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Naomi Wolf wrote, in her book published in the 1990s, ‘The Beauty Myth: “More women have more money and power and scope and legal recognition than we have ever had before; but in terms of how we feel about ourselves physically, we may actually be worse off than our unliberated grandmothers. Recent research consistently shows that inside the majority of the West’s controlled, attractive, successful working women, there is a secret “underlife” poisoning our freedom; infused with notions of beauty, it is a dark vein of self-hatred, physical obsessions, terror of aging, and dread of lost control” (Wolf, 10). Now fast forward to 2025, do you think women’s condition has changed significantly from this yet?

The struggle women face on this front has only worsened, more so with the rapid growth of the usage of social media. The emphasis on appearance and beauty placed on women has become much more than before. Social media platforms also make it easy to appear flawless and ideal with filters and other AI makeup tools they provide. But isn’t it scary to see only such false models of ideal and perfect women around us, which are really distant from what is real? Body Dysmorphia Disorder is a pressing mental health issue among youth and is often exacerbated by the unrealistic body images perpetuated in social media. Eating disorders are also a challenge youth confront due to this perpetuation of unrealistic body images. Nowadays, actors are not even allowed to gracefully embrace old age as there are online bullies shaming them for their natural appearance.

The constant pressure to appear young, flawless, and desirable has serious impacts on the psyche of people, especially in their youth. There is a rising number of mental health issues concerning body image among young women. It is as if society dictates something as the ideal beauty of a woman, and everyone is forced to fit in. The cosmetic surgeries, weight loss pills, and unhealthy diets that are being sold and advertised to make women want to fit in an ideal ‘concept’ of beauty and desirability are masqueraded as normal. How are we forgetting to question who is setting these standards and benchmarks for beauty?

We need occasional reminders that our self-worth is not tied to any changing beauty standards dictated by society. Is it not time for us to end comparisons with ‘ideal images’ and feeling inadequate? Let us embrace ourselves. Social media campaigns like #bodypositivity and #NormalizeAging are positive steps in the right direction. Beauty myths should not deter us anymore from being our real selves.