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Welcome to the worst opening lines for an eating disorder article ever:

Eating disorders often begin with the best of intentions — a desire to lose weight and control eating. But in some people, those good intentions go badly wrong, resulting in anorexia nervosa, bulimia, binge eating, or other disorders.

Sadly, very, very sadly, this article didn’t appear on some shoddy website viewed by several people.

Every Monday features a tip, activity, inspiring quote or some other tidbit to help boost your body image — and kick-start the week on a positive note!

Got a tip for improving body image? Email me at mtartakovsky at gmail dot com, and I’ll be happy to feature it. I’d love to hear from you!

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Would you ever break into a synagogue, church or other place of worship and graffiti hateful remarks on the walls?

Unless you’re the disgusting human being who recently vandalized a synagogue in Mount Dora, Florida, you would never. Period.

“Yet many of us have no self-restraint when it comes to insulting ourselves, criticizing and abusing our bodies, and coming back for more,” says Kimber of the beautifully written body positive blog Finding Fullness. (Seriously, check out her blog; it’s eloquent, insightful and powerful!)

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There are several body image myths that seem to be relentless. So let’s set the record straight. Here are three body image myths – debunked!

1. A positive body image means feeling rosy about your body all the time.

I used to think that I was a no-good body image blogger if my body image wasn’t at its positivity peak every day. I felt terrible that I still had bouts of self-doubt and insecurity. I felt like a fake, who was doling out body-positive platitudes while I grumbled about my own body.

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I’ve always viewed the women in my family as beautiful, and I’m talking beyond looks. As a whole.

I’ve always admired their compassion, their strength and resilience, their knows-no-bounds generosity, their grace and integrity, their humor and wit.

When I look at them, they are and were beautiful. Plain and simple.

So it’s interesting to me that I spent so many years striving to achieve a very narrow standard of beauty. One that didn’t focus on the above, at all.

Instead, I searched for beauty in all the wrong places, in places that stunted my self-esteem and bashed my body image.

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Today, I’m pleased to present a beautiful guest post by Beth Gager Green. Beth shares her story of pushing through obstacles and discovering her inner strength and ultimately finding herself and living life fully.

A bit more on Beth:

She lives and works in Charlottesville, Virginia. Her divorce in 2001 and several psychiatric hospitalizations changed the direction of her life in a profound way, from her life as a mother to her career path.  In 2010 Beth made a decision to let go of old ways that were holding her in the pain of the past and to really let herself live again. She got a new job and found her inner spark that had been shining all along. Now she lets people see it, including herself.

Every Monday features a tip, activity, inspiring quote or some other tidbit to help boost your body image — and kick-start the week on a positive note!

Got a tip for improving body image? Email me at mtartakovsky at gmail dot com, and I’ll be happy to feature it. I’d love to hear from you!

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Today, in America, we’re celebrating Independence Day! In the spirit of celebration, here’s a round-up of 10 posts that celebrate our bodies and our lives.

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Today, I’m pleased to present part three of my interview with Amy Pershing, executive director at PershingTurner Centers and clinical director for The Center for Eating Disorders in Ann Arbor, MI. Amy treats binge eating disorder (BED) and writes extensively about weight stigma and intuitive eating.

(Please check out parts one and two of our interview! Amy discusses BED myths, her own struggles with binge eating and how to recover.)

Below, Amy offers wise advice on improving your body image and a few parting words on BED.