In the environment where the appearance is magnified, many people are not confident enough about their appearance and become anxious. This article interviewed social media blogger Alex Wang, who has almost 200,000 fans on TikTok to discuss how he views and overcomes his appearance anxiety.
Have you ever been anxious about your appearance?
Appearance anxiety is a very common topic in today’s society. Most people have the original sensation of appearance anxiety because they want to make themselves look better. Putting aside the identity of a blogger, the first time I felt anxiety around my appearance was when l was in high school. At that time, my mind was still immature, and my body was not fully developed. Seeing people around you in love will make you feel jealous, realising that your appearance is not enough, and you start to dress up from adolescence. After becoming a blogger, l often worried about being recognised as a blogger by fans or passers-by in real life. When worrying about taking a group photo, others feel that they are not the same as their appearance in their videos. Sometimes l also compare my own shortcomings with the strengths of others, which affects my self-confidence.
Have you been influenced by other people’s evaluations of your mood and work?
They do affect both my mood and work. Although there are hundreds of comments below my posts, l am very concerned about the public’s comments about me. When fans and traffic decline, there is no inspiration and confidence to continue to update my feed. Sometimes l compare myself with the same types of bloggers. I look at my face in front of the mirror and judge my appearance, such as high cheekbones and poor face lines. After becoming a mature short video blogger, you will be familiar with looking at these comments objectively. Therefore, the evaluation of others on me has gradually become less significant. Public aesthetics is a very broad topic. Because everyone’s aesthetics are different, the things and looks they like also change accordingly.
Do you have any suggestions to overcome the anxiety of appearance?
Fitness is the most efficient way. Fitness can promote the body’s metabolism and blood circulation. While the body becomes healthy, you can see your changes more intuitively. After three months of fitness, I feel that the outline of my face has become clear. While relieving appearance anxiety, fitness also needs to pay more attention to a healthy and balanced lifestyle. People need to understand that their bodies need to be properly trained according to their physical condition. Some people will give up their fitness because they don’t see the change and the effect is too small. This is a long-term persistence process. The original purpose of fitness is to make yourself better, but the later evaluation of others is also part of the consideration. Many people’s reality is different from that on the Internet, and high-definition cameras will magnify their shortcomings. It is normal to use Photoshop and filters software. The most fundamental way to improve appearance anxiety is to change your mentality and care less about other people’s thoughts.
Many people will choose plastic surgery to change their appearance. What’s your opinion on this?
I understand the desire to be beautiful, but I don’t support it. People maintain their health and economic ability to become beautiful. Plastic surgery has certain risks and side effects. Your own opinions and inner cognitions are very important. Don’t be influenced by others. People should recognize your facial features and body and perceive your individual beauty. You can also try to reconcile with yourself by making up and changing your hairstyle. Unless your job is a specific industry with rigid demands, it’s not essential to undergo plastic surgery.