Unrealistic Rise in Beauty Standards
Unrealistic beauty standards have been around for longer than the Kardashians becoming plastic and Pinterest models becoming pretty.
Ranging from a certain body type to a face type, beauty standards catered by beauty trends on social media have always effected its consumers. Some as motivation and for some as insecurities.
Leading to high levels of low self-esteem and low self-confidence in both men and women, beauty trends have been the carrier of making backstream methods and procedures mainstream.
For example when in 2015, when Kylie Jenner first launched her cosmetics brand ‘Kylie Cosmetics’ and one of her first viral photos with newly done body and lips, send a wave of trends amongst teenage girls and guys. Suddenly, having an hour glass body and big pouty lips was a thing.
Soon, that became irrelevant and extremely skinny body types started becoming normalised, later, negative body positivity received backlash for glorifying obesity.
Comparision and Competition
Social media indeed creates a bad environment for comparison. People look at edited photos of other people who own a team of employees to make them look a certan way. Even among the public figures, there is a high level of competition of who is going to look the best.
It is NOT representative of their actual appearance of their everyday lives.
Results of high beauty standards
A rise in Body Dysmorphic Disorder leaving people and mainly teenagers preoccupied with their physical appearance and general dissatisfaction with how they look in photos, clothes and in person.
According to some researches, men and boys face more elevated rates of BDD including eating disorders, which is rarely talked about and often taken as a matter only faced by the female gentry.
Combatting Beauty standards
1. Taking positive outlooks into perspective
Beauty standards, if taken into consideration can motivate you to become a better version of yourself rather than bringing yourself down.
2. Health and fitness inspiration
Social media can provide inclusivity, representation and voice to all levels of fitness and all body types, leading to motivate you into getting those six packs you’ve always wanted
3. Focus on your strengths
Rather than your perceived flaws, sit back with yourself and work on what you do best, is to be yourself!!!,
4. Media literacy
Do not consume media and perceive it in its empty form, how can perceptions be altered and picture be edited. Encourage positive outlook of how someone looks good in their own way and you look good in your own.
5. Practice self-care
Taking care of yourself ranges from taking a day off or putting on a silly little face mask to even working out in the gym. Even a little nap can make yiu feel better about yourself.
You wouldn’t always like what you see in the mirror, but it is who you are, so embrace it. No one can do you better than you. You are the best version of yourself today, doing your best, but in the words of Patrick Bateman, you can always look better.
If you want to achieve a specific goal, work on it. Get up and get going, the potential one holds, sky is the limit.
And remember, your struggle is not yours alone.
