Latest / Chatting with The Experts with Paula Okonneh / Empowering Women: Embracing Beauty Through God's Lens

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Empowering Women: Embracing Beauty Through God's Lens · Chatting with The Experts with Paula Okonneh

0:03
Hello, everyone, and welcome to another episode of chatting
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with the experts TV show where I showcase women from Africa and the
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Caribbean and living in the diaspora.
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These professional and entrepreneurial women showcase to you the expertise,
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whether it's in their business or in their professions, but whatever they
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do, the main purpose is to inspire, to educate, and to make women globally
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be better from what we discuss here.
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I've also had men and they also have been phenomenal, but 99.
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9 of the time it's been women.
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Well, today our topic is Embracing Beauty by God's Standard.
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And my guest will be giving five tips for building body confidence.
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Her name is Nma Emeh, and she is a highly respected body confidence coach.
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She's also a motivational speaker and an award winning LinkedIn creator
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that is dedicated to empowering women and girls to reclaim their
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body confidence by cultivating a more positive self perception.
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There's a lot more I can say about her, but I always believe in my guests
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telling you more about themselves.
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And so with that, I welcome Nma Emeh to this episode of Chatting with the Experts.
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Hi, Miss Paula, thank you so much for having me.
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I am so excited to be a part of your community and to be to have this
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opportunity to pour into the ladies and of course the men as well of your community.
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For those who don't know me, like she said, my name is Nma Emeh and
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I am a body image confidence coach.
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Very passionate about empowering women and young girls to
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rebuild their body confidence.
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Why is that important?
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Because I will give you some statistics right off the bat.
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Nine out of 10 women have expressed some form of dissatisfaction with their body.
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I don't know about you, but that is an alarming number.
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And when, when you bring it down to the younger age of our girls, we have
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about 78 percent of the girls between the age of 10 and 14, expressing
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some dissatisfaction with their body.
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And I think those numbers are concerning enough for us to want to have this
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dialogue about what body images, how it impacts us, and how we can rebuild
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our body confidence for success in our life and what God has planned for us.
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So thank you.
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I say amen to that.
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Can you give me those statistics again?
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Because I mean, off the top of my head, just hearing you say that it
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was alarming, but can you repeat it again for even more emphasis?
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Yes.
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Nine out of 10 women, or I would say 91%.
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And this is according to the Mental Health Foundation.
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They did the statistics the research and 91 percent of women have expressed
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some kind of dissatisfaction with their bodies and have often resorted to dieting.
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So it's not them.
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It's not just enough that they're dissatisfied with their body is
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the fact that they've gone through extra measures to start to diet.
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And of course, we all know most of the diets that we do in this day and age.
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They're usually not sustainable.
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They're not usually healthy.
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And so that leads to other problems down the line.
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So, yes, and then with the with our young girls, that number is somewhere
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about 78 percent in with kids between the age of 10 and like 14.
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And then recently studies done by the Dove Self Esteem Project,
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they are seeing girls dropping out of sports at an alarming rate.
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About 68 percent or somewhere around that number of girls are dropping out
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of sports due to the way they perceive themselves in some of these uniforms that
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they have to wear for the various sports.
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So this is impacting women and young girls down the line And what that
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does in the long run is that we're going to see less and less people
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showing up in positions of power.
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If we do not address this body image and body confidence issue.
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Oh my word.
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Well, thank you so much for repeating those statistics.
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Of course, but also to, you know, showcase the alarming rate at which,
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I mean, girls and women and girls are being impacted by negative self
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esteem coming from their body image.
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Okay.
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But tell me something before you got into doing this, I know
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you were doing something else.
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What led you to decide on a change of career?
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Thanks for asking.
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Well, prior to this, I worked in Finance and Operations in Corporate
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America for almost 20 years.
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And although I love the environment, I loved working
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in the pharmaceutical industry.
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I worked in financial services.
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I also worked on the Pacific Stock Exchange really briefly.
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And those were great experiences, great exposure.
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However, I didn't necessarily love the job that I did.
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There was just something about making the rich richer that was just not fulfilling
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enough for me and during the pandemic when that was my aha moment and I wanted
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to take a step back and just really, you know, ask myself, what do you, what would
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you like to do for the rest of your life?
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Like most people we saw a lot of people lose their lives during the pandemic.
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And it was an eye opener to me, like, okay, if I were to stand before God
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today, what can I demonstrate or show that of how I have given back to the
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world to the people and how have I impacted people for time and eternity.
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And oftentimes when you're in search of your calling, there's usually a
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common thread of something that has been going on throughout your life.
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And that usually has something to do with your calling.
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That's what I believe.
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And for me.
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My body was always a topic of discussion right from when I was born.
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I was born a whopping almost 11 pounds and I was that baby that the
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doctor told my mom, now this is it, because this one almost killed you.
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If you have any more you're not going to make it and I grew up as a
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somewhat chubby kid and growing up in Nigeria where we don't have filters.
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No, we don't.
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I was often reminded of just how chubby I was relative to my siblings.
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And so, as I grew up, I just became more and more conscious of my physical
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appearance and in good and bad ways.
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I got both good compliments and bad compliments, but you know,
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like typical human nature, we tend to focus on the negative.
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And for me, I focused more on the negative comments of people constantly
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comparing me to my sisters who are tall and modelesque and my body
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being very different from theirs.
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And I was always questioning why I looked so different from them and why
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I didn't fit the standard that people expected me to fit looking at my sisters.
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And so, anyway, all that to say I decided, well, you know, since the body has always
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been a topic of discussion, I wanted to empower women and girls to rebuild
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their body confidence, which is something that I worked on for most of my life.
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And now it's my turn to give back to women and girls.
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So that's my journey.
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Oh, I love your story.
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I mean, I don't love the part that, you know, having lived in Nigeria, I
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know that there are really no filters.
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Oh, yeah.
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And if it's not one thing, it's the next, you know.
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Precisely.
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I like the fact that you now took that, your journey, your experience, to now give
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back and to help women and help girls, because it's girls who become women.
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Yes.
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Help them know that their bodies were created by the Almighty, and there is
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a purpose for their being on Earth.
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So, you can't change your, well, I mean, the body you're born with,
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yes, is the body you're born with.
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So, you know, first of all, start liking yourself.
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And then, I mean, if it's something that you can do that it's not healthy or,
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you know, in any way that will hurt you, well, you know, we can always learn.
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So that's why we are here today to learn from you how to embrace
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the beauty of God's design.
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Yes, absolutely.
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And before we get started for, if you're like me, I like to understand the basics
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before I get into the nitty gritty of.
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of how to rebuild.
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And for instance, most people, you know, body image is not
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something most people talk about.
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You know, we hear about it, you know, here and there, but it's not something
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we you talk about in most conversations.
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So, for those who don't know, body image is the perception a person has
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about their physical appearance and the thoughts and the emotions that
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ensue as a result of that perception.
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Now it can be a positive perception, which is what you want.
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You want to have a positive perception of your body, knowing that God created
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you uniquely and for a specific purpose.
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But oftentimes, what we especially women, we have a negative perception of our body,
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we start to look at ourselves as less than as lacking instead of focusing on
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the beautiful things about our appearance.
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We've turn to find the flaws and the mistakes.
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I don't like my hair.
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I don't like my eyes.
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I don't like my nose.
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I don't like my size.
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I don't like this or that.
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So body image again is the perception that you have about your physical
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appearance and how it makes you feel, how you feel about your perception.
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Another thing about body image is it demonstrates how we see ourselves.
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Like when you think of looking at yourself in the mirror, oftentimes,
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what are you telling yourself when you look at yourself in the mirror?
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Ideally, you want to say positive things.
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You want to focus on the positive aspects of your being.
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But oftentimes, like I said, we always pick out the flaws
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before we pick out the positive.
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So yeah, but anyway, in a nutshell, that's what body image is.
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Thanks for explaining that because I was going to ask you that because there's
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something that I've noticed among women.
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Like if you say typically to a woman, Oh, I like your dress, it's like this.
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I've had it for such a long time, you know, or you say, I love your hair.
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I need to go and get it done.
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Most times women won't say, Oh, thank you.
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I appreciate you telling me that though.
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Even I think so or something like that.
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So.
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A few years ago, I told myself that any compliments I get, whether
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I believe they're true or not, I'm going to just say, thank you.
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I may not believe it, but by hearing it.
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As Christians, we know faith comes by hearing.
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No, it's hearing the word of God.
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But there's the same principle on earth.
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If you keep hearing something negative, you're going to believe it.
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And if you're telling yourself those negative things about your own
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self, you're going to believe it.
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So now when I hear positive things from people, I tell myself I'm
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going to believe it, you know.
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No, that's a good approach.
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Very good approach.
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I love that.
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And you're so true.
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A lot of us women, whenever we have a hard time receiving compliments more,
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more than our male counterparts, you know, most men, when you compliment
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them, they're like yes, of course.
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I look good.
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You know, I work out every day.
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I do this.
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For us women, whenever we are complimented, I think there's some sort
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of guilt that we experienced that, you know, some kind of guilt about being
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told that we're acceptable or that we're beautiful and that's all part
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of the whole body image thing issue.
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And some of it is because of our culture, you know, for us, for you and I, you
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know, Nigeria, like we said, people are very blunt, you know, sometimes in a
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good way, sometimes in a not so good way.
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So culture can influence your perception.
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About your body image, also your social interactions, you know,
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the friends that you hang out with that can have a significant impact
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on how you perceive yourselves.
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And then they're the personal factors.
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And then, obviously, recently, social media as well.
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Being a big big part of the whole body image journey.
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So, yes those few things really impact the way we perceive ourselves, but I
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think to your point, the more we as women begin to accept ourselves, accept
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the compliments that people give us.
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Knowing that there's no, you know, ulterior motive or agenda behind it,
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then the better we will begin to perceive ourselves and improve on our body image.
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I agree.
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All right.
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So you've explained what body image is.
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Thank you so much for that.
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So how does that impact us in general, we women?
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Well, it impacts us in several ways, but before I even go there, I wanted to
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also address some of the misconceptions that we have about body image.
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I'm sorry, that just popped into my head.
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It's very important to clarify to get off the back what some of
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the misconceptions people have.
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For instance, a lot of us believe that body image only affects women.
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That's not true.
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It does affect our male counterparts, you know, according to statistics,
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of course, 91 percent women are more dissatisfied, but when you
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look at our male counterparts.
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It's almost just as bad.
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It's about 80 percent of men.
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That are dissatisfied with their physical appearance, most of them,
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it's around the fact that they're just don't feel like they're muscular
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enough and are demonstrating that manly behavior like they would want to.
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So it's the content of it, like the way they are dissatisfied with their
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bodies slightly different from how we women perceive ourselves, but still they
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experienced some form of body image issue.
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Another misconception is that it's limited to just young people or,
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you know, people of a certain age and, but you know, body image can
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follow you through your whole life.
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You know, it can start as early as five years old and continue
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well into your senior years.
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It can happen at any point in time or either through life experiences,
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you know, what people say to you.
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And so that's something to keep in mind.
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That's why it's important to build up these body confidence tips,
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which I will share with you shortly.
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And then lastly, a common misconception is that body image only has to
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deal with our physical appearance.
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No body image is more than just your physical appearance.
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You know, and it's not just about your weight too.
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That's another common one.
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Most people think, oh, it's because the person thinks that they are chubby or
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because they're skinny and all of that.
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No.
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Body image encompasses every aspect of your being from the crown of
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your head to the soles of your feet.
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If you're experiencing any kind of dissatisfaction, whether it's how the
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texture of your hair or your skin tone and all of that to the point where it
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impacts the way you show up each day.
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Then it's worth addressing and discussing with a professional like me.
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I like that.
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I like that the way you show up and it's more than physical because you
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know, we are all body, soul and spirit.
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They're all interconnected.
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You know, you can see that sometimes when people are depressed, I mean, you can see
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it in the outward, if outwardly, I mean, in the way they carry themselves, they,
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you know, the conversation they have.
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So I like the fact that you're saying that it's not just limited to the physical,
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but it's every part from the crown of your head to the soles of your feet.
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Thanks for pointing that out.
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Thank you.
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Yes.
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And in terms of how body image impacts us.
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This is where it gets really weighty.
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It's more than just, you know, the physical for some people when it goes
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on checked for years, it can lead to some social and mental health disorders
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like body dysmorphia, anorexia, and those are the extremes and some of
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those things you at that point you really need to see a clinician about
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the body image but for most people, it's, it shows up as low self esteem.
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It shows up in as, you know, one feeling depressed over time,
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if again, if it goes unchecked, and it can also lead to anxiety.
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So imagine someone who, you know, now it's summertime, most
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people are going to the beach.
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And, you know, what do people wear to the beach?
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They wear their swimsuits and their skimpy wear and their shorts.
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Well, someone who's experiencing some body image issues, believe it or
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not, they would shy away from those social experiences because they don't
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want to be seen in their shorts.
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They don't want to be seen in a bikini or a swimsuit because they're just
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not feeling confident in their body.
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But guess what?
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They continue to hold back and refrain from those social interactions.
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Well, that's going to lead to depression over time because you're
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not getting that social interaction that God designed us to have.
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So it's a significant issue.
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You know, it really impacts our mental health and emotional well
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being in those particular ways.
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That is so true.
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And I've actually known some young people who, you know, because of the
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way, whether truthfully or untruthfully they perceive themselves, gone into
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isolation, as you say, not just in the summer, but any time of the year.
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No, I don't want to go.
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I just don't feel like I need to go.
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So as parents, we need to look at our children.
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We need to understand that this is a reality and don't just brush
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it off, but give it attention.
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Thank you.
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Yeah, absolutely.
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I mean, I've seen situations where it has impacted people's physical health
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where, you know, they have, like I said, some form of disordered eating, or some
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people take it to the extreme where they're doing excessive exercising, you
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know, so it's one extreme of the order.
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Somebody has disordered eating.
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The other person has excessive exercising and then other people sometimes,
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you know, when they're going through that negative body image, they also
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experience, you know, a lack of self care.
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They just decide they're not going to care for their physical appearance anymore,
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because they're like, you know, this vessel of God has given me, I don't feel
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like I need to maintain or anything.
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And so it impacts us mentally, emotionally, physically.
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And also even our relationships and social interactions.
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Like I said, over time, if you're not participating in social events
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or going to the after work events, it really starts to impact how you show
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up in different spaces in your life.
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There are some people, clients that I've worked with who were very hesitant about
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going to socialize after work because they just felt like, Oh, well, I don't fit in.
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No, my hair doesn't look like everybody else's own there.
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And, but the little, do they know that is in this after work events
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where the networking really happens.
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And those that's where they get to know you, when it comes to promotion,
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people remember you based on the kind of interactions they've had
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with you at work and outside of work.
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So body image can really impact all aspects of our life, but that's why
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it's important for us to really focus on maintaining a positive body image, being
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confident in who we are and knowing that God makes no mistakes in his designs.
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Amen, as I said to a young person once, when you read the creation
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story in Genesis, when God made man and woman, he said, it is good.
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Yes.
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It's all about the animals.
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He didn't say, not that the other, I mean, the animals weren't good
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or the trees, or the sky, but human beings, they were special.
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Absolutely.
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Okay.
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All right.
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So let's dig into this.
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You said five tips.
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What's tip number one?
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Well, my first tip is to embrace your unique design.
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I know I touched on it earlier, but I think oftentimes a lot of us,
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especially women, we keep trying to fit a square into a circle mold, we
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should keep trying to fit into spaces that God did not design us for.
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And it's not until we embrace.
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Who we are in our entirety, that will we start to experience the full freedom and
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the full acceptance and the full love and joy that God has designed us for.
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And that brings me to one of my favorite passages from Psalms 139 verse 14 that
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I am beautifully and wonderfully made.
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Marvelous are your works.
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And that my soul knows very well.
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Now I'll be lying to you if I said that I always believed that I was
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beautifully and wonderfully made, but in when the first time I stumbled on
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that passage and actually read it and embraced it, then that was the beginning
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of me seeing myself through God's eyes.
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He made no mistakes.
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I am unique in my own way.
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And although I don't look very much like my siblings, though, but God designed
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me in this way for a specific purpose.
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And as I continue to live my life, I'm becoming more and more aware
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what, why he designed me this way so that I can pour into other women and
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young girls who may feel a little different from their mates or their
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siblings and other female counterparts.
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So...
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Sorry, you again say,
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I said, I love that.
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Okay.
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All right.
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Number two, you ready for number two?
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Yes.
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Ready, ready, ready.
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Okay.
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So another thing I encourage clients to do is to practice self compassion.
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What does that mean?
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A lot of times.
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When we look at us as women, when we look at ourselves in the mirror, like
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I said earlier, the first thing that comes to our mind, if we're brutally
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honest, is always something negative.
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You look at yourself in the mirror like, oh, my hair is a mess.
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Oh, I, my eyebrows are not working today.
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Oh, I don't like this earring, or, I don't like this, or that.
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We start looking for flaws, but , one thing I encourage us to do is
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get a mirror, and I've done this with my elementary school girls,
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because when I speak at after school programs for girls too.
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And one thing I have them do is to bring out a mirror, and also a journal and
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spend five minutes looking at themselves in that mirror and writing everything
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beautiful or everything positive that they like about their physical appearance.
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And it's about reframing the way you think about yourself when you look at yourself.
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So that simple five minute exercise makes a significant impact on these young
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girls because it's teaching them earlier on that the mirror is not their enemy.
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The mirror is simply just a reflection of what God has already created.
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And we all know that God makes no mistakes.
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So as you're looking at yourself, look for the blessings that God has
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created in you and write those down.
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And so yeah, so I encourage people to practice self-compassion, and that
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means, you know, using affirmations or for me it's Bible passages.
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Looking for Bible passages that fill your spirit up for you to start the day
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on a positive note, because when your mind is set, when your mind is positively
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impacted, it's going to reflect on how you interact with the world around you.
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So,
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I love that so far that's being intentional.
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You have to be very intentional indeed.
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You have to be very intentional.
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A lot of the work that I do with clients is just ensuring that they are very
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intentional about everything they do.
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Intentional about taking time to slow down and do their self care like
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you know it like literally physical self care whether it's going for a
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manicure, a pedicure, a facial, but just taking that time out for ourselves.
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I think a lot of women, some of the mistakes that we make.
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Well, I don't know if we say mistakes, but some of the things that happen to us
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as women is that we're givers, naturally.
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We're always giving, whether it's to our spouses, to our
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children, to our place of work.
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And by the time we get a moment to even reflect, there's
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nothing left to give ourselves.
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And so we have to be very intentional about what we do about
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our self care, taking that time to rebuild, to rejuvenate, to pause,
27:04
to, you know, just to be, just giving ourselves that time to be.
27:09
And just even if it's five minutes, if it's 30 minutes, if it's once a week,
27:14
just going to get your nails done.
27:16
Downtime that really helps to rebuild who you are and what God is designing you for.
27:23
So, yeah, so those are just a couple of tips so far.
27:27
Yes.
27:28
You know another thing I have said to a few people is sometimes just
27:32
leave in the house for five minutes.
27:35
Go for a drive if you drive.
27:36
If you don't drive, go for a walk.
27:39
Just get some fresh air.
27:41
Exactly.
27:42
Yeah.
27:43
I mean, a walk is, well, I'm sure our doctors would say a walk, it's
27:48
not just about the physical, you know, exercise that you're doing.
27:52
It does something to our mental health.
27:55
Improves our mental health and being, and not only that, you know, taking a
27:59
walk, it forces you to look into nature.
28:02
And again, the beauty of God's design in nature, you know, at least for me
28:08
just being able to stop and breathe the flowers literally and notice the trees
28:13
and the bunnies in this time of the year.
28:17
And, you know, that really does something for our mental health.
28:20
So, yeah.
28:21
And just clears your head.
28:23
Sometimes the fresh air, remember you and for those of us who are
28:27
abroad, most of our houses , the air is being recirculated, you
28:30
know, get out there, fresh air.
28:33
I mean, I'm not a physician, but I know that breathing in fresh
28:37
air goes through your system.
28:40
It's definitely different from breathing the same air that has been circulated on.
28:44
Even if it's not 100 percent circulated, but it's not definitely as fresh as
28:50
the air that you breathe outside.
28:54
So, okay.
28:56
Right.
28:57
You've given us a few tips.
28:59
Do you have, if I counted...
29:01
I have some more!
29:02
Yeah, you have more.
29:03
So, go ahead.
29:05
I do.
29:06
All right.
29:06
Okay.
29:07
So one of my favorite tips is encouraging people to just
29:11
focus on their inner qualities.
29:14
I think.
29:16
Not that I think, I know.
29:17
We live in a society that focuses so much on physical appearance and social media.
29:24
With the onset of social media, things have just been worse.
29:27
And I'm encouraging my clients to shift away from that, especially
29:33
with our young girls who social media is all they've ever known.
29:38
Yes.
29:38
And it's about being, again, intentional In the things that we say to ourselves,
29:44
but also to our young girls, where we often compliment each other based on
29:50
our physical appearance, because society expects women to look a certain way.
29:56
So we've been trained to compliment each other just on the physical.
30:01
However, what I tell clients is, focus on those things about you that
30:08
go beyond your physical appearance.
30:10
There's so much more to us than just the way we look.
30:15
There is our talents, our compassion, the things that we're passionate
30:19
about, our hobbies, you know.
30:22
So you want to compliment yourself and your girls about the achievements,
30:27
the things you've achieved in life, you know, and your accomplishments.
30:31
Have you gotten an education?
30:33
A higher education?
30:35
Are you into knitting and how good are you about knitting
30:39
and creating beautiful things?
30:41
I think when we shift again our mindset from the physical all the time to
30:48
more of our intellectual, then that starts to rebuild our body confidence.
30:56
So again, when you're complimenting a girl, compliment
31:00
her about how smart she is.
31:04
Compliment her about how tenacious she is.
31:10
Don't just compliment her that, Oh, your hair looks beautiful.
31:14
Even if it does.
31:15
Yes, but there's so much more to her.
31:17
So I look forward to a world where girls are so much more than just.
31:22
What we look like, you know, we're known for our achievements, our
31:27
accomplishments, what we're able to get done and how quickly and the impact that
31:32
we make in the world, our innovations.
31:36
Those are the things that we need to play up in rebuilding our confidence
31:40
as a human race in my own opinion.
31:43
That's a very good one, because we are socialized to think that there's
31:48
some things that girls can't do.
31:50
Yes, especially I mean the ones that we've heard a lot about stem and steam
31:55
you know science, that's for boys.
31:57
Technology.
31:58
Oh, so it's a man's world, engineering and forget it.
32:02
They shouldn't be a female engineer.
32:04
You know, these are the sort of things you're just socialized to believe.
32:07
And then you believe it as a woman.
32:09
And I'm so happy now that we have so many outstanding women who are in these
32:14
fields and are doing excellent at that.
32:17
And for those who are not even science, as you mentioned, you know, focus
32:22
on a young girl who's compassionate.
32:25
She's able to, you know, she sees someone in need and she goes
32:29
and helps them or she's able, as you say, to knit or she can sing
32:34
beautifully, you know, so many things.
32:37
So she's able to read a book and understand, you know,
32:40
just from the first chapter, immediately understand everything.
32:43
Yes, that is fantastic.
32:46
You know, I like this.
32:48
Yeah, right.
32:48
In fact, right before I came on to the show, I was listening to a podcast that
32:54
was talking about, you know, gut health and improving the digestive system
33:00
and how that can impact your whole, and I was listening to it casually.
33:05
But my daughter was in the background and listening.
33:07
And so she's 11 years old and she's like, mom, are they talking
33:12
about the digestive system?
33:13
And, you know, and I was just surprised at how much she got out
33:17
of it, listening to it casually.
33:19
And she was like, oh, does this child have some issues with their stomach?
33:24
Oh, could this, yeah.
33:26
And so I was like, oh, wow.
33:27
You're that you grasp so much of this medical, and then we're using some really
33:33
complex medical terms to explain what was going on with this patient and in the
33:39
podcast and how they were recommending some remedies for his gut health.
33:43
But the fact that she grasped it so quickly, and, it resonated with her.
33:49
I was like, girl, you're going to be the next, you know, big doctor
33:53
somewhere down in the future or somewhere in the science field.
33:56
Don't hold yourself back.
33:58
And so it's exposing our kids to a variety, especially our girls,
34:03
to a variety of vocational skills subjects or vocational things that we
34:09
discover what comes natural to them.
34:12
And I think to your point, oftentimes when it comes to sciences, we
34:16
put the boys there and then we say, girls, go do the arts.
34:19
But no, we need to create a world where there's equity in terms of
34:26
what they are in what they want to pursue both boys and girls can pursue
34:31
sciences and excel and arts and excel.
34:35
Yes.
34:36
Oh my word, you know, we've been speaking for almost 40 minutes.
34:39
Oh, really?
34:40
Yep . This is so good.
34:42
That's what this means, you know.
34:45
So should I rush it?
34:46
Yeah, no rush.
34:48
Just give us tip number five, because we promised them five tips, right?
34:52
Okay, so I have four and five, so I'll go through it.
34:54
So the next tip is to seek a positive community support.
35:01
Important.
35:01
There's a Bible passage in 1 Thessalonians 5:11 that says, Therefore,
35:06
encourage one another and build each other up just as in fact you are doing.
35:12
So we need, God designed us for community and oftentimes we forget that.
35:18
We need to find a faith based community of people and I say faith based because
35:24
ideally those people will love you the way Christ designed us to love you.
35:29
To love each other and so find a faith based community of people who will support
35:34
you in your body image journey, as you will support them as and likewise, I
35:41
am part of a number of women's groups.
35:45
You know, of course, because my passion is about empowering women, but, you know,
35:49
finding small life groups, women's life groups, because as we're learning the word
35:54
of God, we're also encouraging each other, you know, in the faith and in our walk.
35:59
And those life groups can also translate into lifelong relationships,
36:04
which ideally will blossom into a community of support as you go
36:09
through your body confidence journey.
36:12
So it's important that you find a community of support.
36:15
For me, like I said, it's been through my church.
36:17
Some people might be through work.
36:20
Some people might be within your own family or extended family.
36:23
But the important thing is that you find a community of support of people
36:27
who make you feel good about yourself.
36:30
Of course, in doing so, you will have to set certain boundaries
36:35
Yeah.
36:35
And eliminate some people.
36:38
So focus on community of support, not people that will break you down.
36:43
And then lastly, I would say to engage in faith based reflection and meditation.
36:49
I start each day reading the word of God.
36:53
And why is that important?
36:54
Because the word of God is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.
36:59
And so before I step out, I want to know what God has set for me and I
37:06
want to make sure that I'm in line with His Word in terms of who he wants me
37:11
to serve, who he wants me to empower.
37:14
And I think it's just good for us to start our day with that positive
37:18
attitude and what better place to find it than in the Word of God.
37:23
So, start your day with reflection, meditation on
37:26
God's word, or worship music.
37:29
I love listening to worship music and just feeling empowered and
37:35
or listening to a good podcast on from a strong believer in the Lord.
37:40
So those are my five tips right there.
37:43
I love each and every one of them.
37:46
And you know, you talked about starting each day with, you know,
37:49
in the word of God, whether it's to praise music or using your own voice
37:53
to praise or reading the word because that's something that a lot of us
37:58
do not probably think deeply about.
38:00
And that is every new day is exactly that.
38:03
A new day.
38:04
You never experienced that ever before.
38:08
And so when we wake up and we are alive and well, not even if you're
38:12
not well, you can still, you know, depending on, of course, the illness.
38:17
But it's a new experience you've never, ever, ever experienced this day before.
38:24
Anything that's ahead of you.
38:25
If you think about that, it's exciting, isn't it?
38:29
It is.
38:30
And to remember that it's a gift.
38:32
Every day you wake up is a gift.
38:35
Every day you wake up and you're able to get out of bed and breathe
38:39
in the fresh air is a gift.
38:40
So don't take it for granted and use that time wisely.
38:43
Use that day, that 24 hours that God has given you.
38:47
Use it wisely and use it for impact and for his glory.
38:51
Amen.
38:51
Amen.
38:52
This has been so inspiring to me, uplifting.
38:58
I learned a lot.
38:59
And so if other people want to learn more about you, how can they find you
39:03
online or even offline if need be?
39:07
Well, yes, you can find me online at nmaemeh.com.
39:11
That's my website, nmaemeh.com.
39:14
I also live on LinkedIn.
39:16
So you can find me on LinkedIn as well, Nma Emeh and on Instagram.
39:21
Now I'm not as active on Instagram because of course I sort of don't
39:26
like Instagram, but you can find me, you can find me on Instagram.
39:29
Same thing Nma Emeh.
39:32
So, and yes, please, Facebook.
39:34
Are you on Facebook?
39:35
I am on Facebook.
39:37
I am on Facebook.
39:38
Same.
39:38
Nma Speaks, actually.
39:41
Okay.
39:41
Nma Speaks on Facebook.
39:43
And so, yes, I love to connect with people.
39:46
I love to meet new people, new organizations.
39:50
And one of my passions is being able to speak to women in different
39:56
groups and just empower them.
39:59
So, if your group is looking for someone to come and speak and
40:04
empower or empower your girls.
40:07
You know where to find me.
40:09
Thank you.
40:10
I love it.
40:11
And I say it every episode that I have, I always have amazing people,
40:17
99.9 percent of the people are men...
40:19
women,
40:23
99%!
40:24
My guests are women, but I also have that 1 percent of men that are awesome.
40:31
And so if you'd like to be a guest on my show, you can reach
40:33
out to me on my website, which is chattingwiththeexperts.com.
40:37
I also live on LinkedIn.
40:39
I love LinkedIn.
40:40
So you can find me on LinkedIn.
40:41
Just look for Paula Okonneh there.
40:44
I'm on Instagram.
40:45
My handle there is at chat_experts_podcast and I am on Facebook.
40:54
Look for Paula Okonneh on Facebook.
40:58
This has been awesome.
41:00
Thank you so much Nma for saying yes to coming on Chatting With
41:04
the Experts and you know what?
41:07
We need you to come on again because we need to hear more of about this,
41:11
knowing that we are wonderfully and marvelously made in the sight of God.
41:17
Yes, absolutely.
41:18
I've enjoyed being on your show.
41:20
I really enjoy this time with you and just this dialogue.
41:23
It will be an honor to be back here to discuss, to talk, to answer
41:27
questions from your community.
41:29
So I'm looking forward to the second round.
41:32
Thank you.
41:33
Thank you.