Wear the Swimsuit: A Therapist’s Take on Body Image, Summer, and Actually Enjoying Your Life
🌊 Your Body Is Already a Summer Body — A Different Kind of Summer Pep Talk
Every summer, it starts. The “get your body ready” posts, the before-and-after photos, the unsolicited comments from relatives who think your body is somehow their business. And suddenly what’s supposed to be a season of fun and ease turns into an exhausting performance.
I’m May, and I work with a lot of people navigating body image, disordered eating, and the very particular kind of stress that comes with being perceived in a body during summer. I want to talk about some of that today — and offer a different framework than the one most of us grew up with.
🚫 The "Summer Body" Myth
Here’s the thing about “summer body” culture:
It’s a lie. Not a metaphorical one — an actual lie, built by marketing departments to make you spend money on things you don’t need. The idea that your body needs to be fixed or earned before you’re allowed to enjoy summer is… not real. It was invented. And a lot of us have internalized it so deeply that we don’t even question it anymore.
Your body right now — today — is a summer body. Because it’s summer and it’s your body. That’s all it takes.
But knowing that and feeling it are two different things.
🌿 Why "Just Love Yourself" Doesn't Cut It
I’m not going to tell you to just love yourself and move on, because that’s not how it works. Body image is complex. It’s tied to our history, our family of origin, our culture, our trauma, and thousands of messages we’ve received since childhood about what bodies are supposed to look like. Untangling that takes real work.
What I can offer is this: you don’t have to have it all figured out to still choose to participate in your own life.
☀️ Some Things Worth Considering This Summer
👙 Wear the swimsuit.
The one you’ve been waiting to wear until you’re smaller, until you’re more toned, until you feel ready. Wear it now. You’ll never get this summer back.
🍦 Eat the thing.
The ice cream, the cookout food, the drinks with friends. Food is not a moral issue. You are not good or bad based on what you put in your body. Enjoying food with people you love is one of the most human things there is.
🏊 Move because it feels good, not because you’re punishing yourself.
There’s a real difference between movement that honors your body and movement that’s rooted in shame. Your body knows the difference even if your mind doesn’t yet.
🔍 Notice the noise.
When the critical voice gets loud — is it yours, or is it something you absorbed from someone else? Getting curious about where those thoughts come from is the first step to not letting them run the show.
💜 If You're in Eating Disorder Recovery
And if you’re in recovery from an eating disorder, summer is genuinely one of the harder seasons. More exposure, more food-focused events, more comments from people who don’t know better. Please be extra gentle with yourself. Lean on your supports. And if you’ve been managing on your own, this might be the summer to get some professional backup.
I work with people navigating body image, eating disorders, queer identity, and trauma — and I love this work so much. If anything in this resonated, I’d genuinely love to connect.
👉 Learn more about working with May
📞 Book a session with May (888) 659-7618
📚 Further Reading & Sources
The 10 Principles of Intuitive Eating — Intuitive Eating — The foundational framework for rebuilding a healthy, non-diet-based relationship with food and the body.
Eating Disorder Recovery Resources — National Eating Disorders Association — NEDA's hub for finding support, including crisis resources, treatment locators, and guidance for different stages of recovery.
