Body Dysmorphia and Distorted Beauty Ideals with Amari Pollard

In the Wake

***Trigger Warning***
In this episode, we share detailed accounts of bingeing, restricting, body dysmorphia, and harmful beauty ideals. If you are suffering or recovering from an eating disorder, body dysmorphia, and/or mental disorder, please listen with caution or skip this episode entirely. The last thing I would want is for hearing these things to set you back in your healing journey or to trigger negative thoughts or emotions.
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Amari Pollard is 1/4 of the So-Called Oreos podcast, a podcast where four friends discuss topics on being labeled "too Black" or "too white" in society and how that impacts their everyday lives. In addition to being a podcaster, Amari is also a writer and audience development strategist currently studying strategic communication as a Roy H. Park Fellow at the UNC Hussman School of Journalism and Media.
In this episode, Amari shares personal stories from childhood, her high school and college days as an athlete, and present day in the pandemic dealing with body dysmorphia and disordered eating. We discuss the harmful beauty trends and societal messaging around bodies that can have negative impacts on one's own body image or relationship with food.
Amari stated, "My personal issues with food originally stemmed from being over sexualized as a child. At the age of 10, my classmates had started a rumor that I was pregnant, and so I thought that in order for people to stop discussing my body, I had to physically take up less space. For the last 15 years I've struggled to maintain a positive relationship with my body and food, and I've even noticed old, bad habits return during the pandemic."
We dive deeper into the following:

• The moments as a child that made her aware of her body
• Viewing her body through men's appreciation
• What body dysmorphia means / looks like
• Bingeing and restricting habits
• Disordered eating and body image as an athlete in high school vs. college
• Triggers in relationships around your body
• Harmful beauty trends and societal messaging around bodies
• Why representation of all types of bodies matters
• How social media affects your body image

Tune in to hear the rest of Amari's story and insights!!

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Connect with Amari:

• Instagram:
  • @amaridawn
  • @socalledoreos
• Twitter:
  • @amaripollard
  • @socalledoreos
• Website:
  • amaridawn.com
  • socalledoreos.com
• Podcast: So Called Oreos

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Song:

• Video by India Arie

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