Quite literally everyone and their mothers are on social media. Apps like Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, Facebook, etc. are platforms for anything from someone's achievements to world news. Truthfully, a lot of content on social media is meant to promote social well-being and is a place for every voice to be heard all in one place. However, the opposite end of the spectrum holds an open door straight to negativity about yourself or others.

Although it may be “the thief of joy”, humans can’t help but compare themselves to the rest of the world which then becomes a source for “judgmental, biased, and overly competitive or superior attitudes.” A lot of the time, comparison can manifest itself into a negative perception of yourself. When seeing seemingly “perfect” social media influencers almost everyday, you can’t help but notice that you don’t match up to them. When asked, about “32 percent of teen girls said that when they felt bad about their bodies, Instagram made them feel worse,”. Men are no exception to this dysphoria either.

In a desperate attempt to replicate what they see, people's self-care no longer becomes self-care but a cynical obsession of caring about everything but yourself. Women start to realize that they don’t have “the same flat, toned stomach or the same tiny, hourglass waist”. Men take on this “consuming, self-destructive pressure to become ‘jacked’ from a young age.” Women who diet to lose a little bit of weight now aim for the “sudden protrusion of [your] collarbones and ribs, the smallness of [your] wrists, the sharpness of [your] jawline”. Men eating a little more to put on some mass are now “feeling guilty for not getting their daily ‘pump,’ and force-feeding themselves obscene amounts of protein.” Your mind and brain chemistry becomes altered. There is no longer a perceived issue with how you treat your body. The desire to become perfection overwhelms all else. Your own well-being is sacrificed.

Why? Because the top 0.01% of the world’s gene pool lottery winners are the majority broadcasted all over social media.

Acceptance is what many struggle to find yet is an essential. Being able to accept your situation does not warrant giving up by any means, but rather accepting yourself. Aiming towards the top 0.01% is not an issue in itself, but wanting to actually be a copy of the top 0.01% is a source of disaster. You don’t need to worry about having an hourglass figure or being ripped because your body is not what defines you; however, you can still try to be healthy and in shape. Use the content you consume as motivation to be a better you.