Annie's Blog
My name is Annie Mathe, I am a senior with a major in Sociology and a second major in Women's Studies. I became interested in this internship as I found out about everything Health Services has to offer the students and community at UNH. I am interested in holistic wellness and am learning more and more about it all the time through this internship! I am looking forward to focusing in on issues around body image and self-esteem as they relate to college women.
- Annie Mathe, Senior
Welcome to the Body Image and Wellness Blog!
This will be a six-part blog exploring topics regarding women and body image, healthy eating, fitness and overall wellness. I am a senior majoring in Sociology and Women’s Studies, and I am writing this blog through my internship with the Office of Health Education and Promotion here on campus. I chose to do a blog for my project as a way to communicate my thoughts on some issues that I am really passionate about, namely women’s health, self-esteem, and wellness. I believe these are issues that affect most women in our country and that need more attention in our society and on our campus. Personally, I became greatly affected by them around the end of my time in high school.
I have experienced phases of food and fitness philosophies. After about a year of highly restrictive, obsessive eating habits and compulsive exercising I hit a point when I decided to give up my irrational pursuit of thinness and begin pursuing health. Since then, I have done a substantial amount of research and observation regarding eating disorders and what is known as the “thin ideal.” The Thin Ideal is the general message in our society that women should be pursuing thinness, and that being thin equates to being beautiful. This myth is perpetuated through our media and reinforced on both personal and social levels. In her book The Beauty Myth, Naomi Wolf explains this phenomenon by saying, “We are in the midst of a violent backlash against feminism that uses images of female beauty as a political weapon against women’s advancement: the beauty myth. … ‘Beauty’ is not universal or changeless, though the West pretends that all ideals of female beauty stem from one Platonic Ideal Woman” (Wolf 2002).
I see a counter-movement in our society against the unnecessary physical expectations for women present in our media and society. There are models of more diversity in size, shape, and color. People are talking about “loving yourself” and believing “you are beautiful.” Real women are talking about eating real, healthy food, and professionals are working to promote body satisfaction, which is the approach that is taken on our campus at the Office of Health Education and Promotion (OHEP).
I recently sat down with Suzanne Sonneborn, a Nutrition Educator at UNH, to talk about the approach our university takes in educating people about body image and being healthy. The message that she and her colleagues promote is, “all bodies are beautiful and all foods can fit.” They teach students that diets are not the way to go. OHEP is part of the “non-diet” movement that tries to promote healthy, realistic food and lifestyle plans. This approach is all about balance and moderation regarding food and exercise. If you come to Health Services for nutritional or disordered eating help, you will not be given a diet plan. What you will be given is level-headed advice on finding a food plan that works for you and how to enjoy a good relationship with food and your body.
UNH is involved with many events designed to promote positive body image, including a body image film series, the Great Jeans Giveaway, and the Mind Body Dialogues. Additionally, a proven training program that fosters positive body image, the Reflections Program, is being piloted in Chi Omega, with the goal of expanding the program to the other sororities on campus. Also, there are several groups on campus where students can turn for help with food and body image issues. The Eating Concerns Mentor group is a group of students who have been trained to counsel their peers about disordered eating issues and body image struggles. No Weigh! is a support group for people who are fed up with diets and want to learn about healthy eating habits. The amount of programming and resources we have on campus regarding body image and eating disorders is pretty impressive compared to most universities. I would encourage everyone who is interested or in need of help regarding food, healthy eating and exercise, and body image to utilize what UNH has to offer. All the information about these programs can be found on the health services Web site.
I’m looking forward to writing this blog and hope you will come back to read more and watch for upcoming events!
Previous Posts
- What Does Positive Body Image Look Like?
- What Does Sex Have to Do With Self-Esteem?
- What Do We Mean When We Talk About Fat?
- What Does it Mean to Be Healthy and Fit?
- Welcome to the Wellness Blog
If you or someone you know needs help, here are some resources on campus:
- Office of Health Education and Promotion, UNH Health Services | 862-3823
- UNH Counseling Center | 862-2090
- SHARPP, Sexual Harassment and Rape Prevention Program | 862-SAFE (7233)
References: Wolf, Naomi. The Beauty Myth. New York: Harper Perennial, 2002. Print.
