Bad body image recovery

 

Nudists

Decades ago I went to 2 nudist beaches to change my bad body image which I thought caused my cravings and inability to eat HEALTHY, not realising I had undiagnosed diabetes!

Magda
Magda Zsubanski

When I  watched   Magda on Ch. 9 Current Affair call herself a fat, single, lesbian who will go to Bondi Beach no matter what they think of her.  I remembered when I went to Obelisk NUDIST beach at Mosman with two close friends. This was with the view that by exposing myself, my negative attitude about my body image will become changed to a positive one. As a result I anticipated that my compulsive emotional eating would be healed. I’ve been fat, I’ve been slim and like now inbetween. I’ve also been to Lady Jane nudist beach at Watson’s Bay.

My brother and me
My brother and me 1984

My Intellectually disabled brother Apollon came with me in the next visit because he was in my care for the weekend. He was such a cool type and didn’t show any shock  at the sight of a beach full of nudists. He’d never seen me without clothes, so as I discarded them I asked him to take his clothes off too and he did so without a peep out of him (I had bathed him before so I’d seen him naked). We had a splendid day and in the car I asked him what he was going to tell Mum about today and he defensively said “nothing!”. But when I got him home to our mother he burst out in a prudish tirade about how we had gone to a beach where people had no clothes and I made him take his off too! Mother was so disgusted that till his death I was not permitted to take out my brother without her in order to protect his morals! His confession was due to our parents teaching us not to lie even by omission otherwise when they’ll inevitably find out it would be worse for us. Mum was puritanical about her son’s experiences and he knew she wouldn’t approve so he played it safe and confessed all, out of fear of her wrath when she found out. He also acted embarrassed just as she would expect of him. He was safe and wouldn’t have to face the “why didn’t you tell me?!😍

Nudist locations
nudist locations

Nudism is very popular and includes whole families enjoying the amazingly freeing experience of not covering up in a safe place. After all, in some Indigenous villages it is natural. Some beaches permit topless women but it doesn’t feel comfortable enough for me unless all are nude including the men. I found this out when two clothed guys stopped to talk with me at a NUDIST beach and so I asked them to either take their clothes off or go!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2 thoughts on “Bad body image recovery”

  1. So how did the experience impact the compulsive emotional eating and the bad body image?

    I agree that we have too many bad body image messages and always admired your spirit to reframe them.

    I chuckle at the thought of Apollon confessing to his mum!

    1. Paul the nudist experiment didn’t help with stopping my compulsive emotional eating because this is a consequence of diabetes. This is because depression is another consequence and eating disorders gives a ‘high’ which releases the serotonin needed to lift the spirits, though at a health cost because overweight promotes diabetes!

      It did however give me feelings of empowerment the same as fire walking.

      I’m glad you got the underlying humour in Apollon’s behaviour because as you know even though he was severely intellectually handicapped he was very smart.

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