When you look in the mirror, where do you look? When you look at others, where do you look? Huang Yuhui, an associate professor-level attending physician at Chang Gung Memorial Hospital in Linkou, Taipei, experienced the rise of medical aesthetics in Taiwan 20 years ago. One of the worries she hears most in the clinic is “I feel like everyone is looking at a small flaw on my face.”
Appearance Anxiety Caused by Trauma Can Only Be Resolved through Healing
The anxiety of being strict with oneself is sometimes rooted in deeper stress, which in most cases will not be revealed in the dermatology clinic, and that is trauma. Lin Cuifen, a counseling psychologist who specializes in emotional counseling and interpersonal communication, said that modern people have a hard time because the rate of cheating by their partner is very high. It can be said that it is difficult to prevent regardless of gender and age. The betrayed party will be stimulated, and many people will. So I started doing aesthetic medicine and going to the gym.
“It’s okay to change your appearance, but don’t forget to heal the trauma,” Lin Cuifen said. Moderate changes can reduce anxiety and affirm oneself, which is a good thing. But if you don’t heal the inner trauma, even if you exercise hard and do a lot of medical beauty treatments, your appearance will be affected. Anxiety will not stop, and will even gradually devour reason and distort personality.
Establish Exercise Habits to Maintain a Naturally Youthful Appearance
What should I do if I haven’t suffered any trauma but still can’t help but feel anxious? Lin Cuifen said that this will inevitably happen, especially at class reunions and sister gatherings. When people of the same age gather together, “everyone is a control group.” When you see others maintaining a good condition, you will think about whether you are too lazy, too sloppy.
Even if you don’t attend the class reunion, the pressure of comparison will not disappear. On Facebook communities, friends and family are showing off their best sides, and news media are often discussing how celebrities take care of their skin, wear fashionable outfits, reverse aging through medical beauty treatments, and successfully lose weight. People are dazzled by what they see and don’t know where to start.
If you want to make a little more effort, Lin Cuifen suggests that you can start by paying attention to health and establishing exercise habits. Maintaining good health through exercise is the most direct manifestation of loving yourself and valuing yourself. Huang Yuhui also said that exercise has many benefits. It can not only combat the aging of physiological functions, but also make the body lines well-proportioned and naturally appear younger.
Appropriate Medical Beauty Can Delay the Traces of Aging
Huang Yuhui reminded that many female celebrities pursue reversing age and freezing age because of work needs, which makes them devote themselves to this since they are in their 20s and 30s. Generally, mature women have been working in other majors for many years. If they suddenly start to look like celebrities, they will “become a different person.” She suggested “keeping track of yourself”, that is, only dealing with the parts of yourself that matter most, being a few years younger, or delaying the time left behind, which are more practical and feasible goals.
How do you make sure you are not giving up on yourself or trying too hard? Lin Cuifen said that the key lies in whether people can accept and appreciate themselves. Acceptance cannot be defined by external behavior. Whether or not you wear makeup or undergo cosmetic surgery means nothing. True acceptance can only be discovered through honest inner dialogue; true appreciation requires conscious practice in order to break away from years of strictly critical perspectives.