Body Neutrality
By Libbey Ketterer, MSW, LISW, Purposeful Path Counseling Therapist
In the world of eating disorder recovery, the concept of body image comes up often—and for good reason. Many people have been taught to think about their bodies in harsh, critical ways, informed by years of exposure to diet culture, trauma, and disconnection. And while body positivity is often offered as the solution, I’ve found that it doesn’t always feel helpful or realistic, especially in the early stages of healing.
That’s why I talk to my clients about body neutrality.
What Is Body Neutrality?
Body neutrality means you don’t have to love your body to treat it with care. It shifts the focus from how your body looks to what your body does. Instead of aiming for self-love or constant positivity, it creates space for a more grounded, functional relationship with your body—one that centers respect, not emotion.
This approach can be especially helpful for people in recovery, where loving your body might feel not only unattainable, but irrelevant to the actual work of healing.
Why Body Positivity Can Feel Out of Reach
Body positivity encourages people to embrace and love their bodies at any size or shape. That can be a powerful message—especially for those who’ve been marginalized or harmed by beauty standards. But in the context of eating disorder recovery, body positivity can sometimes backfire.
If you’re working hard just to eat regularly, stop purging, or sit with body discomfort, being told to “love your body” can feel frustrating or even shaming. You might think: “Why can’t I do that yet?” Or worse—“Am I failing at recovery because I still don’t like my body?”
Why Body Neutrality Helps
It’s less pressure. You don’t have to force positive feelings about your body to begin (or continue) recovery. You don’t have to love your body to care for it.
It centers function over form. Instead of focusing on appearance, people begin to notice what their bodies do—walk, breathe, hug, cry, dance.
It encourages consistency. Self-care becomes something you do because you are human, not because you like what you see in the mirror that day. You don’t have to feel confident to be deserving of rest, food, or kindness.
It makes space for honesty. You don’t have to pretend to feel good when you don’t. There’s room for ambivalence, discomfort, and bad body image days—without derailing progress.
You’re allowed to simply exist in your body without judgment.
A More Sustainable Path
For a lot of my clients, body neutrality feels doable. It doesn’t demand emotional energy you don’t have. It doesn’t expect you to feel a certain way. And it doesn’t tie your worth to your appearance.
Sometimes the biggest step forward in recovery is simply learning that you don’t have to love your body to live in it.
And that’s more than enough.