Do you feel body conscious at social events?
If you ever feel body conscious at social events, I know it’s not a nice feeling!
I used to feel so body conscious at social events, that it would ruin the entire evening or day out.
But worrying about how your body appears to others doesn’t have to spoil socialising.
In this post, I’m sharing the approach I use with clients to help them cope with body consciousness.
Listen or read below:
Feeling body conscious at social events
Many clients struggle with feeling body conscious at social events. The thought of going out can be so triggering that it pre-haunts the event (meaning that you waste a lot of time and energy worrying about it in advance).
It’s often this pre-haunting or ‘worrying in advance’ that sets them up for extreme body consciousness once they arrive at an event.
The fear of what others will think about their body and what they’re wearing can ruin social occasions.
How to cope with feeling body conscious
So, if you’re body conscious, what can you do to ease body worries so you can enjoy socialising?
I’ve found that the key is to prepare a plan!
If the thought of a social event puts you into a spin, create a plan. When you’re struggling with anxious thoughts, it can help to have a plan ready to work through that you don’t have to think about – you can just do!
When I do this work with a client, we identify what they find most difficult in the run up to or during an event, so they can put things in place to deal with those.
Of course, your plan will be unique to you, but from experience, I’ve found it helpful to have the following elements in the plan:
Decide what to wear in advance
Clients get anxious about what to wear when they struggle with body confidence, and can spend a lot of time worrying about this. So, spend some time putting together ‘going out’ outfits that you stick to, because too much choice can be overwhelming.
Do something you enjoy before the event
Make some time for this on the day you’re going out. This might be some movement that you love, or anything that helps relax you or bring you joy. This sets you up to feel relaxed and content going into a social event.
Practise gratitude
Before you go out, write down what you’re grateful for about the upcoming social event. It might be spending quality time with friends or family, enjoying good food, or being able to experience your favourite music or entertainment.
Be self-compassionate
Be kind to yourself if anxious feelings come up about socialising.
Acknowledge these feelings and tell yourself it’s okay to feel this way, everyone does.
And you can even give yourself a hug, which will help to release feel good hormones.
You can practise self-compassion wherever you are. So, when you’re out, if you’re feeling anxious, pop to the ladies room to practise compassion!
So that’s it, one approach to dealing with body consciousness at social events.
If you’ve found the tips I’ve shared here useful, why not grab a copy of my book, The Little Book of Body Confidence – it’s got 52 simple, yet effective strategies to help you feel more comfortable in your body.
