Rider

Are you a psychologist?

meritocrat

I've already stated that I have no knowledge of psychology. But I know people who are psychologists and work within a psychiatric field.

If you're suggesting that emotional ill-health is subjective, then how?

Rider

I do apologize for not reading the part where you stated that you were not a psychologist. Next time I will be more astute in what I respond with and have all facts ascertained.

What I am saying is that do you know how everyone feels? How can you say that one person is emotionally unhealthy when other people aren't. How can emotions NOT be subjective?

Person 1: Is happy because she bought a new house, she has lost both arms in an accident but because she is stable she is happy because that is all she wants out of life.

Person 2: Is unhappy because she lost both her arms in an accident and cannot do many of the day to day activities that people with 2 arms can. She bought a house thinking it would help her emotionally but it did not. She bought a dog to keep her company and finally found love one day while walking her dog (the dog was tied to her wheelchair) in the park. She is now somewhat happy but still longs for the days when she had two arms so she could be a productive member of society again.

Which person is emotionally healthy? Which person was emotionally unhealthy? Please explain when you give your answers.

RevDahlia

I don't think it's a good idea for teenagers to get cosmetic surgery, simply because they change like kaleidoscopes. The nose that was way too big for my face when I was 15 now suits me just fine, and if I'd had it "fixed" like I'd wanted to I'd look like a freak now. (Breast reductions and ear pinnings are a different story, as is surgery to fix disfigurement.)

Plastic surgery is performed for "good" and "bad" reasons, but assigning an authority to determine what is "good" or "bad" is really suspect. I'm planning on just a chin tuck, myself.

beth

I do feel that cosmetic surgery on a teen is wrong unless it is to fix a deformity, or even a huge nose that might have been damaged by it being broken, and so on. But that site kinda pissed me off. Well, according to them, this Rubens helps support plastic Rhinoplasty.They even use art to prompt nose jobs...

You know, we need to be trying to teach the kiddies to be happy with themselves. I am glad that there are plastic surgeons who specialize in kids because of injuries, accidents, and deformities that need repair, but one should not promote breast reduction or augmentation to one so young.

When I was a teen, I was teased mercilessly by the men(dang pigs!) and the boys my age. I got called all sorts of things and always heard Dolly Parton's name come up. If I had been able to get surgery back then, I would have gladly have had my boobies chopped off. Now I am glad I didn't. I would have need to get implants to fix them back.

sweep

so far I have failed to find the study on universal standards of beauty, but I'm getting closer. In the meantime, here's a little something to chew on.

Beauty's Dark Side: http://www.smilesensation.com/bulger-beauty.htm

"Beauty is worse than wine, it intoxicates both the holder and beholder." -- Immermann

"When I was growing up Barbie gave me something to strive for; she was tall, she had long beautiful blonde hair, her wardrobe was immense and varied, her waist line was to die for, and those long legs and plump chest drew action figures from miles around. Well, not long after my 12th birthday it became very clear that my still developing body wasn't developing at the right pace or in the right places to make me look like every girl's childhood idol." -- from "Remaking Barbie" by Tamara Keith

The media's utilization of beauty may sell more products, yet it does have its consequences. The pressures on us to look good can be enormous. Attractiveness has a deep biological purpose, and the mating game is all about competition. Where generations ago we only had to compete with those within our local community, we're now forced to compete with the media's images of spectacular beauty from all over the world. Few of us can aspire to compare to the exceptional beauty that the media parades before us. All of us, male and female, even those who are quite attractive, can be made to feel very inadequate by comparison. Evidence suggests that these anxieties about physical beauty that resonate deep within us seem to be growing ever stronger and more widespread across our society.

"For many people, their body is the target for their harshest judgements and the barometer by which they measure their self-worth. They hold themselves up to an unattainable standard and berate themselves for coming up short of perfection... If any small part of you believes that you would be happier if you were thinner, taller, larger, firmer, blonder, stronger, or some other physical alteration you think would magically transform your life for the better, then you might want to spend some time learning about the value of true acceptance. Acceptance is the act of embracing what life presents you with a good attitude. Our bodies are among the most willing and wise teachers of this lesson." -- Ch�rie Carter-Scott from "If Life is a Game, What are the Rules?"

Bree

Exactly right - that's why I'm confused about the hostility. Maybe the topic is a touchy one.