Body Neutrality

I think the body positivity movement is wonderful and needed. AND I know many of us have learned to disconnect from our bodies or m see our bodies as the enemy, which makes feeling positive about our bodies seem impossible.

That’s why body neutrality is important.  Body neutrality is the ability to accept and respect your body even if it isn’t the way you’d prefer it to be.

If you have chronic pain or physical disability it may have been necessary to disconnect from your body as it was the source of pain, discomfort or dysfunction.

If you are trans or non-binary, being able to disconnect from your body may have protected you from dysphoria or a full awareness of the ways in which your body did not align with your true self. 

If you went through trauma, abuse or neglect, disconnecting from your body may have protected you from the consequences of the abuse, it may have been easier than being in the body that your care takers were not taking care of.

These are all understandable reasons to have disconnected from your body. AND this can become such a habit, that you are now chronically disconnected or at odds with your body. This can lead to its own dysfunction.

You may not be aware of your body’s needs – for food, for the bathroom, for water, for rest, and/or for movement. Which in turn leads to a host of other physical and/or psychological issues.

It’s understandable to be reluctant to reconnect or re-inhabit your body, but a full disconnect is not healthy. We have to learn to both live with and accept the body we are in as it presently exists. At the very least, your body is the vehicle through which you move through life and deserves your care and attention.

That is not to say we should not try to help ease pain or alleviate dysphoria in our bodies. As with so much of healing, it is important to accept where you are at, even if you are working on changing or improving. Both are important.