This Is What Happens When You Do Negative Self Talk in Front of Your Daughter. Mom diets affect our kids in ways we wouldn’t imagine.
Note from the editor: I don’t really watch talk shows but I once I paused on one. It was a group of moms and daughters crying and embracing one another. I caught the end of what was such an eye opening show.
The talk show host brought in a group of girls who thought they were fat. Their ages ranged from kindergarten-high school. Each young girl talked about why they felt fat. There were various influences but the most pivotal messages were coming from their home.
Only one mom knowingly made comments about her daughter’s body in a negative way. The rest of the girls in this group formed a distorted body image of themselves not from what their mothers were saying to them. But from watching their mom’s eating habits and listening to how mom spoke to herself.
This was truly eye opening! Parents, teachers, student leaders, youth group leaders anyone who works with kids (boys too!) remember they are observing and developing their own ideas based on what we do, not what we say.
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This Is What Happens When You Do Negative Self Talk in Front of Your Daughter
Contributor: Jenny Howell
I have to admit that there have been plenty of weeks where Jullian Michaels and I were living room workout friends. She would yell at me and somehow that motivated me to push myself and feel good about it at the same time!
Exercise is vital for physical and mental health. I could use a jog around the neighborhood or a visit to the gym this week. Exercise keeps us strong and clears the mind, adding peace to our day.
At some point though, moms tend to voice guilt about the condition of their body and eating habits.”I shouldn’t eat this…too many calories.” or “I need to make it to the gym every day this week because I need to lose weight before ____..”
Fill in the blank and there is always something to get skinny for right?
Research says
Horrifying new research discovered found that more than half of girls and one-third of boys ages six to eight want thinner bodies. ~via Common Sense Media
Not to mention the diet, smoothie, shake, and supplement trends coming at us constantly. Everyone has the best plan with the highest success rate to help you eat less (or nothing at all) and get you on your way to perfect.
The balance has been lost and now we have a generation of young sons and daughters watching it all play out… and not for the better.
Any obsession seems to have its own set of consequences, doesn’t it?
It’s healthy to take a step back and zoom in to the habits we are forming in front of our kids. Our girls and boys both young and old have a front row seat to what we value most.
They see us skip meals or prepare something totally different than what the family is eating and it seems harmless.
We blend shakes or nibble at food and they are watching. Most of the time we don’t think about our behavior affecting that little girl sitting at the table. “Momma, are you eating with us?”
The honest truth is that we pass on what is important to us both healthy and harmful by our example.
The danger comes when we comment on their body or eating in a way that provokes self doubt an insecurity.
We have to face the reality that our girls and even boys will not handle that well. The comparison temptation is already off the charts and they don’t need more reasons to take up an eating disorder or manipulate their body to fit a mold on the altar of popularity.
Not thin enough
Working with teen girls, I have seen this play out and end tragically. Sometimes moms have done everything they can to instill a healthy body image and pass on confidence and worth…and the sickness of not thin enough still consumes.
Other stories of eating disorders have the common thread of a mom or dad who put on the pressure to be skinny, eat less, workout more, and look the best in her prom dress of cheer uniform. There is never a day when they feel beautiful and it is heartbreaking to watch.
As the holidays approach, let’s be women who look at our own habits and begin to care of ourselves better. Giving our daughters a strong and balanced eating and exercise perception will help them survive in a culture that demands conformity.
Here’s to a new year of passing down words of worth and truth to our kids… but first we must start speaking those words to ourselves. It begins with us.
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Hi, I’m Jenny and I blog over at www.nighthowells.wordpress.com. I am happily Kris’ wife, Momma to 5, and a hopeful believer in Jesus. My heart beats for scenery, ministry, and parenting our tribe!