Break the mold
We are inundated on a daily basis with a particular image of what is “beautiful”. The image of both men and women in the media is highly unrepresentative of the population as a whole. This is an issue that doesn’t only affect one gender or one age group, but everyone.
Studies have shown that whether you have a healthy outlook on your beauty and body or suffer from disordered thinking, there is a high instance of lower self-esteem after seeing media images of your same gender. So then, why, does the media put these out there? Because its what sells? Because that’s what actresses and actors look like?
The mindset in the media should be on what is healthy. Television, movies, magazines, clothing websites, should all be focusing on how to get men and women to be more healthy. Overall health, no matter what your weight is, should be everyone’s main goal.
I really urge all people to take a step back from these images that are cluttering every part of the media. Instead look at your neighbor, your mom, dad, best friend, significant other, most influential person on your life. Did they fit the mold of the stick thin woman or muscular man? If not, I bet their influence on your life was still just as important and even if they did, I doubt that their effect on you was due to their body type.
We all need to change the way we view the media. Stop beating ourselves up over what we have been made to believe is perfection, when in reality it is highly unrelistic view of the world. We can break the mold by embracing ourselves as beautiful. We all deserve a healthy mind, healthy body, and healthy life.
