved ones.
Acknowledge that physical beauty is only skin deep, and that your value is not determined by your pain or limitations. The beauty of your character and your inner strength can shine through despite the challenges you face.
Keep your thoughts positive, even when you are struggling with pain. We all have the power to choose our thoughts. Think kind and encouraging things about yourself and avoid letting negative self-talk creep in.
Wear clothes that make you feel good and comfortable, even if they are adapted to your pain or mobility needs. Find clothing that helps you feel confident and supported.
Realize that society's role models for the physical ideal are impractical and often unrealistic for those dealing with chronic pain. Your body may look different from others, but it is still valuable and deserving of love and respect.
Think about the most impressive people throughout history who also dealt with chronic pain or illness. Ask yourself how much their body or appearance mattered to their success. Do you think it mattered at all? The most important accomplishments in history were often achieved by people who faced significant challenges.
Ask yourself how you're benefiting from disliking your body or your pain. Is it making you feel worse, more isolated, or less effective? Is it keeping you from enjoying the things you love? Chances are, all the results of your negative thoughts are negative. This realization can help put you back on the road to thinking more positively about yourself.
List 5 reasons why it is silly to believe that the more slender or attractive are happier, especially when dealing with chronic pain. You can certainly think of 5 without too much effort. Happiness is not determined by external appearance, and people with chronic pain can find joy and fulfillment in their lives.
Exercise because it feels good and helps manage your pain, not for the sole purpose of losing weight or looking a certain way. Enjoy moving your body and lifting your mood by naturally releasing your endorphins with exercise. If you need to lose weight, the accompanying weight loss is a great bonus, but not the main focus.
Take some time to implement these tips to help you enjoy and appreciate your body more, even if you are dealing with chronic pain. It's important to keep the whole issue in perspective and focus on the positives. Think about all the incredible things that your body does for you each and every day, despite the challenges you face. Once you’re able to stop focusing on whether or not your body looks “perfect” or free from pain, you can move forward with things that are most important to you, like creating the life you desire in the here and now (not “someday when you feel better”).