Coping With Body Image
- Despite Bebe Rexha struggling with the body changes that have come amid her PCOS diagnosis, the singer-songwriter has admitted she’s learning to accept what comes her way and is working on not judging herself.
- PCOS, or polycystic ovary syndrome, occurs when a woman's ovaries or adrenal glands produce more male hormones than usual, which causes cysts (fluid-filled sacs) to grow on the ovaries, according to Medline Plus.
- “Body image is both the mental picture that you have of your body and the way you feel about your body when you look in a mirror,” Dr. Marianna Strongin, a New York-based licensed clinical psychologist, tells SurvivorNet.
- “As you allow yourself to spend more time looking at all of you, you will begin having a new relationship with your body,” Strongin suggests.
- Positive psychology is a different approach to mental well-being that focuses on a person's strengths rather than illness & standard treatment. This approach can be really helpful for people living with illnesses like cancer or even PCOS.
The Brooklyn-born musician, who previously admitted she’s “always struggled” with her weight, has been battling PCOS, a condition which is described by the U.S Department of Health & Human Services’ Office on Women’s Health as “a common health problem caused by an imbalance of reproductive hormones.”
Read More“I've been learning not to judge myself and accept myself while also trying to make healthier decisions in my life,” Rexha continued. “What I have learned though is numbers don't define you, your heart does.”
Her post prompted praise from a number of her fans, with one commenting, “Jokes on them because you're still gorgeous.”
Another fan wrote, “The fact that people still fat shame people without knowing what they're really going through behind doors. Is disappointing and disgusting. Never judge a book by its cover. Cause you never know what we are really going through mentally that affects our physical health.”
“Weight is Just a number! The fact that you can get out there on that stage and kill it every single night says a lot about your health! It's all that matters! That can't be easy! Women go through a lot, it's part of the lifecycle of being,” a third fan commented.
Mental Health & Body Image
Before Rexha made her uplifting post, she recently opened up on Gayle King's SiriusXM show “Gayle King in the House” to discuss how PCOS has affected her body image.
“I definitely struggle with my weight and I struggle with the way that I look, and it's been tough for me. I just found out recently that I have PCOS and a lot of women have it. And a lot of women have it and don't know,” Rexha expressed to King.
"It causes facial hair, acne around the chin, weight gain. It makes it hard to get pregnant. There are so many things that are involved with it and a lot of women don't know they have it because it takes a certain type of doctor and certain tests [to get diagnosed with PCOS].
"It's tough. I think for me, I've been definitely struggling with my weight and I've been struggling with food forever."
However, despite the challenges that have been thrown her way, Rexha told her fans about a week ago that she’s living it up and “definitely having the best f—ing tour of my life.”
“When you see things like that … you don't know what somebody is going through, what they're going through in their life,” Rexha told the show host. “So it kind of is tough. I feel like we're in 2023, we should not be talking about other people's weight.”
This has all followed Rexha’s December 2021 TikTok post where she revealed she was “the heaviest she's ever been,” informing her fans that when she doesn’t feel “good in her skin" she doesn't post on social media.
Since then, Rexha has been taking to her TikTok and Instagram pages with more confidence than ever, the ‘I’m Good’ singer appears to be coping well.
Learning About PCOS
PCOS, or polycystic ovary syndrome, occurs when a woman's ovaries or adrenal glands produce more male hormones than usual, which causes cysts (fluid-filled sacs) to grow on the ovaries, according to Medline Plus.
Symptoms of PCOS can vary but may include:
- Irregular menstrual periods
- Infertility
- Pelvic pain
- Excess hair growth on places like the face, chest, stomach and/or thighs
- Weight gain
- Oily skin or acne
- Thickening of the skin in patches
There is currently no curative treatment for PCOS, but things like diet, exercise and medicines can help control symptoms.
According to Medline Plus, women with PCOS are at higher risk of diabetes, metabolic syndrome, heart disease and high blood pressure.
Many people also wonder if PCOS can increase a person's risk of developing cancer.
According to the National Institutes of Health, “PCOS increases the risk of some types of cancer. For instance, some research has shown that risk of cancer of the endometrium, the inside lining of the uterus, may be higher for women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) than it is for women without PCOS. Irregular periods, or a lack of periods, can cause the endometrium to build up and become thick. This thickening can lead to endometrial cancer.
"Data on links between breast cancer, ovarian cancer, and PCOS are limited. While some small studies have suggested that a lack of ovulation, as occurs with PCOS, is linked with an increased risk of breast cancer, other studies have not shown an association.”
The NIH adds, “While some research has shown more than a doubling of the risk of ovarian cancer in women with PCOS, scientists have not confirmed these links in large population studies, and further studies hint that women with PCOS may have a lower risk of ovarian cancer. Therefore, any associations between breast or ovarian cancers and PCOS remain inconclusive.”
Self-Acceptance and Body Image
Body image problems are not unusual, especially for so many people dealing with health challenges – whether that’s PCOS or cancer.
And it's important you try to work on how you view your body because it can positively impact your emotional and physical well-being as a whole.
Learn to Accept Yourself A Huge Part of Living With Cancer
“Every day of our lives is really filled with uncertainty” but those facing a cancer diagnosis tend to feel that uncertainty at a more extreme level, Dr. William Breitbart, the chair of the Department of Psychology and Behavioral Sciences at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, previously told SurviorNet.
Dr. Breitbart also said that learning to embrace that uncertainty is a part of living … not just for those fighting cancer, but for everyone.
“What the task becomes is having the courage to live in the face of uncertainty, realizing that you cannot necessarily control the uncertainty in life … the suffering that occurs, challenges both good and bad,” Dr. Breitbart says.
“You may not be able to control those but you have control over how you choose to respond.”
Meanwhile, Dr. Marianna Strongin, a New York-based licensed clinical psychologist, also has some helpful advice. She encourages people that spending time in front of the mirror can help with body image.
Celebrity Stylist Ann Caruso on Beauty and Femininity After Cancer
Although “research has found that when looking in the mirror we are more likely to focus on the parts of our body we are dissatisfied with" which can cause “a negative self-view and lower self-esteem,” it's important to look at the parts of your body that you love and the parts of your body that you don't.
Eventually, Dr. Strongin says, doing so can help you create a more accepting relationship with yourself.
“Body image is both the mental picture that you have of your body and the way you feel about your body when you look in a mirror,” she said. “As you allow yourself to spend more time looking at all of you, you will begin having a new relationship with your body."
MORE: My Confidence Was Destroyed: Dealing With Body Image During Cancer Treatment
Whether you are living with PCOS or not, it's important to know you're not alone if you're having a hard time with how you view your body after receiving a diagnosis or going through treatment.
Learning About Positive Psychology
Another way to cope with body image and mental health is through positive psychology, an approach to mental well-being that focuses more on a person's strengths and how they can help themselves rather than just trying to curb individual symptoms and/or diagnose a disorder.
“It is a fundamental sort of different way of thinking about patients, thinking about their experience," Dr. Samantha Boardman, a New York-based psychiatrist and author, told SurvivorNet. "It's not just focusing on what's the matter. It's also asking them, what matters to you?"
Dr. Boardman noted that positive psychology is a reimagined approach to dealing with mental struggles. “Making people feel less bad is not the same as making them feel good," she said, referring to how this new approach encourages people to try to find happiness rather than just try to stop sadness.
This approach can be a major benefit to people who are dealing with an illness like cancer because it focuses on finding those great parts of life.
“Positive emotions have unique benefits above and beyond managing negative emotions,” Dr. Boardman explained.
“Sometimes you can treat a patient and get rid of some of their symptoms, and it's not necessarily then that you find a flourishing patient you might even get an empty patient. So, really tapping into those resources where do they find positive emotions? What provides a sense of engagement for them? How can you promote positive relationships?”
What is Positive Psychology & How Can it Help Cancer Survivors?
Questions to Ask Your Doctor
If you are struggling with body image and mental health, here are some questions you may consider asking your doctor:
- Are there interventions beyond medication for my depressed or anxious feelings?
- How can I go about finding and nourishing positive emotions?
- What can I do if I'm struggling to maintain a sense of positivity?
- What lifestyle factors can I adjust to feel better mentally?
Contributing: SurvivorNet Staff
Learn more about SurvivorNet's rigorous medical review process.