Before and After Pictures
Before and after pictures have been around our society for decades; as a person interested in a marketing career, I initially saw it as a marketing and campaign tool. It was a way to depict the changes that have taken place during the use of a product or service and how it has impacted the person and, thus, how the company can utilize it to capitalize on that fact. However, being introduced to intuitive eating, learning more about body acceptance, and how toxic diet culture can be has helped me re-think before-and-after pictures from a body image standpoint. Today, we will discuss the mental, emotional, and physical effects of ‘before and after’ photos on a person. If you feel that you may be negatively affected by the topic discussed today, please feel free to skip it for this week and return when you feel comfortable reading about it.
Before-and-after, pictures came into being to show the difference and change between two images over a specific period of time; this can be used with architecture, nature, material creations, and people. However, before and after pictures of the people can be triggering to folks with body esteem issues and who suffer from disordered eating. In previous blog posts, we recalled the type of eaters who judge themselves based on those around them. This is similar to body-checking, considering yourself based on what you see in the mirror and establishing your standard on those around you. It should be noted that a person’s before and after pictures are for them and not necessarily for their audience. But the comparison of the two photos shows the stark differences (especially when the post is regarding weight loss), which can trigger people. It is also important to remember that intentional weight loss is unlikely for 95% of the population.
As a smaller-bodied person my triggers might differ. My pictures from when I was suffering from disordered eating still trigger me because I was conditioned to think that how my body looked was desirable and good. I thought I wasn’t supposed to have a tummy or no part of my body should move; it should be toned and only muscle. When I was in this vicious cycle of my life, I did have ‘before and after’ pictures, and they were both bad. I was an underweight girl starving herself and excessively working out to see herself as ‘healthy.’
Now that I have been educated about weight stigma by Robin, I have learned that before and after pictures should both be labeled ‘during.’ There is no true starting point, and there is no true endpoint in this journey that we are on. The before is deemed bad, and the after is considered good and accepted by our culture. They can lead those who view these posts into disordered eating themselves, over-exercising, and depleted mental and emotional health. They reinforce weight stigma and fat bias. They can prevent people from getting adequate medical care and respect. It is impossible to know a person’s health or well-being based on these images; my story is one of those. They should not be considered when looking at ‘before and after’ pictures.
People can see themselves as the before part of the picture, which can send them into a downward spiral of self-loathing. In a post on Huffpost.com by Christine Byrne, they quoted Chelsea Kronengold, associate director of communications at the National Eating Disorders Association, “Body dissatisfaction and thin-ideal internalization are potential risk factors for all types of eating disorders,” Kronengold said. “People with negative body image are not only more likely to develop an eating disorder but are also more likely to suffer from depression, isolation, low self-esteem and obsessions with weight loss.” (Kronengold)
There is a light at the end of the tunnel if you notice you're still holding onto some dieting mentalities; this is where Robin comes in! Starting or continuing your journey of Intuitive Eating will help you learn how to move away from these ways of thinking and improve your relationship with food! If you have questions about Intuitive Eating, please message Robin Harris through email at robin@bodypositiveacupuncture.com to schedule a workshop.
Work Cited
Byrne, C. (2021, August 27). Why “before and after” photos are more problematic than you think? HuffPost. https://www.huffpost.com/entry/before-and-after-photos-weight-loss_l_61252851e4b07fee0cb266a3