"Body Dysmorphic Disorder"

A short time ago, I was at an appointment and in their reception area was a stack of magazines. I saw a picture of Kelly Ripa and there was a sub-title, "15 Things You Don't Know About Her"...I'm always intrigued by learning things 'I don't know about', so I picked up the SELF magazine. I laughed that it was a 4 year old issue back from Feb. 2007, but regardless I was still interested in checking it out and wasting some time in the reception area before by appointment.




Sometimes, when I read a magazine article I don't start with the beginning of the story, (bad, I know) but, I skim through the pages of the article and see what catches my eye. This time, I never even made it to the Kelly Rippa article because something else caught my eye. I saw some percentages. For the heck of it, I was curious to what this "other" article was about. The stats were on the same page as a picture of a nude model standing in the woods semi-covered up with a sleeping bag. She looked like a nature loving, pretty girl with a normal body...not too heavy and not too skinny. Here were the stats from SELF's poll:



83% feel worse about their body after swimsuit shopping.



79% believe life would be better if they were only thinner.



78% say that their weight dictates their mood for the day.



74% have said no to an invitation because they felt bad about their body.



72% say negative body thoughts interfere with their enjoyment of sex.





This is something that MANY people's attitude can suffer from, but guess what? If you are working or studying in an "artistic" field such as the "appearance-oriented" fashion industry...it's even more likely that you can develop a body image disorder such as "Body Dysmorphic Disorder" which is a skewed view of how they look. About 20% of the industry may have it...I'd bet more! Researchers believe that those people that have that special artistic eye can turn that talent on themselves and become more critical of their bodies.



As I read this article, I thought to myself how true this is especially about models and related industry professionals. I wish that I could encourage models to overcome it, but when their image that they are being hired to project is usually under such an objective microscope...the news isn't so great that models can just "overcome it" easily.



So, after I read this article...I thought about adding this topic to my research. My point of this discussion is just as a reminder to the modeling industry that things can often be distorted when it comes to what you're projecting, so try and be easy on yourself. Expect critique from others, but don't let it RULE you. Take critique respectfully from a business perspective, but stay aware that it can take its toll on your self esteem and body image. Fight the urge for perfection. We want a healthy image both physically and emotionally...and you don't have to be perfect. Honestly.

"Pretty Girls are a Dime a Dozen"???

I wish I could be witty.  I wish that I could just catch the attention of those individuals entering the modeling industry for just enough time to slow them down...kind of like what the Yellow traffic lights are supposed to mean.  How many of us speed up when we see a Yellow traffic light?  I've done that before.  Was I wrong???...maybe not.  Was that smart???...probably NOT.  That's hindsight, I guess, but we're all guilty of looking back on things that maybe we could have handled differently.

I once had a worldly man tell me that 'pretty girls are a dime a dozen'. 

I guess that I knew what he meant, although I didn't appreciate that he could just be so harsh and patronizing.  I was raised where human life has value, so the idea of women being belittled as 'a dime a dozen' was just a bit annoying to me.  That's just me, I guess.  Women have always had to struggle at being taken seriously and promoting their capable intelligence.  I can't deny that there are plenty of females not living up to that standard, but that should be of no reflection on their value as compared to the opposite sex.  

Oddly, he was trying to give me a compliment that I was flying under the radar as not to be a threat to either men nor women.  He told me that I looked like someone that could make something happen.  I was working within the modeling industry, but he implied that I was 'with the program'.  HUH?  So, before I ever opened my first business as a modeling agency... he and some other men that I'll just refer to as "players" approached me with an offer.  They offered me significant amounts of money to open and operate a modeling agency.  At first I was flattered that someone wanted to "invest in me" when I wasn't even considering this line of work.  WOW!  My intuition started to become my "devil's advocate", and thought to myself, "YELLOW LIGHT!...SLOW DOWN!". 

Why the heck did these men want ME to front a modeling agency?  I used that "Yellow Traffic Light" technique and it actually slowed down the process for enough time to see that this sounded TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE.  I made my inquiries and they ended up wanting to use this "agency" as a front to meet women and put themselves in a position where they would be in charge of hiring them.  Huge drug scene, too, from what I heard.  (Hey, Players with money...just open a bar to meet women!  Don't pull me into your scam!  I'm not in your "program"!).  Those "worldly" men were in their own 'a dime a dozen' place, too... one shady, common place that does exist wherever the models are.

Yes, the money is tempting, but what I always tried to do before making any decisions in my career was saying to myself, "If my mother, father, sister, brothers, nephews, grandmother, etc. knew I was doing this...how would I feel?"  You, as a model, will face your own situations where you will have to rely on your own principles.

Accountability and one's conscience are sometimes put on hold when opportunities of money, fame, prestige, etc...are dangled in your face.  I stuck to my principles regarding what I thought was fair, legal, and ethical.  I admit that once I was approached to front such a despicable business venture that the goal for representing models legitimately was like a seed planted in my brain.  The opportunity came up again for me to front a modeling agency, but this time I chose to assume 100% investment.  If I was to own the agency...I would be the agent.  I would oversee and protect the models from the scum of the earth that just wanted to have go-sees and meet models. 

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!  That was my idealistic intention to be the "Yellow Light" for the models that could slow them down enough to stay away from scams and people without integrity.  I had intentions of not charging models for modeling classes,  not accepting kick-backs from using only one "agency" photographer, and not making money from a model unless it was a commission where I had provided them with a modeling job.   I repeat with sarcasm, "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"  Other people didn't like my lack of not playing along and I was quite intimidated from time to time that I needed to get with the program.  It was no wonder that I got so physically ill trying to swim with those sharks!

Let me just say that I kept up my end of the bargain, but the things that I learned from all of those other external forces that deal with modeling agencies is WHY I left that business and will not go back as an agent ever again.  Consulting??? Yes.  Scouting Models???? Yes.  Sharing educational or informative topics????  Yes.  Swimming with Corrupt SHARKS in the Commercial, Promotional, and Fashion Industry??? No Freakin' Way.  I am not the one.   For the people that do it...I applaud your semi-stone hearts. (more sarcasm, of course)  The positive side is that I learned a lot and I can support other people that feel that they are facing this industry ALONE.

I'm not writing this to scare off models from entering the industry, but it's an element of warning you to be aware of people's intentions in this industry.  Just because the end result of a booking can be your picture in print, it's not all about you...by any means. There are artistic and positive times within a model's career, but the negative aspects can't be denied.  You can be in...You can be out.  You can make a lot of money...you may invest money and never earn it back or break even.  You can be put on a pedestal...you may just be swept under the rug like a piece of dirt. 

Chances are that your career will be the best of what you make of it.  If you look at it as a business-person you are more likely to let it be a positive experience.  I hope that you use any future good fortune and experience and someday pass it forward to help others.  Remember...when situations just don't feel right, use your intuition to "slow down" and make choices that are SAFE and ethical for your lifestyle.