Body Image Therapy in Tampa
Hi, my name is Keri, and I’m a Body Image Therapist in Tampa, FL.
You may be feeling uncomfortable in your clothes, and that your constant body worries are holding you back from experiences that you desperately want to have. You wouldn’t wish this upon anyone – hating the way you look in the mirror or when you see a photo of yourself, and the nasty comments you make to yourself in your head (or god forbid out loud) I understand, and I’m here to help.
I help people move through their body image challenges and live a life that they value.
If you’re ready to start feeling better, let’s connect.
My Approach to Body Image Therapy
You look at other people just out there living their best lives – while you stay at home and avoid the people and places that make you feel even worse about yourself. The worst part is that you just can’t understand how they do it because you have felt this way for so. damn. long. You try to convince yourself that if you could just lose the weight/be more toned/(enter a myriad of other body woes here) that your body image would improve. But – deep down you know it’s not the case. Your body has looked different/changed at multiple points throughout your life and you have always felt the same. You know there is more out there but you have absolutely no clue where to start. It feels so overwhelming, lonely, and just plain hard.
You aren’t alone in these struggles.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with you or how you are feeling. So many people feel the same way you do – but instead of working on improving our negative body image, we are told to work on changing our bodies. I see clients in my office day after day with these struggles. In fact, I can’t tell you the last client I saw who didn’t struggle in some way with how they feel about their body.
The society that we live in breeds body image distress. It tells us that our bodies are wrong and bad. It instills upon us that there is one type of body that can be accepted.
We are taught from a young age about how we “should” look, and that we are as in control of what our bodies look like and do as we are what our favorite color is.
The truth is that it’s all bullshit. It’s a tactic of a capitalist and patriarchal society used to keep us small and in line. It does not take into account that bodies are all different. They all look different, move differently, love differently. And there is absolutely NOTHING wrong with that. In fact, is it normal, real, and true and should be celebrated instead of diminished.
I think that inside you are loud and opinionated and want to be seen. I have a deep understanding of how you feel because I’ve been through it myself. I bootstrapped my way through my own negative body image struggles. I scoured social media, read books, took lengthy and intense trainings, and came out on the other side. This is not easy work to do on your own and you deserve a partner to help guide you. Do I sometimes still feel body image distress? Yup. Have I done the work so that it doesn’t derail me and put me out of line with what I value and want out of life? Hell yes. This is what I want for you. This is what I know you can have. Is it going to take work? Yes. Is it 100% worth it? Absolutely.
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Yes, and you are not alone! Unfortunately, we live in a society that praises certain bodies and demonizes others. We are taught from a young age that our worth is directly correlated with what our body looks like. Because of these things, it is not surprising that so many of us struggle with negative body image! The good news is that what has been taught can be untaught, and we can learn to challenge these views.
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There are many different ways to approach body image therapy. One of the first places we will start is figuring out what you body image story is, and thinking about your own relationship with your body over the years. This can help us figure out out what body image goals you have – paying particular attention to ways in which your body image might be affecting your day to day life. It is also important to note that the goal does not have to be (and in my opinion should not be) getting to a place where you are totally in love with your body. Is it great to have moments where you feel like that? Yes! Is it necessary to find relief from negative body image? Absolutely not.
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If you are experiencing any discomfort with your body that is affecting your life or the way you feel about yourself in general, you are likely dealing with negative body image. You do not need to have a diagnosis or feel desperate to be dealing with body image concerns. It is important to remember that this is NOT your falt – you have been conditioned to think this way.
Body Image FAQs
Get Help from a Body Image Therapist in Tampa
My goal for my clients is to help you redefine what you want your life to look like. Together we will:
Unpack everything you have been fed and learned, and unpack it all in a safe space
Learn to sit with grief you may feel about a body that has changed over the years (and figure out how to move on)
Rediscover the parts of you and your body that you have learned to hate and feel guilt and shame about
Learn coping skills for what to do when body image distress shows up
Talk about how we are impacted by the society that we live in and what we can do about it
Body image distress is real and it can range from a small concern to something that feels incredibly debilitating. You deserve more. You deserve to live the life you dream of.
During your free discovery call, we will decide if we are a good fit to help you work through the distress you are feeling. I want to ensure you will feel comfortable working together and that you can visualize having a safe space to talk about these difficult (but oh so worth it) topics in. After that, we will have an intake session that will set the groundwork for what you want to work on and what feels right for you.
Body image distress can bring along with it anxiety, depression, and other mental health concerns that can truly derail you. There is hope. Let’s connect and find out of Body Image Therapy is right for you.
Hello, World!