Before you argue that I can control the way I feel towards social media, we all know that it's not as easy to do as the words roll off the tongue. From a young age, we're taught to love ourselves and our bodies but with the egocentric trends of today’s media, it is hard not to admit that your self-image is occasionally docked while scrolling through your feeds.
I sat there scrolling through Instagram, Tumblr, and Facebook and realized that the images I was seeing were beginning to consume the way I looked at myself. I tried to suppress the feelings of anxiety I had when trying on clothes or heading out to the beach in my new swimsuit, but I couldn’t help but catch myself thinking “If only I looked like those other girls did.” It started to entirely change my outlook on life and I began to obsess over it.
I have always had a few body confidence issues, as any normal person often does, but I recently noticed that they've become excessively more relevant as I spend increasing amounts of time on social media platforms. I'm just now gaining the confidence to publicly address this issue and accept that social media is beginning to destroy my body.
I want to deliver this message to anyone who has ever felt that they were not good enough because they compared themselves to an image of someone else. After contemplating why, I was allowing this to eat away at my self-esteem, I made a mental list of the reasons why it shouldn’t.
1. Every photo posted is posed.
Even when we post our own pictures they are posed to make us look our best.
2. Likes don't mean a thing.
No matter how little or how many likes you get the amount they should influence the way you look at yourself should be very very minimal.
3. Photoshop exists and people use it.
Sometimes people tweak reality to make themselves look better, don't be fooled.
4. Sometimes the photo isn't even half the story.
Obviously, some stuff is going on behind the scenes like excessive work out plans, difficult dieting, or maybe even some guys in green morph suits helping your cape to blow in the wind...you never know.
5. Some people just got lucky with the gene pool.
Sometimes its just luck and some good genes.
6. Angles are EVERYTHING.
Everything from lighting to camera angle can alter the way a picture turns out.
7. Everyone has a different standard of beauty.
You never know who finds your beauty absolutely jaw-dropping, and trust me someone absolutely does.
