Not just a ‘girl issue’

For a long time, poor body image has been framed as a ‘girl issue’, often linked to self-worth, beauty standards and societal pressures. But this assumption overlooks a crucial reality: men struggle too.

In fact, while adolescence is a high point of self-worth struggles for all genders, body acceptance can be especially challenging for men in their thirties – a decade marked by shifting priorities, slowing metabolisms and the lingering weight of childhood wounds.

David* can barely remember a time when his relationship with food wasn’t complicated. “I was bigger than the other kids and I felt that difference from a very young age.”

At home, he was encouraged to eat, enjoying the big spreads over which his Mizrachi family connected.

But at his Jewish school in Sydney, David was the target of body shaming, both over his size and his complexion, darker than his Ashkenazi peers. Even his friends took part in the ridicule at times, although David believes “this was done jokingly without an understanding of its impact”.

In high school, David took up running and enjoyed the benefits of improved cardio, some changes to his shape and the confidence to finally approach girls. But looking back, David realises that his motivation was unhealthy— and that the exercise was often punitive and obsessive.

David never considered seeking help from a mental health professional. “It wasn’t on my radar back then, I just kept pushing through on my own, focusing on exercise as a way to fix things.” David now realises that he could have benefited from talking more openly about his struggles. He regrets internalising the insults that were thrown his way.