When you look in the mirror, how do you react?

This flower arrangement, part of the bouquets to art exhibit at the de Young Museum in San Francisco is the florist’s impression of the mirror in the background.  What if you could see yourself as a beautiful bouquet of flowers?

So often, women see themselves as a series of misshapen or wrongly sized body parts.  They attack “fat” as the villain in their personal screenplay.  Sizes of noses, eyes, ears, thighs, arms, even feet, can be scrutinized with hated.  In women’s therapy we work together to humanize and integrate the body and its parts.  Looking in the mirror is a scary but helpful way to begin peeking at something lovely to discover.  Positive body image is a work in progress.  Moving your body, whether it be in a yoga pose, an exercise class, hiking, or walking, has the potential to be a dance of affection and strength.  Changing your attitude towards your body isn’t easy, but there is so much to gain.

If losing weight is your only goal, you are actually losing out on the truth about you and your body.  If you experience hatred towards yourself because of what you see in the mirror, psychotherapy may be something for you to consider.