LGBTQ+ Bodies, Self Perception, and Disordered Eating
Photo by Siora Photography on Unsplash
In our culture, it’s easy to see how much bearing our bodies have on our self-perception and others’ perception of us. Those of us who have not grown up with positive self images or healthy ways of relating to food or exercise can develop a long-term, strained relationship with both. From the slim-thick trend to the return of 90s “heroin chic,” we’ve seen how culture pressures us to relate to our bodies through the physical, and how many, often unhealthily, push their bodies to the limit to meet the standards of the time.
It’s common for mainstream culture—with its lack of diverse faces, identities, and bodies—to influence people to develop obsessive thinking about diet and exercise. We see celebrities over the decades morph their bodies with plastic surgery and high-end, expensive diets and workout plans that the average person only dreams of affording. Visibility, however, is most often given to cisgender, heterosexual people who can fit the ideal.
So, where is the LGBTQ+ community in all of this?
Prevalence of Eating Disorders in the LGBTQ+ Community
Individuals identifying within the LGBTQ+ community are more at risk of developing a precarious relationship to food and exercise than cisgender and heterosexual populations. The Trevor Project reports that LGBTQ+ youth diagnosed with an eating disorder may be up to four times more likely to attempt suicide than their peers, and disordered eating behaviors, such as restricting, bingeing, purging, and exercising to extremes in which one can become injured, are far more common in lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, and other queer populations overall.
Photo by Elena Mozhvilo on Unsplash
The development of eating disorders or stressful relationships to food and exercise is, in a large part, due to the societal stigma that LGBTQ+ individuals face. While eating disorders can be caused by a variety of things, eating disorders may give the sufferer a distraction from other pains in their life. Eating disorders may become the one area where the person feels that they have control over in a situation where they may feel powerless, especially when the LGBTQ+ community can face intense hardship due to their identities. Eating disorders may also develop
Gay men, transgender, and gender-diverse people are seen as having the highest likelihood of developing difficulties with eating disorders. Gay men often feel as though they are held to higher standards to look thin, be attractive, and fit into male beauty standards, all while balancing on the thin line between acceptable and unacceptable presentation. Gay men often cite their perception of the societal stigma against them as a big part of the development of disordered eating.
Transgender and gender diverse (TGD) people’s individual identities are complex, and so are their struggles with food and diet. TGD people are most likely to struggle with anorexia, and often feel compelled to alter their eating habits to either meet the standards of their gender or to minimize secondary sex characteristics. Trans men and women may feel as though their body type needs to be altered in dramatic ways to stay safe or to feel more masculine, feminine, or androgynous. TGD people, many of whom feel deeply dysphoric about their bodies, may restrict their food intake in order to minimize the size of breasts, hips, and other parts of their body that they perceive as a point of distress. Unfortunately, restricting most often leads to other disordered behaviors around food and exercise, and these behaviors may become more and more problematic over time. Fifteen percent of transgender people report having received an eating disorder diagnosis, and many more report having a history of difficulty with food.
It is important to note that standards are different across cultures, but in Western society, especially, people of all backgrounds may feel pressure to conform to white, cis-normative, and heteronormative standards of presentation. What does that mean? The dominant culture is also white: we see countless thin, white models (especially with the return of 90s heroin-chic, as previously mentioned, and conservatism), and we see that reflected in mainstream queer media as well. People who don’t perfectly fit the mold may feel pressure to fit in those boxes of acceptability, not only for aesthetic reasons, but for safety.
Body Image
According to the National Eating Disorders Association, people in the LGBTQ+ community may face more pressure to meet societal standards due to their perceived existing deviance from cultural norms. LGBTQ+ people may feel rejected by their community or feel a lack of control over others’ perceptions of this identity that feels so true to them; they may feel more pressure to compensate and seek approval in other ways. Putting so much mental and physical energy into maintaining the perfect body may distract from the pain one feels from not being fully accepted for who they are at their core.
On top of general expectations and ideals placed on people’s bodies in the culture at large, there are often more specific ideals within the community itself that individuals may feel pressured to conform to. Gendered standards for transgender and gender-diverse people and fatphobia can become deeply entrenched in the way queer people perceive themselves and add more complex layers to an already complex issue.
Body Dysmorphia or Gender Dysphoria?
…Or both?
Body Dysmorphic Disorder is considered a mental health condition in which a person is deeply concerned about their physical body. Body dysmorphia can pressure us to assess and reassess our bodies in the mirror, pick out every perceived flaw, and obsess over our physical appearance. On the other hand, gender dysphoria is experienced by individuals who feel deeply distressed over their presentation in regard to their gender identity, often leading to low self-esteem and increased risk of suicide and self-harm.
While both of these issues may relate to the body and perception (both our own and others’), they are two different conditions that may increase the risk for disordered eating and excessive exercise. Both can be present at once, too—along with an eating disorder.
Body dysmorphia isn’t solely tied to weight or body size, but it can be a factor in one’s negative self-perception and what they do to manage that stress regarding their body, such as engaging in disordered eating behaviors. Someone with dysphoria may stress about their weight and size, especially when it emphasizes unwanted secondary sex characteristics, leading to disordered behaviors around diet and exercise. Neither dysmorphia nor dysphoria directly leads to disordered eating, but may be a factor in its development.
Affirming treatment approaches for the LGBTQ community
Professionals working with members of the LGBTQ+ community need to be aware of the risks and warning signs of eating disorders that the community deals with, including proper, inclusive treatment for such a difficult, complex issue.
Just like every person is unique, every person’s journey to wellness is also unique and deserves individualized care.
For trans individuals struggling with dysphoria, it’s important to understand how essential gender-affirming care may be in their treatment. Breast reductions/ top surgery, hormone therapy, and other treatments are essential to aiding trans people feel safe and welcome in their own
bodies. For the LGBTQ+ community as a whole, it’s important to understand the impact of minority stress, intersectional identities, lived experiences, and societal pressure on each individual impacted by disordered eating. There is always the possibility to heal, and having a therapist who is aware and welcoming to LGBTQ+ identities can make a huge difference