Ep 6. Body Image

Katie Otto is back again, but this time she's tackling a topic that's rarely talked about on television: body image. In "Body Image," the sixth episode of American Housewife's third season, Katie is forced to confront her own insecurities surrounding her appearance when she realizes her teenage daughter, Anna-Kat, is struggling with similar issues.

From the very beginning of the episode, it's clear that Katie is feeling uncomfortable in her own skin. She struggles to find an outfit that she feels good in for a school event, and is noticeably unhappy with her appearance when she's caught in candid photos by her husband, Greg. Despite Greg's attempts to reassure her that she looks great, Katie can't shake the feeling that she's not good enough.

It's not until Katie runs into her daughter's friend, Franklin, that she starts to recognize the impact her own negative body image is having on Anna-Kat. Franklin is a confident and outgoing kid who doesn't seem to care what anyone thinks of him, and Anna-Kat is clearly enamored by his self-assuredness. When Katie comments on how cool and interesting Franklin is, Anna-Kat replies, "But he's so big!" This sets off alarm bells for Katie, who realizes that her daughter is already starting to internalize societal notions of what a "good" body looks like.

Katie tries to brush off Anna-Kat's comment, but the effect it has on her is palpable. She starts obsessing over her own appearance, taking drastic measures such as eating only rice cakes and doing hundreds of squats in an attempt to look more like the idealized version of a woman that she sees in magazines and on TV. Her husband and friends try to talk her down from these extreme behaviors, but it's not until she sees firsthand how much her self-loathing is affecting her daughter that she begins to come around.

The climax of the episode comes when Katie accompanies Anna-Kat to a doctor's appointment, during which her daughter is supposed to get a vaccine. Anna-Kat is anxious about the shot, and her nerves make her visibly upset. As she's preparing for the injection, Katie starts to talk to her about her own struggles with body image, sharing some of the insecurities and doubts that she's been dealing with. The conversation between mother and daughter is deeply moving, as Katie opens up to Anna-Kat about how difficult it can be to love yourself in a world that's constantly bombarding you with messages about what you should look like.

In the end, Katie's honesty and vulnerability are what help her daughter through her fear of the shot. She reassures Anna-Kat that she doesn't have to be perfect, and that she's already loved for who she is. The scene is a powerful reminder that body image issues are not just a problem for women in their teens or twenties -- they're something that can affect people of all ages and backgrounds.

"Body Image" is a standout episode of American Housewife not just because of the important subject matter, but because of the deft way in which it handles it. The show manages to be both funny and sensitive, carefully balancing moments of levity (such as when Greg tries to talk Katie out of doing squats in the middle of a department store) with heartrending scenes that will resonate with anyone who's struggled to feel beautiful and accepted. By the end of the episode, it's clear that Katie and Anna-Kat have both grown and changed in profound ways, and that they'll be able to face whatever challenges come their way together.