Talking to Your Daughter About Her Body

Being a stay at home dad, I basically do what the article says. My DD is 10 now (and on the cusp of puberty). She's 58" tall and weigh about 66lbs. She runs around all the time, plays physically and eats fairly well. Like any kid she asks for ice cream, candy, etc. and gets limited amounts per day. I've told her to NEVER ever worry about how people view her or take any of their comments to heart if they are negative. And thankfully she doesn't. She wears mismatched clothes, dances all the time in public, and acts goofy most of the time. Lol, reminds me of me when I was her age.

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Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

Thanks for posting that. As a mother to a daughter, I do NOT want to pass on my body weirdness to her. At 3 years old, she's already heard someone (definitely not at our house!) say something about having big legs. I told her that she has strong legs that are just right for her body. I want to get healthy so that THAT is her normal.

Love this. This is what I'll tell my daughter when she's old enough to understand (she's 6 months). I wish someone showed my mother this when I was growing up

I thought of this thread, after checking the news, and seeing a report of the following --

http://www.hlntv.com/video/2015/03/27/mom-angry-body-mass-index-7-year-old?


It stuns me to learn that an elementary school, and in conjunction with funding from the associated county, is engaging in such actions...

The parents and family of this young girl -- mindful of the 'message' that has just been inflicted upon her -- will now undoubtedly be trying to carefully counteract the potentially lifelong impact of this one experience in the seven-year-old's life... and who knows how many times in the future, or throughout her life, she might think back to this 'message', or otherwise be reminded of it...? Who knows what kind of damage might be caused by this single ridiculous and uncalled for 'assessment' of this little girl's body (let alone, its having been 'issued' by a school administration -- an entity that in the eyes of many young children can be perceived as being 'authoritative', or otherwise a form of 'those in charge' who a child is expected to 'listen to')...?

This is so upsetting... and infuriating... and so, so destructive and wrong...

baxyboy wrote: »

Here's the thing - this message is every bit as important for sons, brothers, fathers, uncles etc.

Men are every bit as vulnerable and susceptible to deeply rooted issues with how we see and judge our own reflection. Every bit as pressured to be fit and strong both physically and mentally, and shamed if we dare falter.

The only difference is, it's not nearly as talked about or acknowledged.

So true. I take that the article is clearly for all genders I have 3 children, and this is solid advice on how to use positive (and neutral, when appropriate) language when discussing body image issues. Celebrate what our (and our children's) bodies and minds can DO--not what they look like.