10 February, 2012

Comfy Genes

Family On Friday!!!

Let's face it.  99.99% of us are unhappy with something about our appearance.  Even if we thought we could be happy if we just changed one thing, once we got that the way we wanted, we'd find something else to change.

There's something inherently human about dissatisfaction.  It drives us to continuously build upon previous experiences and discoveries, reaching for the unimaginable.

Flip the coin over, and the ugly counterpart to that drive rears its head.  We risk damage, pain, finances, and even our lives to fight against our genetic makeup.  All in the name of some amorphous concept of beauty.

How does a parent tackle his/her own demons and help bolster the confidence of their children?  Surely, the line between constructive and destructive runs very fine and delicate.

We have a natural tendency to expect compliments from parents as part of their job, and the effect of such flattery fades quickly.  Conversely, because compliments are expected, insults come down harder than an anvil and hurt a little worse.  (Gifts of plastic surgery to a body still developing is especially bad.)

Parents also control the variety and quantity of foods available at a young age and can instill a positive lifestyle early that will hopefully carry on as the parental influence wanes.  Moreover, children who hear their parents speaking confidently (not vainly or boastfully) about their own appearance are more likely to feel comfortable doing the same.

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