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I anticipated that this book, like most psychology books designed for the General Public, would involve summarizing a lot of research I already knew in the way that was interesting and possibly related to my life. What I didn't expect was Renee's voice and passion to reach through the pages and make me feel how beauty sickness has affected me and others on a deeper level. I was sickened by the negative way women talk about and view their own bodies. I related to the shame people felt about their body’s and the focus on appearance over health. I was inspired by the interventions that helped people improve their body image.

The book is told through a mixture of psychology research and stories told by real women. The mix of facts and anecdotes was perfect. You got the knowledge and science behind beauty sickness. But you also heard the voices of women tell their own tales in a very human and relatable way.

What is absolutely terrifying and shows how beauty sick our culture really is, is that while reading this book, I often felt like I should be engaging in the negative behaviors that were discussed. For example, hearing about how people use special software to edit their photos before posting on social media made me consider doing that before posting my next photos!

But this book also changed the way I think of myself and my body in a positive way. I thought I knew about the negative effects of the media on body image, especially as a psychologist myself. I was unprepared for how little I actually knew, especially when it came to misconceptions about our bodies and how we treat them. I read the chapter on shame and started crying, because I related to so much of it. I didn't realize that I was trying to motivate myself to lose weight by shaming myself into feeling bad about my weight and what I was eating until I read this book. Beauty Sick has changed the way I think about myself and given me new strategies for cultivating a positive self-image and loving my body.

I loved that the section on what we can do about beauty sickness was so extensive. It really opened my eyes to how I think about and treat my body as well as what I can do differently to improve my self-image. I've always hated exercising. I never realized that the reason I hated it was probably because I always thought the point was to lose weight. Exercising felt like a punishment to me- something I had to do so I could shave off a few pounds. I never thought about viewing through a "look what I can do!" lens or to think about what I might have fun doing instead of what I *should* be doing.

I read this book ravenously- staying up late to read just one more chapter and sneaking pages in at work to devour its content. I needed to hear both how beauty sick our culture is and what I can do about it. I think every woman would personally benefit from reading this book. I hope its message becomes widespread and that we can make positive changes in our culture to decrease beauty sickness. In the meantime, we can make changes in our own lives and in the lives of the women we love by reading this book and applying it to ourselves and the people we love.
  
Unfriended (2014)
Unfriended (2014)
2014 | Drama, Horror, Mystery
In the modern age of electronic media, cyber stalking and cyber bullying have driven several young people to take drastic actions including suicide. Bullying has always been an issue in schools but with the ability for tormentors to cyber stalk individuals as well as encourage others to take part in the harassment, it can be hard to find any escape from the relentless attacks. In new film “Unfriended”, the audience learns through video clip that a young student named Laura committed suicide in an attempt to escape a never-ending wave of torment after an unflattering video of her was posted online. One year later the group of friends gather online as is their custom to discuss their lives as well as note the anniversary of Laura’s passing. As the group gathers on Skype may notice a mysterious and unknown person has joined their conference. Despite their attempts they’re unable to get rid of this unknown and so far silent intruder, but one of the girls named Claire starts to receive Facebook messages from Laura’s personal account. Unable to block, ignore, or remove this unwanted individual despite their best efforts, as the group soon find the tables have turned when they’re told that if they should leave the chat dire consequences will follow. At first dismissed as a very tasteless practical joke, when tragedy does strike it begins to give a new level of credence to the significant threat that their unknown chat partner provides.

When the unknown guest reveals that she is indeed Laura and begins to force the remaining students to play a series of games which in turn bring their darkest and deepest secrets to light as well as turning them against one another, the despair and eventually body count begins to rise. While there are moments you can ask questions such as where are the adults in the film which are never really addressed aside from a few police officers, the film does keep you interested even though it is presented entirely through a computer screen with each individual appearing as their own individual windows with other social media applications and computer screens coming and going as the plot dictates.

The film is neither as scary nor violent as one may indicate although it is definitely an R-rated film due to language and subject matter. Much of the graphic nature is shown through quick cutting and low-quality WebCam video that cuts out frequently or lags. The main strength of the film is that it takes an interesting concept to the approach of a killer looking for revenge. The fact that the characters remain in the same room in which they began and never once have any direct contact with each other is an interesting microcosm of how many young people today socialize more through electronics than they do in a face-to-face setting. However is anybody who grew up in the 70s and 80s will tell you, teens tying up phone lines for hours was a common occurrence in many homes throughout the world.

With the cast comprised mostly of unknowns, the film does the best with its premise but never fully develops the scares and suspense that one would expect from such an intriguing premise.

In the end the film can be a difficult watch but at least provides some entertainment for fans provided you can sit through the unusual visual presentation of the film and show patience with some of the leaps of faith that the audience is asked to undergo.

http://sknr.net/2015/04/17/unfriended/