Marin Voice: ‘Love Your Body Week’ about self-compassion, connection

In honor of National Eating Disorder Awareness Week, we are launching a youth-led campaign across Marin County called “Love Your Body Week.”

Eating disorders affect an estimated 30 million people in the United States and have one of the highest mortality rates of any mental-health condition. These disorders impact people of all genders, races, backgrounds and body sizes. Yet many who struggle never receive support, in part because eating disorders do not always look the way people expect.

As high school students, we see how pressure around appearance, food, and “health” shows up every day in public spaces, on social media and in conversations with friends. Many young people feel they must look or eat a certain way to be accepted. Love Your Body Week was created to bring an empowering approach to Eating Disorder Awareness Week, one centered on prevention, self-compassion and connection.

Love Your Body Week was created and led by our team of high school students from San Rafael, Terra Linda, Novato and San Domenico who care deeply about changing how body image and mental health are talked about in our community. Through a shared training experience, we learned how to support our peers and lead conversations rooted in respect and compassion. Throughout the week, we are bringing this work to our school communities by challenging harmful beauty standards and encouraging healthier relationships with food and body image through student-led activities and conversations.

Our team came together through Find Your Way, a Marin “9 to 25” program designed to support “by youth, for youth” wellness initiatives. Through FYW’s collaboration with the Marin County’s maternal, child and adolescent health program, we were introduced to “The Body Positive,” an evidence-based prevention training program for youth. The training program promotes “positive embodiment” through five core competencies: reclaiming health, practicing intuitive self-care, cultivating self-love, declaring one’s authentic beauty and building community.

For those of us from Novato High, participating in The Body Positive training was transformative. For a long time, mental health and body image felt like things we were supposed to struggle with quietly. The training showed that it does not have to be that way. Being in a supportive space where people shared their experiences and listened without judgment made it possible to truly believe the words, “you’re not alone.”

That experience inspired the creation of Body Positive NHS, a student-led club at Novato High. The club centers on the five “be body positive” competencies while offering resources and creating space for honest conversations about confidence, food and self-worth. Many students struggle silently, and when conversations like these happen at school, they can begin to shift the culture from one that pressures students to one that supports them.

One of the club’s first activities, called “My Beauty Is …”, invites students to write down something they appreciate about themselves, whether it is their hair, their personality or their resilience. The goal is to move away from seeking validation from others and toward self-acceptance.

One of our team members from San Domenico helped bring this work to the school’s middle school students, where body image and appearance can quickly become sources of anxiety and self-consciousness. The presentation focused on self-acceptance, respect and self-worth. It reflected the message many of us wish we had heard at that age. If even one student walks away feeling seen, valued, and more at ease in their body, then this work has served its purpose.

Love Your Body Week is supported by The Body Positive and Marin 9 to 25’s “Find Your Way” initiative. While only two of us authored this piece, many students contributed leadership, creativity and care to make this campaign possible.

We hope Love Your Body Week reminds our community of the importance of treating our bodies with kindness and respect. Loving your body does not mean loving how it looks every day – it means honoring what it allows you to do and caring for it without judgment.

Everyone is unique and deserves love, exactly as they are. To learn more about Love Your Body Week and the five Be Body Positive Competencies, visit bit.ly/4ruYgiX.

True beauty begins on the inside and shines outward.

Valentina Cabello, of San Rafael, is a student at San Domenico School. Bricieda Diaz, of Novato is a student at Novato High School.