body image therapy

You may feel exhausted by waging a war with the mirror. You might feel uncomfortable in your skin, in your clothes, and like you’re missing out on the life you’re really meant for.

I help people learn to accept their bodies as they are and finally begin to feel at home within their skin.

Hi, my name is Danielle Carney, and I’m a therapist who specializes in eating disorders and body image.

I provide online counseling in Fort Lauderdale and throughout Florida, Delaware, North Carolina, and South Carolina. 

You find it hard to imagine that some people can actually go about their day and not experience intense distress about their bodies. How can they go to the beach, wear cute crop tops, or shorts without driving themselves up the wall with insecurity? You feel like it’s difficult to imagine that being a reality for anyone, but especially for yourself!

 

There’s a part of you that feels like maybe – if you were to finally lose the last couple pounds, “tone up,” exercise more, really commit to that new diet – maybe things would start to feel a little better and your body image would improve.

 

And, at the same time, there’s a part of you that looks back on how many attempts you’ve already made in an effort to change your body and starts to realize that those efforts actually didn’t shift much in the way you felt about yourself.

 

All those insecurities, doubts, and self-critical thoughts were definitely still there, maybe they just had a temporary outlet to be pointed at. If you’re honest with yourself, this feeling of discontent and discomfort within yourself feels much bigger than just an issue with your body.

 

You might feel lonely and isolated in experiencing your body image in this way, but here’s the thing – you are absolutely not alone.

 

We exist in a society that literally profits off of our insecurities. Looking at advertising, social media, and the general social climate, there is an intentional investment in making us feel like sh*t about ourselves. None of us are immune to being affected by this on some level.

 

Our task in body image therapy is to unlearn the harmful messaging you’ve internalized to develop a new, healthier, and more empowering narrative about yourself and your body to support yourself in improving your body image.

 

If you’re ready to finally put an end to the self-criticism, picking your appearance apart, and feeling like absolute garbage about yourself, therapy can help, and I’d love to meet you.

Let's talk!

Treat your body with the respect it deserves.

curvy woman looking in mirror body image therapy

My approach to body image therapy

I see my role as your body image therapist to help you unpack where these unhelpful, critical messages about your body came from.  l want to help you understand your body image narrative more, learn to have compassion for the stories you’ve told yourself, and then decide with intention what you’d like to let go of and how you want to shape your path forward.

 

When we really think about it, we are designed to be different from each other, so why would our bodies be any exception? 

 

The problem lies in our conditioning and the messages we get constantly from society at large about what’s “attractive” from our literal births.

 

I truly believe every body is inherently a good body (yes, including yours!), and the only reason you might not think so is because of what you have heard about your body and either consciously or unconsciously internalized throughout your lifetime. 

 

Similar to my work with eating disorders, I approach body image therapy through a weight-inclusive, HAES-aligned, anti-diet lens. This means I will never suggest changing your eating or exercise habits for the purpose of weight loss, or co-sign any attempts to deliberately change your body (though I also totally respect your body autonomy).

 

I’d love to help you shift the way you think about yourself to build more confidence and improve how you experience body image. There truly is an alternative to how you’ve been living.

 

Ask yourself, how would your life change if you started to believe your body size had nothing to do with your worth? And that you and your body are good enough, exactly as they are?

"This body is just the keeper of my magic."

Stephanie Chinn

Body Image Therapy FAQs

You might relate to the following if you're struggling with body image:

  • Feelings of shame, criticism, and/or judgment around body appearance, size, or shape
  • A distorted perception of how your body appears
  • A history of chronic dieting or a tendency to turn towards dieting or eating disorder behaviors to control your body’s size, shape, or appearance
  • A lack of trust in your body’s ability to find stability without controlling food intake or exercise

 

Really, if you experience distress related to how you think about and perceive your body, it’s worth reaching out for support.

Listen, I get that. Truly. It takes enormous courage, curiosity, and commitment to unlearn all of the messaging we’ve gotten about being smaller = better/healthier/more attractive. We’ve all been programmed to fantasize about our dream life being on the other side of weight loss or changing ourselves in some big way. It’s so tough to exist in a society that continues to reinforce those beliefs nonstop. And I also want you to ask yourself, what would happen if you deferred the idea of weight loss to really explore what it might look like to focus instead on health-promoting behaviors like improving quality sleep, eating enough nourishing food consistently throughout the day, and developing a relationship with exercise that feels like it adds to your life rather than drains you of all of your energy? What would happen if you stopped looking at your body as a problem to solve and instead started taking care of it in a way that shows self-love, -respect, and -compassion? What if you could learn a new narrative that neutralizes body size and weight and supports more self-acceptance and peace in your life? That’s exactly what I hope you gain from our work together in body image therapy.

You deserve to have a better relationship with your body.

Schedule a complimentary consultation today.

I'm ready!

Full Bloom Therapy

Online Therapy in Florida, Delaware, North Carolina, and South Carolina

based in Fort Lauderdale, FL