Overcoming Body Image Anxiety in Teens

Overcoming Body Image Anxiety in Teens

 

School vacation is in full swing, and for many teens that means hitting the beach with friends. If you think worrying about teens applying enough sunblock is a big deal, think again. Most teen girls are worrying more about how they look in a swimsuit than the risk of a sunburn. From TV reality show to music videos, young women are comparing how they look in a bikini to the what they see in the media. 

Jennifer Dyl, PhD, of the Bradley Hasbro Children's Research Center in RI, states that "It can be normal for teens to compare themselves to others as they work on arriving at their own unique identities. However, in the area of body image this can take the form of comparing themselves to unrealistic media images."  

GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLAST

Dyl is an expert on the topics of adolescent self-esteem and body disorders, including body dysmorphic disorder.

Girls are constantly bombarded with media messages to mimic a physical ideal depicted by body-baring swimwear or lingerie models in magazines and catalogues. If this is not addressed early on, they may have the same issues about body images as grown women.  

While Dyl states that there is no one specific reason for a person develops a negative self-image, there are usually a number of factors working in combination with one another. Media, peer influence, bullying, clinical depression and past abuse are some of the many reasons for self image issues.

Parents can help their daughters, as well as themselves, according to experts at Bradley Hospital. Making smart choices with your teen is vitally important, including the choice of a swimsuit. Dyl states, "Teens should choose a bathing suit they feel comfortable in; if you feel self-conscious or over-exposed, you will spend your time worried about how you look rather than enjoying yourself. 

She also suggests that young women engage in fun physical activities such as swimming or volleyball that get them focused on what their bodies do, rather than how their bodies look.

"This builds self-esteem and helps them feel better in their own skin," Dyl says.