...and maybe in this life, we'll learn.

muffintop-less:

Self-help for eating disorders: Improving your self-image When you base your self-worth on physical appearance alone, you’re ignoring all the other qualities, accomplishments, and abilities that make you beautiful. Think about your friends and family members. Do they love you for the way you look or who you are? Chances are, your appearance ranks low on the list of what they love about you–and you probably feel the same about them. So why does it top your own list?

Placing too much importance on how you look leads to low self-esteem and insecurity. But you can learn to see yourself in a positive, balanced way:

• Make a list of your positive qualities. Think of all the things you like about yourself. Are you smart? Kind? Creative? Loyal? Funny? What would others say are your good qualities? Include your talents, skills, and achievements. Also think about bad qualities you DON’T have. 
• Focus on what you like about your body. Instead of searching for flaws when you look in the mirror, appreciate the things you like about your appearance. If you’re distracted by “imperfections,” remind yourself that nobody’s perfect. Even supermodels get airbrushed. 
• Challenge negative self-talk. When you catch yourself being self-critical or pessimistic, stop and challenge the negative thought. Ask yourself what evidence you have to support the idea. What is the evidence against it? Just because you believe something, doesn’t mean it’s true.

How do you do this when you work your ass off and see no results? Not a change in the way your clothes fit, not a drop in your measurements, not a budge in the scale in either direction, no more or less muscle tone, no more or less jiggle. Sure it’s only been a month on my current program, but I’ve always worked out and eaten relatively well though probably far too little. The only reason I shouldn’t look different from a year ago is if I was already looking fan-fucking-tastic.

(via unrequitedfriendzone)