Almost everyone carries a memory of being made to feel wrong in their own body. A comment from a relative at a family gathering. A cruel nickname at school. A stranger's glance that lingered a beat too long. Body shaming rarely announces itself as something serious in the moment, but its effects can settle in quietly and stay for years.
At Insight, we see body image concerns show up often, sometimes as the main reason someone reaches out, and sometimes as something that surfaces once we start talking about stress, sleep, or general wellbeing. This piece is about understanding that connection honestly, and what a healthier relationship with your body can realistically look like.
What Body Shaming Actually Does to Mental Health
It's tempting to treat body shaming as a minor unpleasantness rather than something that genuinely affects wellbeing, but the research doesn't support that. Studies consistently link body shaming and body-related shame to higher rates of low self-esteem, anxiety, and depression, and to a greater risk of disordered eating [1]. One study found that body-focused shame was actually a stronger predictor of these outcomes than general feelings of shame, suggesting there's something particular about how deeply appearance-based criticism can settle into a person's sense of self [1].
None of this means everyone who's experienced body shaming will develop a mental health condition. It does mean that if you've noticed persistent low mood, anxiety, or a strained relationship with food or exercise following years of criticism about your body, that reaction makes complete sense, and it's worth taking seriously rather than brushing off.
The Shift Toward Body Positivity, and Its Real Limits
The body positivity movement has done something genuinely valuable: it's pushed back against narrow, unrealistic beauty standards and made more room for a wider range of bodies to be seen and represented. For a lot of people, that shift has been meaningful.
At the same time, it's worth being honest that body positivity isn't a magic fix, and it isn't right for everyone at every moment. Critics, including psychologists, have pointed out that the pressure to feel constantly positive or celebratory about your body can become its own burden, sometimes described as a form of "toxic positivity," especially for people managing illness, disability, or a difficult relationship with food [2]. Some days, loving your body simply isn't accessible, and that's not a personal failure.
This is part of why many therapists now also talk about body neutrality, an approach that focuses less on how your body looks and more on what it does for you, allowing space for your body to just be, without needing to feel good or bad about it on any given day [2]. For many people, alternating between body positivity and body neutrality, depending on the day, feels more sustainable than aiming for constant self-love.
What a Healthier Relationship With Your Body Can Look Like
There's no single formula, and we'd be doing you a disservice pretending otherwise. That said, a few shifts tend to come up often in people's own accounts of this journey:
- Noticing self-critical thoughts without necessarily believing them. You don't have to argue yourself into loving your body to stop automatically agreeing with every critical thought about it.
- Paying attention to what your body does, not just how it looks. Carrying groceries, walking somewhere you love, hugging someone you care about. This is closer to body neutrality than body positivity, and for many people, it's an easier place to start.
- Being selective about who and what you let into your feed and your ear. Constant exposure to appearance-focused commentary, even well-meaning "compliments," can keep the focus on how you look rather than how you feel.
- Allowing bad body-image days without treating them as a setback. This isn't a linear journey, and a hard day doesn't undo progress you've made.
What We Offer at Insight
We want to be clear about something important: we are not a replacement for therapy or specialist mental health care, and if body shaming has contributed to depression, anxiety, disordered eating, or thoughts of self-harm, we'd always encourage speaking with a therapist, counsellor, or your GP alongside anything else you try.
What we can offer is support for the whole-person picture that often sits alongside body image struggles: chronic stress, poor sleep, and a nervous system that feels constantly on edge. Many patients find that cranial energy sessions and a consultation-led approach to general wellbeing help them feel calmer and more grounded, which can make the harder emotional work, whether that's therapy, self-compassion practice, or simply getting through a hard week, feel more manageable.
We see this as one part of a body positivity mental wellness journey, not the whole of it.
You Deserve Support, Not Judgement
If reading this resonates with your own experience, we want you to know that struggling with body image after years of criticism or shame is an entirely understandable response, not a character flaw. Whether you're just starting to notice how body shaming has affected you, or you've been working on this for years, you deserve support along the way.
If you're in London and would like to talk through how we might support your wider wellbeing alongside your own mental health care, we invite you to book a consultation.
Disclaimer: This information is not a substitute for professional mental health care. If body shaming has contributed to depression, anxiety, disordered eating, or thoughts of self-harm, please speak with a GP, therapist, or counsellor. If you are in crisis, contact your GP, NHS 111, or the Samaritans on 116 123 (UK, free, 24/7).
References
- Multiple studies cited in this piece draw on research reviewed in: Body Shaming and Women's Mental Health: Public Health Challenge for Gender Equity, a perspective article. PMID: 42376360; and Psychology Today's coverage of body-shame research: "Body Shame Is a Powerful Predictor of Poor Mental Health." Available at: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/beauty-sick/202305/body-shame-is-a-powerful-predictor-of-poor-mental-health
- Fuller K. Body positivity vs. body neutrality: what each one is and how a dual approach may be best. Verywell Mind. Available at: https://www.verywellmind.com/body-positivity-vs-body-neutrality-5184565; and Cleveland Clinic. "Body Positivity vs. Body Neutrality." Available at: https://health.clevelandclinic.org/body-positivity-vs-body-neutrality