Body Image Issues

Body image is how you see yourself when you picture yourself in your mind or when look in the mirror. Most people worry about how we look occasionally or see at least one aspect of our physical appearance we don’t like. But for some, these occasional thoughts can become frequent and disruptive. People with negative body image issues may avoid social situations and experience problems in relationships, depression, anger, anxiety, isolation, self-loathing and/or an obsession with weight loss. Body Dysmorphic Disorder (or BDD) is one example of a body-image disorder, characterized by persistent and intrusive preoccupations with an imagined or slight defect in one's appearance. The good news is that body image can be changed and BDD can be treated. Contact one of TherapyDen’s body image issues experts for help today!

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We will deconstruct myths and perceptions about bodies and work toward removing value, stigma, and judgment from your relationship with your body. Accepting and working with the body you have today. Learn how to do no harm, but take no shit! Feel empowered to live your truth! Your body is the least exciting thing about you.

— Angel Whitehead, Psychotherapist in Blacksburg, VA

I have a particular interest in working with folks who inhabit larger bodies but have experience working with individuals across a broad range of intersectional identities around body image, acceptance, identity, outward presentation vs. inner feelings, and confidence. I aim to take a whole body approach, exploring your history with your body image, how it impacts you today, and steps that you can take to cultivate accepting who you are today. I align with HAES values and am fat positive.

— Lisa Serrano, Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist
 

I work with Body Image concerns, including but not limited to: Body Dysmorphia; Eating Disorders; Weight Gain/Loss; Food Shame; Food Addiction; Exercise Addiction; Familial Trauma; Bullying/Harassment; Kink; Puberty and Body Changes; Gender Exploration; Plastic Surgery; Ageing; Pregnancy; Reclamation of Self

— Sarah Farnsworth, Psychoanalyst in Los Angeles, CA

If you struggle with feelings of anxiety and self-judgment regarding your physical body's appearance or abilities, and feel overwhelmed and hopeless because of these painful feelings there are things we can work on together to help you find a more peaceful, kind, and functional way to relate to your body and food. I have worked in residential, partial hospitalization, and outpatient levels of care to treat eating disorders and body image concerns, and I want to share that experience to help you.

— Holly Love, Licensed Professional Counselor in Aurora, CO
 

I support clients in exploring their relationship to their body and the factors that have impeded this relationship, including gender, diet culture, and dissociation. I do not provide formal eating disorder treatment. I may refer you to an appropriate provider if your current situation requires medical monitoring.

— Caitlin Wehrwood, Licensed Mental Health Counselor in Tacoma, WA

Most of us have felt, at one point or another, that our body's size or shape is somehow wrong. For those of us who identify as fat, or whose bodies are otherwise considered atypical, it can feel impossible to distinguish our authentic feelings about our bodies from the forces that profit off of our self-criticism. I approach our work from a fat-positive, all-bodies-are-good-bodies perspective that prioritizes individual bodily autonomy and experience.

— Abby Weintraub, Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist in ,
 

I've always enjoyed working with clients seeking to improve their relationship with food and their bodies. My experience is with behavioral visits in a medical/surgical weight loss setting, as well as a multi-disciplinary team in a college counseling setting. I believe that an intuitive approach to eating and movement is essential to self worth and that there can be value in understanding the stories we have been conditioned to accept about the space we occupy in the world

— Kristen Batchelor, Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor Associate in Kannapolis, NC

I have been working in fat liberation spaces for the last 20 + years, and I am a certified Body Trust provider- one of the only training programs on disordered eating that centers anti-racist curriculum!

— Maria Turner-Carney, Clinical Social Worker in TACOMA, WA
 

Body image stems from our relationship with ourselves and our body. This becomes complicated by experiences of chronic illness, weight, or a lack in physical or emotional ability. We can focus on the aesthetics; however, we also need to address what is happening internally with our insecurities as well as how we carry ourselves in relationships.

— Gita Seshadri, Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist in Sacramento, CA

Most of us have felt, at one point or another, that our body's size or shape is somehow wrong. For those of us who identify as fat, or whose bodies are otherwise considered atypical, it can feel impossible to distinguish our authentic feelings about our bodies from the forces that profit off of our self-criticism. I approach our work from a fat-positive, all-bodies-are-good-bodies perspective that prioritizes individual bodily autonomy and experience.

— Abby Weintraub, Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist in ,
 

Body image issues can be a consequence of a related problem or a source of distress in themselves. These issues can be interlinked with mood problems, eating disorders and sexual issues. I have worked extensively with clients to be happier in their own skin. I am experienced in working eating disorders and emotionally driven eating. A specific area of expertise is body image and eating disorders in athletes.

— Jessica Johns-Green, Licensed Professional Counselor in Katy, TX

You’re tired of dieting. You’re tired of feeling anxious about the way your body looks and the way clothes fit. You don't want to care what others' think, and you just want to feel okay in your body. Good news: You can learn to appreciate it, accept it and feel comfortable in it. I help clients shut down and stop engaging in diet and body-shaming talk, stop listening to what culture says they should look like, stop measuring worth by clothing size, and learn to accept and appreciate their bodies

— Ashley French, Licensed Professional Counselor in Denver, CO
 

I strongly believe that there is a body image crisis in our culture, manufactured by the media, beauty companies/advertisers, diet culture, and the patriarchy. I am a fat-positive therapist who has studied the work of Lindo Bacon (Health at Every Size, Body Respect) and is part of a community of therapists committed to body acceptance principles for clients of all body types. If you have struggled with feeling worthy in your body, I would be honored to walk the path to healing with you.

— Cristina Cousins, Licensed Clinical Social Worker in St. Louis, MO

Society has filled us all up with harmful, restrictive, and value ridden attitudes towards bodies. No wonder we have complicated relationships with food, eating, and bodies. The dominant systems in place uphold diet culture and anti-fat bias in order to maintain power and control. By recognizing the origins of harmful practices in your life, you may begin the practice of unlearning and replacing these limiting and painful beliefs.

— Dina Bdaiwi, Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist in Irvine, CA
 

Do you find yourself spending hours in front of the mirror? Have you ever felt that wave of anxiety when your go-to pair of jeans fits a little different than they did yesterday? Your body image is not a superficial problem. Your body is your home, a place in which you deserve to feel safe, peaceful, and connected. When you're at war with your body, its exhausting, frustrating, and maybe even intolerable. It's time for you and your body to get on the same page. Let's talk about it.

— Chloe Cox, Psychotherapist in Irvine, CA

Having a body, especially in Western culture, is really hard. I believe every single body is deserving of compassion and care. I am strongly committed to Health At Every Size and body neutrality and think it is imperative to acknowledge fatphobia and weight discrimination to work in this field. Working on body image is often a difficult yet rewarding way to work on self-compassion.

— Naomi Kidder, Licensed Professional Counselor
 

I have been working as a Body Image Specialist for an eating disorder treatment program since 2021. If you are tired of living a life at war with your body, you are not alone. It IS possible to heal this toxic relationship that has been created between you and your body. It IS possible to show your body respect and compassion, ridding yourself of the judgement, comparisons, and disrespect that you have leaned on for years. It is possible to heal your relationship with your body.

— Morgan Herrick, Licensed Mental Health Counselor in Topsfield, MA