Popular culture has created a society that hates its bodies. Through special photography, lighting, and Photoshop, media outlets have bombarded us with images that seem real — but aren't.
It was the next step beyond the Barbie doll, where her true proportions would be 39-21-33 if she were a real person. And all those Disney heroines are similarly presented. Is it any wonder that 5-year-old girls are on diets?
Body Dysmorphic Disorder is becoming widespread as we try to obtain the unobtainable. Mostly seen in teenage girls, and now in gay men, the quest for the impossible wreaks havoc on self esteem and has transformed our society for the worse.
Airbrushing isn't enough any more. Svedka vodka is now thrusting a robotic female image with huge breasts, a micro waist, and an Angelina Jolie-ish face upon us. It's the next level in unobtainability.
So subtle, and so dangerous.
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Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Body Dysmorphia
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8 comments:
'Tis a cruel society to be a middle aged female in my dear, truly. And so much worse for the younger ones. My proudest bit of parenting is the fact that my daughter likes herself fine just the way she is.
Doralong,
You should be very proud of yourself for raising a child with healthy self-esteem and body image, especially given the sea of negative messages we're all drowning in. Bravo.
--Alex
Don't leave out how guys are affected. I wish I had the six pack and the big guns and a great slab of a chest.
But I don't and I hate the men who do.
Who says that body perfect robotic body isn't obtainable? All you have to do is construct an android body and download your consciousness into it. Simple! :)
I totally have it.
I'm one stomach virus away from a perfect size 5.
Seriously though, speaking as a gay man, the images that are bombarding our community are just grotesque. Talk about the impossible dream. And body dismorphic disorder is more common than you would think.
I go to the gym 3x a week, for 45 minutes at the most, but there are guys that go every day and they're killing themselves. If I miss a day, I don't sweat it. If they miss a day it is devastatingly hard on their egos.
Would I like to look like Colton Ford? Absolutely. Am I going to get a body like Colton Ford? Nope. Never in a million years - and I'm just fine with that.
Would I like to sleep with Colton Ford? Absolutely. Am I going to get to sleep with Colton Ford? If he visits Boston, I'll give it a try.
Sexy comes from within and is projected outward. Be happy with who you are in the moment that you're in.
Anyone who thinks that sexy comes from within and is projected outwards has *a lot* of people in my personal acquaintance to speak to - hundreds, in fact. It's part of the reason I stopped going out; what's the point of taking all that time and effort only to be ripped to shreds while on line as you're waiting to get into the bar? Especially on bear night.
Sorry, but this is a personal pet peeve of mine. The difference between "what should be" and "what is" in this case is a vast chasm, and getting wider every year older I get. To the point where if there's a chance there are going to be gay men at a place where I'm going, I simply won't go.
Oh I hate to see that. It's a bigger issue than people realize with young girls. Even the ones who don't seem to be affected, sometimes they're just better at hiding it. All the better to not be noticed when they're scraping their dinners in the trash. Or throwing it up in the toilet.
Not to hate on the men, but damn, why is it that women and gay men are so fucked up with all of this? Trying to please men. Even when we don't buy into it, even when we know where it stems from, even when we think it's complete bullshit, it still makes people feel like shit. Even when we know those bodies aren't normal, we get so accustomed to seeing them that when a "normal" person is (rarely) on TV, it looks strange.
Where are those goddamn Oreos...
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