Category Archives: In the News on the Web
‘Mean Girls’ Myth: Why Can’t Some Women Let It Go?
Mean girls. It may seem a bit off topic, but it think- I know first hand that bullying and “mean” girl behavior can do major damage to a young person’s self image. I can recall being in 8th grade and there was a older girl who was quite popular (mainly because people were afraid of her) we were in the locker room and she kept calling me ugly and pointing out all of the ugly things about me. Of course the others (happy that they weren’t her target) sniggered and laughed. I was truly hurt, mainly because all of the things that she was saying out loud were thing I already felt inside. Later she put her arm around me and said she was just joking, and I feigned acceptance of her apology but I never got over it. In fact to this day whenever I feel “ugly” I get an emotional flash back to that locker room day.
Today with the advent of Reality TV the concept of Mean Girls has been elevated, promoted, and rewarded. Paris Hilton was the first in this generation of Mean Girls 4.0. She became famous not only for her sex tape but for vile behavior towards other women, throwing drinks in faces, starting feuds through the press and encouraging others to do so. Who can forget how she tortured Lindsey Lohan back in the day? She was a part of her whole “Firecrocth” branding. No she did not say it but it can be argued that she instigated it.
Whether it’s the embarrassingly entertaining Bad Girls Club on Oxygen or The Housewives of any City on Bravo, the entertainment and intrigue on theses shows always comes from catty mean girl behavior, cutting comments, talking behind someone’s, back or being a plain ol’ beayotch to someone’s face. Women tear ourselves down from the inside out then we strike out and tear down other woman. We have to change this behavior, first by not being, or raising mean girls, and by not glorifying bad behavior, towards ourselves and others, maybe then we’ll feel better about ourselves. So ladies the next time you want to hurl a snide remark, a pause and flip it, toss a compliment instead, or like the saying goes, if you don’t have anything nice to say…
by Laura Stepp Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist
Excerpt:
Sometimes I despair over women’s opinions about women. How can females move upward if they’re always tearing each other down?
But despite the research studies and first-person stories I included, many of the female readers taking part in last Friday’s web chat didn’t buy my thesis. They wrote about being bullied by female work colleagues. They talked about going into therapy, taking anti-depressants, and developing eating disorders as a result. One said mean women treat men as badly as other women. Another described a bully sister-in-law of 30 years “who qualifies, corrects, challenges, denigrates and dismisses whatever comes out of my mouth.”
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Glamour Mag Poll on Negative Body ImageThe Today Show
A few days ago I posted a link to the poll. Glamour Editor in Chief and Psychologist discuss the poll with Meredith Vieira. I found the part about building Neurons that promote negative thoughts. Just STOP!!! very interesting.
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Glamour Body Image Survey: 97 % of Women Have Negative Body Thoughts Daily
Read these words: “You are a fat, worthless pig.” “You’re too thin. No man is ever going to want you.” “Ugly. Big. Gross.” Horrifying comments on some awful website? The rant of an abusive, controlling boyfriend? No; shockingly, these are the actual words young women are saying to themselves on any typical day. For some, such thoughts are fleeting, but for others, this dialogue plays on a constant, punishing loop, according to a new exclusive Glamour survey of more than 300 women of all sizes. Our research found that, on average, women have 13 negative body thoughts daily—nearly one for every waking hour. And a disturbing number of women confess to having 35, 50 or even 100 hateful thoughts about their own shapes each day.
* Our Experiment
* Why Your Body May Not Be the Problem
* Silencing Your Inner “Mean Girl”
* How Change Can Happen
* The Real (Really Harsh) Things Women Think About Their Bodies
* Secrets of the 3% of Women Who Love Their Bodies
For Valentine’s :Ladies, Love Your Body, Protect Your Heart
By
Barbara Ficarra, RN, BSN, MPA, Journalist, Founder Healthin30.com, Media Broadcaster
In fact, women can have completely different symptoms including increased shortness of breath with customary activities and feelings of nausea, says Dr. Martin. Below, are symptoms of a heart attack that women can experience.
Know the symptoms of a heart attack in women:
But, there is one thing in life that should never, ever be ignored, and that is your body. Your beautiful, precious, body that fuels your passions, hopes and dreams.
Being mindful of your body, paying attention to what your body is telling you, and loving your body can be helpful to protect you from heart disease. There are steps you can take to help prevent you from heart disease, but it’s your choice. No one can force you.
Heart disease is the number one killer of women, not breast cancer. That fact may be surprising to many people given all of the media attention and prevention efforts surrounding breast cancer. So let me say it again … “Heart disease is the number one killer of women!”
* Chest pain or pressure or discomfort
* Increased shortness of breath with customary activities
* Unusual extreme fatigue*
* Significant indigestion especially with exertion
* Feelings of nausea/vomiting
* Dizziness
* Pain or pressure in the back or high chest, between shoulder blades
* Pain or discomfort (pressure) in one or both arms, neck, jaw, back, shoulder or stomach
It’s important that you don’t ignore the symptoms, seek treatment immediately
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What does a Muse look like?
The 10 Most Influential Artist’s Muses
by Paul Laster
Throughout history, artists have been inspired by the presence of certain other people in their lives that motivated them to create their best work. The source of inspiration could be a man, a woman, or even a pet, but it is almost always a being that also possesses great talent and an expressive imagination. From the model for Édouard Manet’s Olympia and Pablo Picasso’s mistress in the heyday of surrealism to Francis Bacon’s drunken pal and David LaChapelle’s doll-face girlfriend, we’ve uncovered the most influential muses of modern times. Click through our choices and let us know who would be on your list.
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Too Young to Look Old? Dealing with the Fear of Aging
By Vivian Diller, Ph.D.
The other day a patient of mine asked what I thought about her daughter’s desire to get Botox. She told me that they had been to the dermatologist for a routine appointment when a projector screen in the waiting room began showing pictures of various anti-aging procedures. “The video kept looping over and over, with before and after pictures, so you couldn’t help but watch it,” she said, as if explaining her interest in such matters. That’s when she realized her daughter was watching too. Her daughter is 16-years-old.
Global Obesity Rates Double Since 1980
MARIA CHENG
Excerpt- “Being obese is no longer just a Western problem,” said Majid Ezzati, a professor of public health at Imperial College London, one of the study’s authors.
In 1980, about 5 percent of men and 8 percent of women worldwide were obese. By 2008, the rates were nearly 10 percent for men and 14 percent for women.
That means 205 million men and 297 million women weighed in as obese. Another 1.5 billion adults were overweight, according to the obesity study.
‘Fat Cancers’ Hit Developing Nations
By MIKE STOBBE
Excerpt-For decades, health officials have worried about the impact of cigarette smoking – another nasty habit common in industrialized countries – on lung cancer deaths in developing countries.
But now, they say, it’s becoming increasingly urgent that those nations also do something about overeating and poor health habits.