So often our body image impacts the food choices we make, whether we realise it or not.
Body image is deep-rooted, i.e a core belief that it’s not enough, or a sense of not feeling worthy, & projected onto the body.
What we predict to see is more influential than what we actually see.
So instead of:
“Let me see what I look like”
The process is more like: “I already know this is going to be “wrong” – now I’m checking to confirm it”
That anticipation does a few things:
In other words, the mirror isn’t the start of the experience: the experience starts before the mirror.
To help you understand: The area of the brain that is responsible for body image is the parietal lobe; when that’s activated, our perception can be skewed, e.g we don’t see our bodies accurately / how everyone else sees it. Also, the brain creates emotions by perceptions, e.g if you ate “off plan” or skipped a session and had thoughts of gaining weight because of that, that perception would be more influential than how your body actually looks. Body image is most influenced by what we predict to see rather than what we actually see. This is why when we feel out of control with life and/or food, our brain can filter what we see in the mirror, aka “feeling fat”.
Keep these points in mind to support yourself in managing those moments, e.g “this isn’t 100% accurate” can be comforting and help with emotional regulation too, which is a whole other part of it. When you are dysregulated and overwhelmed, it’s difficult to think rationally and have clarity, so the number one goal is always to regulate yourself and your body (breath, self-touch, fresh air, journaling, etc).
And download this free guide to support your own relationship with your body.