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  1. HuffPost HighlineJesselyn Cook5/20/2136 min
    5 reads9 comments
    8.8
    HuffPost Highline
    5 reads
    8.8
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    • Pegeen
      Top reader this weekReading streakScoutScribe
      2 years ago

      Absolutely heartbreaking. The message of “not being enough” is endemic in our culture, especially among women. So is the constant compulsion to compare. This has “serious disaster” written all over it. I imagine suicides to rise among 20 year old women. How can we stop the madness?

      • Alexa2 years ago

        This is real, from what I understand it's impacting even younger girls (teens and even tweens) quite drastically. Scares the crap out of me. How long ago did Naomi Wolf write The Beauty Myth (the 90s??) and we're still getting it beat into us?!

    • DellwoodBarker2 years ago

      This isn’t a pleasant read. The struggle for and lack of self-love here is so prevalent and permeates this read; as does the unrealistic illusions of perfection.

      As a gay man I can’t help but wonder how these app trends affect men and others in the LGBTQ community. Back when I did use Instagram I got sucked into those algorithms that stuffed my feed with man candy “perfection” in a similar fashion to what is expressed in the article above. And I was playing into the addiction and feeding it with every like. I even had a “fantasy boyfriend” in San Paolo Brazil (fans self even to this day). Having detoxed from that I am grateful and I really focus on appreciating bodies of all types because I know that even gay media perpetuates this kind of dangerous mental grooming. I wonder how many of the male profiles I liked fall into the same photo enhancements as this article expresses.

      Today is a Great Day for self-lovin and self-care. Giving myself a big hug this a.m.

      I hope trends like expressed above become a dying breed. The harmful effects are baffling, jaw-dropping and catastrophic.

      1. Update (6/4/2021):

        Correction: São Paulo

      • Alexa2 years ago

        oh my stars, I hope these trends and apps burn out too. I do see it in gay insta too, some seriously questionably sculpted jawlines and biceps. the subreddit instareality shows men and women alike altering their bodies for the 'gram. Some of my gay pals share they are under a ton of pressure for a perfect, masculine physique, a cultural thing in a way, so no surprise there.

        Love the fantasy boyfriend tho. So relatable. There are some babes on Insta I can't go near. It's too much, and even though I know they are digitally altered avatars of a real female...they still get me all tingly (and anxious/jelly).

        And interestingly, I have heard mixed positives for the trans community. Apparently apps like this can be really affirming for some to be able to help their inner vision match an "outer reality", to stretch that term to the max. But, that does scare me in how we rely on these avatars to sink into our identity, I wish there was some way to sprinkle collective self love like fairy dust on everyone so we don't have to go to such lengths to love ourselves as we are.

    • Alexa2 years ago

      When will we collectively learn to untether our self worth and identity from the picture we see on the screen.

      This hits home. I couldn't scroll insta anymore without losing it, and r/instagramreality is a great place to learn to spot it before you spiral into self loathing.

      I'd say these gals shouldn't just delete facetune, they ought to nuke insta from their lives. From experience i can say your body dysmorphia will fade away.

      A really compelling look at whats happening with the 20-something internet humans these days, i worry for them and what its doing to our collective narcissism.

      • Pegeen
        Top reader this weekReading streakScoutScribe
        2 years ago

        Really important post Alexa. I had no idea such an app existed. This is haunting. The addictive factor escalates the seriousness of this issue. I feel SO badly for these young women. What a nightmare!

        • Alexa2 years ago

          it's so creepy, there are entire subreddits dedicated to pointing it out which goes a lonnnng way to help girls who feel troubled by it, but you have to be cued in so you know it happens. It's bonkers.

      • DellwoodBarker2 years ago

        🆙💯

    • jeff2 years ago

      What struck me the most is how obsessive these girls are over making such small adjustments to their images. That's not to downplay the issue of course, if anything it probably makes the addiction even more sinister. Given the examples though, I just can't believe that the tuned versions would get over 2x the amount of likes of the originals. I'm wondering if there's some warped perception issues going on with that or I guess more likely I'm just completely out of touch since I don't use any photo sharing apps.