I'm fat. I'm too skinny. I'd be happy if I were taller, shorter, had curly hair, straight hair, a smaller nose, bigger muscles, longer legs.

我很胖，我太瘦，如果我高一点、矮一点、有一头卷发、一头直发、鼻子小一点、肌肉壮一点、腿长一点，我一定会更开心一点。

Do any of these statements sound familiar ? Are you used to putting yourself down ? If so, you're not alone. As a teen, you're going through a ton of changes in your body. And as your body changes, so does your image of yourself. Lots of people have trouble adjusting, and this can affect their self-esteem.

这些描述是否听起来很眼熟？你是否也常常贬低自己？如果是，那么你不是一个人。就像一个青少年，你的身体会发生巨大的变化，随着你的身体变化，你对自己的印象也会跟着改变。很多人难以适应，这也会影响他们的自尊心。

Why Are Self-Esteem and Body Image Important ?

Self-Esteem is all about how much people value themselves, the pride they feel in themselves, and how worthwhile they feel. Self-Esteem is important because feeling good about yourself can affect how you act. A person who has high self-Esteem will make friends easily, is more in control of his or her behavior, and will enjoy life more.

为什么自尊心和身体形象很重要？

自尊心是人们如何看待自己、是否为自己感到自豪，以及觉得自己有多重要。自尊心之所以重要，因为自我感觉良好会影响你的行为。一个有着高度自尊心的人更容易和人做朋友、对自己的行为有更多掌控力，也更懂得享受生活。

Body image is how someone feels about his or her own physical appearance. For many people, especially those in their early teens, body image can be closely linked to self-esteem. That's because as kids develop into teens, they care more about how others see them.

身体形象是一个人对自己外在表象的感觉。对很多人来说，身体外在形象在青少年早期和自尊心紧密相关。这也是为什么孩子们在成长为青少年的时候，他们更在意他人如何看待他们。

What influences a Person's Self-Esteem ?

Puberty

Some teens struggle with their self-esteem when they begin puberty because the body goes through many changes. These changes, combined with natural desire to feel accepted, mean it can be tempting for people to compare themselves with others. They may compare themselves with the people around them or with actors and celebs they see on TV, in movies, or in magazines.

什么会影响一个人的自尊心？

青春期

有一些青少年会在他们青春期开始时因为身体发生的许多变化和他们的自尊心作斗争。这些变化和自然的被接受的欲望关连在一起，这意味着和其他人比较很有诱惑。他们可能和身边人比较，或者和在电视、电影、杂志看到的名人和演员比较。

But it's impossible to measure ourselves against others because the changes that come with puberty are different for everyone, Some people start developing early; others are late bloomers; some get a temporary layer of fat to prepare for a growth spurt; others fill out permanently, and still others feel like they stay skinny no matter how much they eat. It all depends on how our genes have programmed our bodies to act.

但是通过和他人相比较来评估自己是不可能得到真正的答案的，因为每个人青春期的变化都是不同的。有些人发育地比较早；有些人晚熟；有些人短暂地得到一些脂肪为更快的成长做准备；而有些人一直是个胖子，还有一些人感觉不管吃多少都骨瘦如柴。这一切都由我们的基因来决定身体如何成长。

The Changes that come with puberty can affect how both girls and guys feel about themselves. Some girls may feel uncomfortable or embarrassed about their maturing bodies. Others may wish that they were developing faster.Girls may feel pressure to be thin but guys may feel like they don't look big or muscular enough.

伴随青春期而来的这些变化会影响男孩和女孩们对他们自己的感受。有一些女孩们会因为自己正在成熟的身体感到不舒服或尴尬，有一些则希望她们能够更快地成长。女孩们可能会为瘦感到有压力，但是男孩们则觉得自己看起来不够高大或肌肉不够壮。

Outside Influences

It's not just development that affects self-esteem, though. Many other factors (like media images of skinny girls and bulked-up guys) can affect a person's body image too.

外部影响

然而，不是只有成长影响自尊心。许多其他的因素（比如媒体上苗条女孩和高大男孩的形象）也会影响一个人外在形象。

Family life can sometimes influence self-esteem. Some parents spend more time criticizing their kids and the way they look than praising them, which can reduce kids' ability to develop good self-esteem.

家庭生活有时也会影响自尊心。有一些父母批评孩子和他们的长相比赞美他们更多，而这些会减弱孩子们形成良好自尊心的能力。

People also may experience negative comments and hurtful teasing about the way they look from classmates and peers. Sometimes racial and ethnic prejudice is the source of such comments. Although these often come from ignorance, sometimes they can affect someone's body image and self-esteem.

人们也会在和同学以及同龄人相处时有一些负面评论和有伤害性的戏弄的经历，种族和民族的偏见是这种评论的起因。尽管这些常常来源于无知，有时却也能影响一些人的身体形象和自尊心。

Healthy Self-Esteem

If you have positive body image, you probably like and accept yourself the way you are. This healthy attitude allows you to explore other aspects of growing up, such as developing good friendships, growing more independent from your parents, and challenging yourself physically and mentally. Developing these parts of yourself can help boost your self-esteem.

健康的自尊心

如果你有积极的身体形象，你可能会喜欢和接受自己本来的样子。这种健康的态度让你去探索成长的其他方面，比如发展良好的友谊，越来越不依赖你的父母，在身体和精神上挑战自己。这些部分的发展能够增长你的自尊心。

A positive, optimistic attitude can help people develop strong self-esteem. For example, saying, "Hey, I'm human" instead of "Wow, I'm such a loser" when you've made a mistake, or not blaming others when things don't go as expected.

一个积极的、乐观的态度能够帮助人们建立强烈的自尊心。例如：当你犯错时对自己说“嘿，我就是个人”而不是说“喔，我就是个失败者”，或者当事情不像期待的那样发展时不去责怪他人。

Knowing what makes you happy and how to meet your goals can help you feel capable., strong, and in control of your life. A positive attitude and a healthy lifestyle (such as exercising and eating right) are a great combination for building good self-esteem.

知道什么让你开心和如何达到你的目标会让你觉得有能力、强大和你生命的一切尽在掌握。一个积极的态度和一个健康的生活方式（比如锻炼和正确饮食）是建立良好自尊心的主要组成部分。

Tips for Improving Your Body Image

Some people think they need to change how they look or act to feel good about themselves. But actually all you need to do is change the way you see your body and how you think about yourself.

改善身体形象的小技巧

一些人认为他们需要改变自己的形象或者行为来让自己感觉更愉快，但是，实际上你所需要做的是改变你看待自己身体的方式和对自己的认知。

The first thing to do is recognize that your body is your own, no matter what shape, size or color it comes in. If you're very worried about your weight or size, check with your doctor to verity that things are OK. But it's no one's business but your own what your body is like. Ultimately, you have to be happy with yourself.

首先要做的是认识到你的身体属于你自己，不管它是什么形状、大小或颜色。如果你很为自己的体重或身高感到困扰，去看医生核实是否有问题。但是，你自身怎么样，和其他人无关，是你自己的事。最终，你要对自己感到高兴。

Next, identify which aspects of your appearance you can realistically change and which you can't. Everyone (even the most perfect-seeming celeb) has things about themselves that they can't change and need to accept, like their height, for example, or their shoe size.

接下来，确定你外表的哪些部分可以改变，哪些不能。每个人（哪怕是最完美的名人）都有他们不能改变只能接受的事情，比如他们的身高，或者说他们鞋码。

If there are things about yourself that you want to change and can(such as how fit you are), do this by making goals for yourself. For example, if you want to get fit, make a plan to exercise every day and eat nutritious foods. Then keep track of your progress until you reach your goal. Meeting a challenge you set for yourself is a great way to boost self-esteem. 

如果有些你自己想改也能改的事情（比如说你的健康程度），带着目标去做。例如：如果你想变得更健康，那么做一个计划，每天锻炼和吃营养丰富的食物。然后跟进自己的进度直到达到你的目标。达迎接你给自己设定的挑战，这是一个非常好的增强自尊心的方法。

P.S：正好在除夕，12个章节24篇课文都学完，也算是一个圆满的结束。明天是一个全新的开始