An Assault on Self-Esteem

Warning: Rant Ahead Full Speed!

There is a television commercial whose headline rings out: Ordinary is the Opposite of Beautiful!

I cannot tell you why, but every time I hear that line, I seethe.

While in my private practice, I had multiple clients who had such a negative image of themselves. Their very self-worth suffered as their brains translated the current image of beauty into a distorted mental picture of themselves. And, while I understood that my job was to help them reprogram the negativity in their brain to a more conscious positive self-image…The constant pressure around beauty (in the media) planted some of the self-deprecating (I don’t measure up) thoughts.

The most egregious aspect of the line: Ordinary is the Opposite of Beautiful is that the line is a complete lie. Ordinary can be quite stunning. Beauty (as tired as the cliche’ may be) truly lies in the eye of the beholder.

Look at these two “ordinary little girls” They are so beautiful. They are enjoying their lives and not trying to outshine each other.

Even in nature, an ordinary river can take your breath away.

Therefore, the message that “to be considered beautiful, you must be something that you are not” creates within adults and children alike, the niggling doubt that they are not quite “ENOUGH”.

And just to deter all the comments about how the commercial was all about flooring, and not meant to convey anything else….

I say Pish Posh.

If you are walking through a room with the TV on and all you hear is that “ordinary is the opposite of beautiful” that message can stay with you, burrow into your subconscious and remain. And who decides that your floors are ordinary and therefore not beautiful? Shouldn’t that be your opinion and not that of someone else? The family above do not have spectacular floors, but I am willing to bet that in the moment captured, they are happy with what they have.

Ok Rant almost over.

And in the end, whether it is your home, your body or your looks, Recognize the beauty in the ordinary and Practice gratefulness for what you have rather than focusing on what you don’t have. That way, it is easier for you to stay in the present and celebrate that with all its bumps and storms, you and your life are beautiful.