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LGBTQ+ and body image

Body image concerns typically occur at higher rates in individuals who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex or asexual (LGBTQ+).  LGBTQ+ people can experience body image concerns in similar as well as different ways to cisgender, straight people. Things like stigma, prejudice and discrimination can play a big role in their experience of body image. This can lead to more stress, lower self-esteem and reduced satisfaction with life, which can impact on mental health. Research links body image concerns to anxiety, depression and eating disorders in LGBTQ+ people.

"Body image has slowly become more and more of an issue for me. I’m a skinny guy. I feel like I’m looked at as a kid. There are so many muscular gay guys that go to the gym regularly and I’m finding myself envious of them... I look at my body and I tell myself it’s worthless. (23-year-old, man, gay)"

Research indicates that gay and bisexual men experience less body appreciation than straight men. Compared to straight men, it seems that gay and bisexual men are more likely to feel pressure to have a very muscular body. They report that physical appearance is very important to their sense of self and report higher levels of internalised weight stigma, which is when someone applies negative societal beliefs about weight to themselves.  Some people describe a rise in anti-fat bias within the queer community with negative sentiments expressed very openly and directly, particularly on dating apps, which can leave some queer people at risk of exclusion and discrimination based on their size. These factors may contribute to the large amount of body image concerns and eating disorder behaviours in this group with additional studies linking pressures from society, like discrimination, to body dissatisfaction in gay men.

“Being a fat person on dating apps of any type, I am told constantly that I don’t belong there first and foremost, and this goes through all of gay culture.” – James O’Hagan, In Pride: Opening a Conversation – Bodywhys webinar 

“People assume that men are fine and don’t suffer with issues with their body or want to lose weight. I think we have a long way to go until we recognise that men struggle too." Darren Kennedy (TV Presenter & Columnist)

The research on lesbian women and body image is somewhat mixed. Some studies say that lesbian women are more likely to have positive body image than straight women and engage in less weight control behaviours e.g. dieting. However, other studies have found that body image concerns are very similar between lesbian, straight and bisexual women, or that lesbian and bisexual women experience higher levels of body dissatisfaction than straight women. A recent survey of young women and girls in the UK found that those who identified as LGBTQ+ were significantly less likely than those were to straight to say that they were happy with how they looked. Bisexual women and women who are questioning their sexuality have been found to have higher levels of disordered eating than lesbian and straight women.

When it comes to gender identity, transgender people often have higher levels of body image concerns than those in the general population. A recent study carried out by Belong To, Being LGBTQI+ in Ireland, found that transgender and gender non-conforming participants were more likely than cisgender participants to meet the criteria for a potential eating disorder. One reason for this is that for transgender people, there is a difference between their sex assigned at birth and their gender identity. For some, eating in a disordered way might be a way for them to try and change their body to make it more in line with their desired gender. Some studies have reported that gender non-conforming individuals are more at risk of developing body image dissatisfaction and eating disorders than transgender and cisgender people.

For some people who are experiencing gender dysphoria, body positive interventions that encourage people to accept the body they have, may not be helpful and body neutral approaches may be more beneficial. There is also evidence to show that gender affirming care improves body satisfaction and body image in some transgender individuals. Overall, more research is needed to understand the relationship between body image concerns, eating disorders, sexual orientation and gender identity, as well as what factors may be influencing these patterns.

Intersecting identities

It is important to note that LGBTQ+ is an umbrella term and contains many different communities and experiences. Someone’s experience of being LGBTQ+ will be coloured by many different factors, including the other aspects of their identity such as their race, class, gender, size, ability etc. If someone is marginalised by several different factors, for example they are a person of colour, LGBTQ+ and disabled they will have a very different experience to someone who is white, LGBTQ+ and able-bodied. All of this will affect their body image as additional forms of discrimination like racism and ableism affect how we feel about our bodies.

“When you’re part of a minority group you have this minority stress, it’s just this low level of stress you have all of the time from being part of a minority group and the way that intersects with both having an eating disorder, being fat, being disabled, being queer, being trans, all of these things, it’s like the perfect storm in a way.” Bella FitzPatrick, In Pride: Opening a Conversation – Bodywhys webinar

Improving body image

In seeking to address body image concerns, it is important to remind yourself that body image is only one part of who you are.  Negative body image can make us feel like our appearance is more important than it is. It can be helpful to remember the great things about you that have nothing to do with how you look. Some research has found that body neutral approaches, where we try to see our bodies as neither positive nor negative, but rather to recognise that everyone has inherent worth and value no matter what kind of body they have, can be helpful for LGBTQ+ people as this approach takes into account the societal marginalisation of some bodies more than others. Try to take a step back from how you think about the appearance of your body and instead see if you can view your body as the thing that allows you to do everything in your life that is important to you. Remind yourself that no matter how your body looks or functions, you have inherent value and are worthy of kindness, compassion and respect. Take the time to consider how body image concerns are holding you back and what you would like to do if you had no appearance concerns. You will find additional guidance on addressing body image concerns, recognising your strengths, and developing healthy body image in the general section on improving body image.

Practicing self-compassion can have a positive influence on body image concerns in LGBTQ+ people. Self-compassion is when we treat ourselves with kindness and support. Learning to accept your experiences and to extend kindness towards yourself may enable you to move forward rather than being held back by challenging experiences. Don’t be discouraged if this is something that you find difficult, self-compassion takes practice and there are times when we all struggle with showing ourselves kindness. You can try different ways to practice self-compassion, like mindfulness, loving kindness meditations and writing exercises. Find out more about self-compassion in our general section on improving body image and in the resources section below.

“The way that I see compassion showing up in queer communities is the acceptance of difference.”

Seek out and spend time with people who accept you for who you are, and who are supportive towards you. You may find communities and like-minded people to connect with in online spaces or in your local community. Connecting with LGBTQ+ communities has been found to have a positive impact on mental health. Some LGBTQ+ people describe queer communities as safe places where they can be themselves and be respected for who they are. Some people have also reported it having a positive impact on their body image.

“There’s also a huge amount of support within the community, I think what’s very life-saving for queer people and even for myself is having other queer friends, having people that understand you, that love you without any caveats.” Daniel O’Boyle, In Pride: Opening a Conversation – Bodywhys webinar

LGBTQ+ folks also report finding it helpful to seek out and follow LGBTQ+ individuals from the body positive community on social media as these accounts may be relatable and representative of their own experience, while promoting positive body image messages.

“On my journey to like accept myself as both fat and bi was a lot to do with how I saw other people as much as it was to myself. When I started consuming media that was more diverse in terms of the types of bodies and people and stories… I started thinking everyone was so beautiful. Look at what you’re scrolling through, get rid of the stuff that makes you feel bad, add in stuff that makes you feel good.” Bella FitzPatrick, In Pride: Opening a Conversation – Bodywhys webinar

Summary of tips for improving body image in LGBTQ+ people:

• Practice body neutrality – viewing our bodies in a neutral way and recognising that we all have inherent worth and value no matter what kind of body we have can be helpful for LGBTQ+ people.

• Focus on your strengths –  make a conscious choice to appreciate your body for its strengths and the vehicle that allows you to do all of things in your life that are important to you.

• Practice self-compassion – Learning to accept our experience and react to our thoughts and feelings in a kind, compassionate way can help body image concerns. Remember that this is something that takes practice and won’t happen overnight.  We will all continue to have moments where we struggle with being kind to ourselves.

• Find supportive communities – Hang out with people who accept and support you for you are. Connecting with the LGBTQ+ communities has been found to have a positive impact on mental health.

• Diversify your social media feed – Try following LGBTQ+ people who promote body positive content.

Useful Resources and links:

LGBTQ+ and body image

🎧 Podcast: Bodywhys Podcast on LGBTQ+ experiences: A Compassionate Perspective. Listen here.

🎧 Podcast: Appearance Matters: Gender Orientation, Body Image and Eating Disorders. Listen here.

🎧 Podcast: Appearance Matters: Sexuality, Body Image and Eating Disorders. Listen here.

📰 Article: Darren Kennedy opens up about body image and eating disorder concerns in this article.

📰 Article: James O’Hagan talks about weight stigma and body shaming in the LGBTQ community in this article

💻 Website: Wicked bodies is a project dedicated to bringing a more compassionate lens to disordered eating in the queer community.

🎥 Video: This video by Wicked Bodies outlines disordered eating.

🎥 Video: Bodywhys Webinar: In Pride - Opening a Conversation (on body image and eating disorders within the LGBTQ+ Community)

🎧 Podcast: A Male Perspective: James O’Hagan on Body shaming and learning to foster positive body image. Listen here.

LGBTQ+ organisations

💻 Website: BelongTo provide support to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender young people in Ireland. You will find out more on their website - click here.

💻 Website: LGBT Ireland is a national support service for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender people and their families and friends - click here.

💻 Website: TENI seeks to improve conditions and advance the rights and equality of trans people and their families - click here.

💻 Website: ShoutOut is a registered charity committed to improving life for LGBTQ+ people by sharing personal stories and running educational programmes - click here.

General Body Image and Wellbeing

📝 Guide: This resource provides some useful information about preparing for university whilst living with or recovering from an eating disorder - click here.

🎧 Podcast: Listen to Dr. Hazel Wallace and registered nutritionist Laura Thomas discuss diet culture, body neutrality and intuitive eating - click here.

🎧 Podcast: Positive body image: Listen to the hosts of the Appearance Matters podcast interview Dr. Tracy Tylka about positive body image and discuss relevant research studies on this topic - click here.

🎧 Podcast: Listen to psychotherapist Sharon Martin discuss ways of adding more self-compassion into your life - click here.

🎧 Podcast: Listen to dietitians Corrine Dobbas and Fiona Sutherland talk about body image and body image healing - click here.

Men and Body Image

🎧 Podcast: On the following episode of the Appearance Matters podcast, the topic of male body image and the eating disorder muscle dysmorphia are discussed - click here.

🎥 Video: The following resource is a TED Talk given by researcher Dr. Scott Griffiths on the topic of muscle dysmorphia - click here.

💻 Website: Further information about men & eating disorders - click here.

Exercise and Body Image

🎧 Podcast: In episode 1 of season 2 the hosts of Body Cons interview personal trainer Tally Rye about the concept of ‘Intuitive Movement’ - click here.

📰 Article: This article on A Lust For Life website discusses modern gym culture and male body image. It touches on the pressure that this culture can place on men to adhere to a certain ideal body shape and size.

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