The Intersection of Body Image and Wearable Technology
My Hot Take on Oura Ring/Apple Watch Technology
This might be controversial, but since day one, I’ve never been a fan of the Apple Watch. Sure, sure, I used to wear a FitBit in the days when I was thick in my body image struggles as a means to obsess over tracking my steps. But since slowly and surely pulling myself out of the depths of counting calories and overdoing my workouts, I decided I wanted nothing to do with it.
It’s not that I thought I would obsess over it, because I don’t think I would (but I might), but more so because I' didn’t want to rely on something outside of my inner experience to be yet another marker for how I feel about myself.
Now, listen. I absolutely understand the many benefits something like an Apple Watch has, don’t get me wrong. It’s incredible for so many reasons. I recently discovered the Apple Watch has a feature that allows you to call your emergency contact + 911 if it detects a fall or a crash - talk about a life-saving feature. Or the ways you can track heart rhythms and sleeping patterns. And though tracking steps is important because walking is the #1 best form of movement for us, people these days have an obsession with comparing step counts, and I’m kind of over it.
More recently, the Oura Ring came out. What a nifty gadget, that is. One of my good friends has one (and loves it), and I love that for her and fully support her using it the way she does. Somewhere in 2020 my boyfriend at the time got a WHOOP band, and I supported his investment all the same. How cool they’ve invented wearable ways of tracking what’s going on inside of our bodies.
Don’t get me wrong - this technology is pretty freaking cool. There are so many great things about them, and all of these tools that people use to move about the world in one way or another. I just don’t care to have any part of engaging with them. For me, the obsession over my body has morphed into getting in touch with my skin in different ways, more tangible, palpable ways.
If I’m tired, I will sleep more.
If I’m hungry, I will eat.
If I want to move, I’ll walk.
If I fall or get in a crash or develop an irregular heartbeat… well, I might be fucked. But that’s a different problem for a different day.
At the end of it all, I’d rather base the choices I’m making when it comes to how I’m caring for my body and my mind to derive from how I feel rather than somewhat ultimately arbitrary numbers on a tiny device strapped to my wrist. And that’s just my own, special, little, insignificant opinion.
A final thought: before I leave you with this, I would be remiss to mention how much I can’t help but wonder if this technology is leading other people to become obsessive, to use the information tracked on these devices to fall into the lies of diet culture and guilting themselves into stepping to 20k per day and getting good sleep. What impact does this technology have on our culture’s obsession with being thin?
Just a few questions I’ll be pondering for a while…
xx Megan
While I’m not a licensed therapist, registered dietician, or medical health professional and cannot speak to body image topics from a clinical, trauma-informed place, I am an expert of lived experience. I’m an academic of my own body, and I’m passionate about facilitating conversations with other humans about their relationships with their bodies. I believe it’s important to continue conversations about healthy body image in creative spaces as a means to heal individuals as well as the collective whole. But just know the information presented in this medium is not professional mental health advice or medical advice, and any questions or concerns you have should always be directed to your healthcare providers.