Technology was used for something good as stated in the reading. Unfortunately, society has utilized Social media as a way to sell beauty and false dreams. Women Now a days spend too much time surfing the internet and comparing their body image with other people. Postpartum weight used to be a secondary problem during the 19th and 20th century, because mothers used to focus more about the meaning and the responsibilities that having a child brings and they did not have to worry about what other women or celebrities looked like after the birth of their child. Facebook, Instagram and plastic surgery for example; have become one of the most toxic artifacts for women after they they give birth. These social media not only represent a competition as to who looks better and who has better material things etc. Social media has become the number one representation that women are supposed to have a six packs 6 weeks after having a baby and if not the women is considered to be lazy and unattractive. With the invention and advancement of plastic surgery most women that post pictures of themselves on the inter net and are showing a perfect body right after giving birth are considered to be “made up” meaning that they had different plastic surgery procedures in order to have a perfect body. Women will spend many hours throughout the day surfing the internet looking at other women who recently had a baby and a couple of weeks after they are back to their normal size. But what they are not understanding is that social media is destroying their self esteem and sense of self worth. Postpartum Women who are obsessed to look like a celebrity right after they have a baby, they are forgetting that the time after their baby is born should be mostly about their healthy dieting and the welfare of the baby not their looks or what is going on on social media.
Oct 212016
Wow, this is a really cool idea. I knew that social media obviously affected people’s perception of body image, but I never considered how this would affect women who have recently gave birth. I think this is a really startling point, because like you said, instead of focusing on the wonderful baby they just brought into the world, their self-conscious and maybe even self-loathing of their bodies, which, paired with the already present hormone imbalance, can lead to an unstable mindset and perhaps even depression. So this is actually really important for the psychological well-being of the mother, as well as their partner and their child.
I think Plastic Surgery is a really cool artifact, and I would maybe even consider looking at Mother oriented magazines and see if they are purveyors of bad body image stereotypes. It would be interesting to compare the number of baby-oriented posts to body after birth posts on Facebook and Instagram.
I agree that social media has a great influence on our culture. I see many people are on the selfie bandwagon. I constantly see girls posting their weightless journey on their walls. There is no problem taking pride in your journey and sharing that with others. The problem I have with social media is that people post their weightloss journey with those snapchat filters-flower crown and butterflies. Those filters alter the person’s face completely. Their jawlines and cheeks are more defined, their face is slimmer and they make the lips and eyes larger. Even their skin looks flawless and glowy. I don’t mind people posting their selfies, but at least be authentic about it. It seems fake to me that someone who is going through a diet or weightloss journey only posts with filters. It does seem that people are trying to show off and show up one another. This is not a competition.
I really like the topic you raised about mothers dealing with post-partum issues-depression, weight. I agree with you on your other point that mothers are under pressure to look perfect right after giving birth. The body doesn’t have time to adjust to this new stage. Too much too soon can send the body in shock as well. It’s unhealthy to drop 20lbs in one week. Its also not a good idea to focus all your time with your image and losing wight because you are not fully bonding with your baby. It is crucial for the mommy and baby to spend time together and build a bond, connection from the beginning. Don’t focus on your weight, but focus on every precious moment.I can’t imagine what celebrities go through right after a pregnancy. They have to lose their weight because they are under so much pressure for their next movie role or a red carpet appearance. They are treated as objects and not human beings.