Social media has the potential to improve your body image.
No way! Right? How could a hub of edited perfection ever improve your body image? I believe it can, if you make some intentional changes. Instead of a shrine to unattainable goals: it could become a beacon of hope and normalcy.
Now don’t get me wrong, social media can be very damaging to your self-esteem. People always strive to put their best foot forward. There’s nothing wrong with that. But constantly seeing only the highlights of the lives of your peers can make you question yourself. In all the ways social media keeps us connected, it also tears us apart by showing only half of the picture.
Connected to technology for a huge percentage of our day, we are inundated with beauty ideals in almost every form of media whether it’s movies, television, magazines, or social media influencers. It seems unreasonable to tell someone to avoid all outlets that might trigger feelings of inadequacy and comparison.
If you’ve ever felt different, unrepresented, or disconnected from what you see in mainstream media, this could be your opportunity to create a new culture. One just for you and your social media feeds. This is where social media differs from traditional media. You may not be able to control who is on the cover of a magazine, but you can control what you see on social media. Instagram’s algorithm is addictive in the way it relies on your participation. What you follow, what you like, is what you’re shown more of.
So how can we make social media a positive place? How can we make it change our minds about who we are, what we look like, and how our lives differ from our peers? Think for a moment about your standard of beauty. Do you ever wish your hair was a different color? Do you ever wish your body was curvier? Thinner? More muscular?
Something I noticed about my feed was that I followed people with very similar characteristics. Many had very similar body types. I had created my own culture with its own ideals that was reinforced every time I scrolled through my feed and saw no other way of being. I was so surrounded by these images that I convinced myself that there was something wrong with me. Since I was always saw the same types of bodies it felt like that was the norm. I was trying to shape my body into something it was never meant to be. In reality, there are so many people whose bodies look just like mine. There are so many ways of looking vibrantly, and beautifully, human.
Think of all the times you’re mindlessly scrolling through your Instagram feed. What is it that you want to see? It took me about 3 hours to look for influencers who were diverse in all the ways that my current feed was not. Influencers with diverse ideas, art styles, body types, lifestyles, etc. I followed as many as I could and let the algorithm do the rest.
A few weeks after, I noticed that my discover page is much more diverse. I see all kinds of people. No one kind of body is ever wrong, or triggering. But seeing the same body over and over again makes beauty take on a single meaning.
Just like anything, Instagram is what I make it. When I’m standing at the bus stop and I check my feed, I see my beautiful friends, cute dogs, and a truly diverse group of people who create content that brings me joy. I see people of every size and shape living fulfilling, bubbly and exciting lives.
I’ve created a new normal just for myself. Exposure to diversity makes a huge difference. We need to stop defining beauty as one set of characteristics that we may not have and start appreciating all the ways that a person can be beautiful.
Diaries of a Dancing Queen 