distorted

The problem with the world we live in is that the words "body image" are usually preluded by the word "distorted". Because a positive body image isn't interesting. Nobody wants to hear that you're happy with your body. And nobody is trying to make you feel like you should be. And let's be honest - if I started talking about how much I love my body, you'd stop reading this straight away.

Distorted body image doesn't just appear in people's minds. You don't become unhappy with your body because of your own opinion of it. You become unhappy with your body because you are told to be. And our parents and our teachers try to act like that's not the case - I don't know why my child has low self esteem, doctor. 
"Well she appears to have a distorted body image for starters."

By definition, distorted body image is "a brain condition where the person is unable to see himself or herself accurately in the mirror and perceives features and body size as distorted."

No.

Distorted body image is my grandmother giving me a larger serving of ice cream than she gave my siblings, because she felt the need to try and 'fatten me up'. 
It's my little sister being told she can't have piggy backs anymore because she was too big. 
It's my brother who was forever over-looked because of his height. 
Distorted body image is the Mika song that topped the charts when I was ten, reminding me every time I turned on the radio that boys only liked bigger girls. 
And it's my friends at the school disco who said I couldn't sing along and dance to the song with them because I was too skinny. 
Distorted body image is the girl in grade 5 who got teased for having big boobs and the girl who's nickname was "big bum". 
It's the boy in grade 6 who was brought to tears by his classmates because he was so tiny. 
It's when I was 12 and wore a bikini for the first time and my first boyfriend saying it was weird that my hipbones stuck out so much. 
Distorted body image is my grade 8 health teacher who made us calculate and compare our BMI's in front of the whole class
It's my fitness-obsessed aunt who told me when I was 13 that if I lost a few inches around my thighs, I would make the perfect model. 
Distorted body image is when I went through a growth spurt and was told I shouldn't eat so much because I'll start putting on weight. 
It's when I was 14 and my best friend said I should start wearing push up bra's so I could get a boyfriend. 
It's the first boy who I ever let touch me saying I was 'really boney'. 
It's the girl who couldn't hang out with me after grade 10 because being around me made her feel fat. 
It's when I was 16 and wanted to get fit, and I was told I shouldn't exercise or eat healthy because I didn't need to loose weight. 
It's getting told my ass is my best asset because of how big it is. 
It's my best friend in the entire world, who even after losing so much weight, can't come to terms with the fact that her body is perfect, no matter how many times I tell her. 
It's the girls who like six packs and huge biceps and the boys who like double D's and flat stomachs. 
It's a girls first insult in a cat fight - "you're fat".
It's the fact that you can say "only dogs like bones" and it's funny. 
It's the most incredible, perfect boy in the world thinking he needs muscles to be attractive. 

It's not teenagers' self esteem that's the problem. It's the ideas the rest of the world has been putting in their heads their whole lives.