How Religious Trauma Influences Body Image and Disordered Eating
How Religious Trauma Influences Body Image and Disordered Eating
Have you ever felt disconnected from your own body, as if it's governed by rules and expectations that aren't truly yours? For many raised in evangelical purity culture, this isn't just a feeling, it’s a lived reality.
The teachings emphasizing sexual abstinence and traditional gender roles often lead individuals, especially women, to view their bodies through a lens of guilt and external control. This deep-seated disconnection can have major effects on someone’s relationship with their body and overall well-being.
Purity Culture's Impact on Body Perception
Evangelical purity culture, which emphasizes sexual abstinence before marriage and traditional gender roles, often places a heavy burden on individuals, particularly women.
Rebecca Wolfe, in her dissertation "Your Body is Not Your Own: (Dis)embodied Sexual and Mental Health in Evangelical Purity Culture," discusses how these teachings can lead women to distrust their own bodily sensations, viewing them as sinful. Instead, they're encouraged to rely on the guidance of church leaders or male figures in their lives.
This can create a sense of disconnection from one's own body, making it challenging to trust personal instincts and feelings.
The Pressure to Attain 'Holy' Thinness
Within this framework, thinness is often portrayed as a sign of discipline and a way to honor one's body as a temple for God. Wolfe's research highlights that a slender figure is sometimes seen as more desirable to men, aligning with the ideal of being a good wife.
Presenting an image of thin, joyful women is thought to make Christianity more appealing to others. This intertwining of spiritual virtue with physical appearance can lead to unhealthy relationships with food and body image.
Disembodiment and Its Link to Eating Disorders
When individuals are taught to suppress or distrust their natural bodily cues, it can result in a state of disembodiment, a feeling of being disconnected from one's own body.
Wolfe's work suggests that this disconnection is associated with the development of eating disorders. Attempting to control your body through restrictive eating or other means can become a way to cope with the internalized belief that the body is inherently sinful or problematic.
Bridging the Gap in Research and Therapy
While clinician research on religious trauma and its impact on mental health is expanding, there is still a gap relating to eating disorders. Wolfe's work contributes significantly to this underexplored area.
Addressing the mental, emotional, and social restrictions imposed by certain religious teachings can help individuals break away from harmful cycles and foster a healthier relationship with their bodies.
Pathways to Healing
Recognizing the impact of these teachings is an important step toward healing. It’s my job to help clients through religious trauma therapy to safely reconnect with their bodies and learn to trust their internal wisdom as a pathway to recovery. By addressing these deeply ingrained beliefs and developing self-compassion, people can begin to foster a healthier relationship with their bodies and food.
If you or someone you know is navigating the complex effects of purity culture and eating disorders, please reach out to learn more about how I can help. I work with clients in MA, RI, VT, and VA.
