This seems to be a trending topic lately as more and more celebrities are speaking out about photo editing, touch-ups, filters, etc. and the impact it has on young women. Although I completely understand the need to touch-up images before plastering them on billboards and magazine covers (I too would want this if I was a model) But I think most of us would agree that it can get a little out of hand.
Social media is a beautiful thing, it provides a quick and convenient way of connecting with friends and family across the world. However, there is such thing as too much of a good thing.
Let's use Instagram for example. What started as simple way to share pictures with friends and family has evolved in to a vehicle of self-promotion where the more likes and followers a person has the more prestigious they seemingly become. I have witnessed friends get so hung up on how many likes they get, that they will literally take a picture down if it doesn't get "enough" likes.
How sad is this? It was actually this instance that made me stop even looking at who likes my pictures, because all it does is mess with my mind. Now when I post a picture I stick my phone in my purse and do my absolute darndest not to check the updates.
But I digress, back to body-image. How many of the accounts you follow are models or celebrities? Probably a lot right? Maybe for some people this isn't an issue, but for me- I have noticed that there is a correlation between this number and the value I place on my own body image. And it actually took my boyfriend pointing this out for me to really take a step back and realize it. I have found myself obsessively scrolling through pictures of fitness models thinking to myself "wow why don't I look like that?! I want a six-pack!" And then over to the pictures of Candace Swanepool modeling a bikini thinking "okay nvm I want to look like her!"
It's quite sad really. Yes, these girls are beautiful. But so am I. Maybe not in the same way, but in my own Abby way. And so are you :) And the more we focus on looking like this girl or that girl, the more of a disservice we are ultimately doing to ourselves.
Additionally, we need to remind ourselves that a persons instagram feed is not an honest reflection of a person's life. It's more like a highlight reel. So long are the days of Facebook tagging where you have to worry about a friend posting a terrible picture of you (and totally ruining the guise of perfection you had created lol). Now, we get to pick and choose the best lighting, angle, and filter of the images we deem "post-worthy."
So, my point is this- the next time you find yourself comparing yourself to someone else on social media, remind yourself that they too probably spent 10 minutes deciding which picture they looked slimmer in or what filter made their complexion look better. We are all beautiful in our own way and sometimes it takes taking a step back to realize it :)
xoxo,
Abby
Labels: Lifestyle