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Parenting Teenage Daughter

Helping Her Develop a Good Body Image

"I'm fat!" "I'm ugly!" "I have nothing to wear that doesn't make me look like a cow!"

Despite all your pep talks and positive reinforcement, you can't seem to get through to your daughter. She's miserable. You're saddened that she's so disheartened with her body. How do you help your daughter develop a good body image?

Below are some tips to help you help your teen daughter:

It's important for girls to play sports or do some kind of physical activity so that they learn to love their bodies for what their bodies can DO instead of only what their bodies look like. This is key.

Look at magazines with your daughter and talk about how the photos were airbrushed and how the models were made-up so that she understood they were not "real".

Try to emphasize health over looks. Not everyone is genetically able to be a size 2, but you can still be healthy at a size 12. Girls need to find their comfortable weight and love themselves for who they are instead of comparing themselves to others.

Sports for girls. Some girls start T-ball at the age of 5 and play up until late teens. Even if your daughter didn't start playing sports at a young age, it's never too late to start. If basketball, softball or soccer doesn’t appeal to her, try martial arts.

Help her pick out clothing that is flattering to her body. Girls want to wear what everyone else is wearing. Unfortunately not all styles are becoming to all body sizes and shapes.

While you are working toward building your daughter's image, remind all siblings that teasing, name calling and rude comments about their sister will not be tolerated.

Lastly, if your daughter is overweight you should institute an exercise / healthy eating program family-wide. Start going for runs with her, start a sport, join a gym, anything to get her in shape, healthy, and fit. An overweight teen is going to have a low self image. Work together as a family – it will go a long way in helping your teen daughter develop a good body image.