In the current age, people are highly conscious about their physical appearance. The surge in the number of advertisements flashing on television screens, computers and newspapers endorsing beauty products draw our attention towards the rising interest of a significant number of people in buying these products to tone their appearance. While a little care of one's appearance causes no harm, the problem arises when one starts to base his/her self-esteem solely on one's physical appearance. Such individuals reach to greater lengths to adhere to the conventional standards of beauty. A greater number of social media platforms in the past two decades have also played a decisive role in facilitating the pressures to look a certain way for both men and women in order to be liked and accepted in the societal setup. Moreover, many a people follow these norms blindly and make themselves a part of this race which is highly discriminating and conservative in its outlook and approach.
Nowadays, the consciousness about one's physical appearance starts in adolescence and even earlier in some cases. Sadly, most of these ideas and notions of beauty are based on highly prejudiced and conventional norms of beauty, usually far-fetched for the common mob. Both men and women are prone and vulnerable to low self-esteem due to dissatisfaction with one or more aspects of one's personality, particularly facial appearance. However, the issue is that the youth is turning towards plastic surgery, laser and other techniques in large proportion to fix their insecurity with their looks and physical appearances. Being over-conscious of one's looks also paves way for psychological disorders, anxiety, depression, and other ailments.
However, one can still overcome the insecurity regarding one's looks and lead a life of fulfillment, love, and acceptance by changing one's idea of beauty.
#1. Redefine Conventional Norms Of Beauty
A lot of our idea about beauty that we have internalized comes from the ways in which beauty is projected in the mainstream media. The bombardment of beauty products which claim to help one achieve a certain type of skin tone, complexion, body type, etc. clearly discriminate against other categories. They claim to help people achieve better looks in a span of few months. Eventually, a false idea of beauty which is not only difficult to achieve but also is discriminatory in nature is cropped up in people's mind. The pseudo-science of beauty products does nothing but makes you a part of a vanity project. Hence, it is extremely important to refine one's standards of beauty, adopt a progressive approach and a clear vision that can help one to not fall prey to the conventional beauty standards and be confident of one's looks.
#2. Focus On One's Qualities Other Than Looks
A major part of one's self-esteem is based on one's qualities that are less to do with the physical appearance. Hobbies and qualities of a person such as honesty, morality, etc. should be the dominant factors shaping one's self-esteem and personality. Your likeability in a social set up depends to a great extent on the kind of ideas you nurture, the qualities you possess, your virtues. It is very less likely that people like you solely on the basis of your looks. The other factors always incorporate in one way or the other. Hence, it is extremely important to focus on one's qualities, which always remain an intrinsic part of one's life and help one grow a better perspective and outlook towards others and oneself. Looks should always be secondary.
#3. Avoid Make-Up/ Dressing Up Once In A While
While doing make-up is one's own personal call and a harmless act, there is no qualm in avoiding it once in a while. At times, the pressures of society to look in a certain way make one do things unconsciously to fit into that image. This proves to free oneself from the unconscious, unwanted pressures of society that one should try and avoid make-up once in a while. Similarly, men should avoid dressing up once in a while and relax in the comfiest of clothes without caring about what others think. If you still carry your confidence like a pro, without make-up and dressing up, you surely are the winner of the game.
#4. Indulge In Self-Help Sessions
The problem is big until the time it is not detected. As soon as one gets to know the problem, one can start working on the remedial measures at the earliest. In the digital age, people hardly get time for themselves which often creates havoc in their life without them being aware of it. This situation is worsening due to lack of time for oneself. Moreover, the biggest responsibility one holds is towards oneself. If you feel that you have issues with your looks, try and talk to yourself about the problem and try to figure out the solutions that can be adopted for your well-being. If you face any sort of insecurity about your looks, it is always better to acknowledge it as soon as possible and work in the direction for an overall healing therapy.
#5. Avoid Mirror One Day A Week
Do you find yourself glancing at that mirror time and again and then worrying about the crooked nose, gapped teeth, pale eyes, signs of aging? If yes, then you really need to get over this. There isn't any man/woman completely perfect in this world. It is completely okay to have one or more imperfections. We often tend to ignore how small things count and then slowly add up to the ways in which we lead our lifestyles. Some people glance in the mirror way more than the normal time and then fan their insecurities, let them breed. If you are so conscious about your looks that the mirror hanging on that wall continuously attracts your attention, why not avoid it once in a week and give yourself a break. This will help you normalize the situation and embrace your imperfections with confidence.
#6. Adopt A Healthy Lifestyle
A healthy lifestyle will always give fruits in the long run. There is no match to a lifestyle which provides one well-being and good health. However, unfortunately, the contemporary beauty standards focus primarily on fair complexion, radiant skin, etc. and neglects the inevitability of good health. Also, what good lies in a beautiful face but a bad health? One should always take care of one’s health by eating healthy and doing proper exercises. A good health can help one carry a completely different kind of confidence and energy which will not only boost one’s self-esteem but also help in the long run to stay fit and enjoy life to the fullest.
#7. Accept Ageing As A Natural Process
Ageing is a very natural process which has to befall everyone. No human being has the power to stop the needles of the clock and escape ageing. Despite this fact, the market offers many anti-ageing products to people which claim to delay the ageing process. Anything against the course of nature proves fatal for human beings. However, the sad part is that many people resort to anti-ageing products and adopt various kinds of surgeries to flaunt a younger and radiant look. The truth that people are reluctant to accept ageing as a natural process is strikingly depressing. Instead of being anxious about the ageing process, what one can do is accept it in all its glory and embrace it with open arms. Every stage of life brings something beautiful with it, and so does ageing.
#8. Smile
Generally, people tend to like people who smile. A smiling person always gives a pleasant feeling and warmth to other’s eyes. Believe it or not, that curve on your face can actually make you look more appealing to others. A person who smiles frequently radiates good energy and positive vibes. A person smiling to others also reflects a greater level of confidence in him/her.
#9. Talk To Your Friends About Your Insecurities
If there are any specific insecurities that you have regarding one's appearance such as gapped teeth or a sharp nose, one can always face and fight them by talking about them to their friends and accepting them. There isn't anyone on this planet who is completely perfect. Every person has his own set of insecurities, fears, flaws, and dilemmas. In such a case, one should always try to come out openly with more courage and strength. The moment you accept your insecurities, they will fizzle away like smoke.
#10. Beauty Lies In The Eyes Of The Beholder
Keeping aside the culturally accepted definitions of beauty and conventional beauty standards, it is always important to realize that every person existing on this planet is beautiful. Each of them has some intrinsic quality that makes them stand apart and makes them beautiful. One should embrace the beauty of every soul and try to find what makes them beautiful other than their looks. It is important to change one's perspective towards beauty, and then only one can find sheer essence of beauty in every person.
#11. Try To Understand The Cause Of Insecurity
Sometimes, people are haunted by the failures, insecurities they face during their childhood throughout their life. Body-shaming is a common phenomenon among students who often call each other names for fun. They also tend to comment on each other’s looks. While this may seem like a harmless act in one’s childhood, this can have deeper consequences on a person’s mental well-being and arouse discomfort and insecurity towards one’s physical appearance. In some cases, the youth is attracted by appealing magazine covers which mostly cover the faces adhering to the stereotypical image of beauty in our society. Youngsters try hard to get that perfect look without caring about its impact on their own well-being. One needs to dig deeper into thoughts and figure out the real cause of the insecurity. It is extremely significant to understand the root cause of the insecurity as mostly it is based out on society’s notion of beauty and unrealistic expectations.
#12. Take The Initiative
Human being is a social animal and it is everyone’s responsibility to work towards the shortcomings that exists in our society in order to make it a better place to live in. The problem of over-consciousness towards one’s physical appearance exists in a society because we create some stereotypes related to body and looks and consider them as flawless and acceptable. As an active member of a society, it is our social responsibility to reform our notions of beauty so that everyone can feel comfortable in their skin without worrying about what the other people think about their looks.
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10 Opinions
9 Opinions
I remember that when I was in class 10th I suddenly got very conscious about my looks. Well1 this is what adolescence and that hormonal rush do to you. Sadly, it was also the time when those darn pimples start popping out. It aggravated my anger to a completely different level. I remember that there were days when I did not want to go to school at all and just lock myself in my room. I star Added to this was that I have gapped teeth and it always made me conscious. We all know that we are living in an age of digital revolution where people are super active on social networking sites and are posting images many times in a day. They are more judged by how they look in their selfies than how they actually look. That gap in my teeth was already making my real life miserable and then slowly it also haunted the fear and the pressure of looking good all the time. The worst part was that I started judging myself on a daily basis and was haunted by inferiority complex of an extreme level. All my adolescent went through this sinking feeling and an urge to look perfect all the time. I also resorted to a lot of beauty products to get that perfect look, the kind of that they have on magazine covers or celebrities. I wanted to look like that. I was so engulfed in the process that I stopped realizing that there are other things in life as well that are important. When I felt that things have gone out of my hands, and I need to take control of whatever is happening I spoke to my parents. I told them how I felt that I look ugly and that my looks did not adhere to the conventional norms of beauty in this society. My parents understood the extent of the problem and were kind enough to take me seriously. They helped me a lot to come out of the worse phase of my life. My father told me that beauty does not reside in one's looks and made me realize that I was naive to think. He said that one should always be comfortable in one's skin without worrying about what others feel or think about you. He emphasized again and again that one should always focus on one's qualities such as honesty, generosity, respect etc. These are the traits that make a person beautiful and not that face which just does not fit in the conventional standards of beauty set by society. Every person is beautiful. One should be kind enough to acknowledge it. Also, there is not any definition of beauty. It always lies in the eyes of the beholder. Slowly, I stopped feeling whatever I used to feel and became this little, confident girl who always reflects positivity and hope well for all. My parents made me realize how important it is for one to feel better about one's looks as the other way can take a toll on your mental health.