People experience body shaming regularly, either by the ones they surround themselves with or from social media. So, this is something that, unfortunately, is hard to escape. However, it is possible to find positive ways how to handle it without harming your mental health and well-being. Keep reading to find out how.
1. Don't respond
If you have encountered a situation where someone is bullying you - don't give in. Don't waste your energy on people who have bad intentions. The more you engage with them, the more negativity you are creating around yourself, and it isn't doing any favor to your well-being.
As a former victim of bullying, It seemed like people who bully others are only trying to gain power over those who they think are weaker. It's because they feel overpowered by someone else in their life, which results in trying to project that energy into others.
If you recently have been receiving negative comments about your body or your appearance on Instagram. You can hide offensive comments or manually hide specific phrases that you don't want to appear under your photos. (Go to Instagram settings - Privacy - Comments)
2. Respond with acknowledgment and kindness
If you do want to respond, the most healthiest and positive way how to do it, is with kindness. Be mindful when responding to body-shamers, even though they are the ones being mean to you. Happy people don't bully others, they might be trying to project their insecurities and their own hurt towards you, but they are human beings as well. They just need to realize that with their actions they are simply mirroring themselves and has nothing to do with others.
A great example of a kind and acknowledgeable response is how the actress Lili Reinhart responded to people claiming she looks pregnant. This is what she had to say.
"My body is something that I will NEVER apologize for. My body will constantly go through change. And so will yours. And that's fine. So let's not put so much time and effort into caring about a stranger's figure." Lily Reinhart
3. Focus on yourself and your dreams
When you are building new habits, career, or the life of your dreams, you simply don't have time and energy to focus on people who are being negative towards you. You become too busy focusing on what you feel is best for you and spending time more wisely with people who deserve your time and energy.
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