You sometimes might ask yourself, “why am I so ugly?” although you aren’t. But tips, such as practicing self-acceptance and speaking with a professional, may help you.
Sometimes you might not feel your best, experience negative thoughts. You can find ways to cope with these thoughts and embrace your appearance. It also can help you find happiness and fulfillment as you overcome negative self-talk.
Society makes it seem normal to use filters, wear heavy makeup, and do other things to mask a natural appearance. Giving into this culture can make you feel unattractive, interfering with your self-confidence.
It can also lead to fixating on your perceived flaws and blaming your appearance for not fitting in.
If you ever feel ugly, this information can help you determine how to cope. Overcoming the issue can help you find happiness and fulfillment rather than focusing on your perceived flaws.
If you don’t fit these standards, you might feel ugly, although you’re not.
Feeling like you’re alone or don’t fit in can sometimes lead to blaming your appearance. You might think you’d fit in better if you looked like others, causing you to compare your facial features, size, or shape to other people.
If a potential romantic partner turns you down or acts disinterested, it can also cause you to feel bad about your appearance. It may make you doubt your worth and cause you to see yourself as unattractive.
The first thing to remember is that you’re not ugly, and while these feelings can come and go, they aren’t the truth. It often stems from being around people with different ideas of beauty standards.
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Mental health conditions associated with self-image
Some mental health conditions can affect self-image, including the following:
- Body dysmorphic disorder (BDD):
(BDD) involves spending excessive time looking at or trying to fix your perceived flaws. It can also lead to stressing about these parts of your body or going out of your way to hide them. You may also notice signs, such as skin picking or that you frequently check the mirror. - Depression:
Depression can lead to low self-esteem and possibly cause you to feel worthless. Unhelpful thoughts and feelings that arise may make it difficult to tend to your needs. - Eating disorders: If you live with an
eating disorder you might believe your appearance and body type are unattractive, even when everyone else says you look good. - Gender dysphoria:
Gender dysphoria is when there’s a mismatch between the sex assigned to you at birth and your true gender. It may make you feel ugly because it could involve pressure to conform to expectations you don’t relate to. But how you feel is valid and you’re not alone.
If thoughts of being unattractive interfere with your day-to-day life, consider speaking with a mental health professional who can determine if an underlying condition is contributing to negative thoughts you have regarding your appearance.
How to Find a Therapist
Looking for a therapist but not sure where to start? Psych Central’s How to Find Mental Health Support resource can help.
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1. Practice self-compassion
When you feel ugly, practicing
One way to practice self-compassion is to treat yourself how you treat friends and loved ones. You can remind yourself that you shouldn’t say it to yourself if you wouldn’t say it to someone you respect.
Additionally, you can replace negative self-talk with positivity and encouragement.
2. Prioritize self-care
You can prioritize self-care routines that help you feel good about your appearance. Getting enough sleep, spending time outside, and doing things that help you relax can help you feel better about yourself.
3. Appreciate what your body does
When you don’t feel good about yourself, you might not have an easy time thinking of the positive aspects of your appearance.
According to a
4. Make a few changes
You can make a few changes if you don’t feel good in
5. Living a fit and healthy lifestyle
Not liking how you look sometimes involves your current lifestyle choices. Living a healthy lifestyle will make you feel better, helping you like your appearance more than usual.
You could feel better about yourself by exercising regularly and making healthy food choices. Remember that you are beautiful as you are now, so it’s your choice to make. Consider choosing activities and practices that you enjoy.
6. Accept yourself
When you feel ugly, accepting who you are and how you look may help you feel better. Try to embrace your appearance and learn to love your flaws. Everyone has their quirks and flaws, but it’s what makes them special and unique.
Self-acceptance and embracing styles you love will boost your self-confidence, making you look and feel more attractive.
One way you can do this is by wearing clothes or jewelry and incorporating other styles you love. When you enjoy how things look on yourself, you can notice a significant improvement.
7. Remember why people like you
People don’t like spending time with you because of how you look. They enjoy you for your personality and other positive traits. When you remember this, you may have an easier time loving yourself as you are now.
8. Understand people don’t notice as much as you think
Sometimes you might feel ugly if you assume everyone notices your physical imperfections more than they do. While these things might come to your mind daily, others don’t always pay attention, but you’ll feel like they do.
It may make you worry more than necessary about an acne breakout, an unflattering outfit, or imperfect hair. Try to remember that you judge yourself more harshly than anyone else does, even when it doesn’t seem like it.
The things you dislike about yourself might be characteristics others don’t notice at all or they enjoy looking at it.
9. Seek professional help
Talking with a therapist can help you determine why you feel unattractive. It can also help you find ways to cope with and overcome these feelings.
Your negative emotions can impact your life, but getting professional help can improve your well-being and how you view yourself.
When you feel ugly, it causes you to lose ownership of your appearance and experience mental health disruptions.
Your body’s purpose isn’t to benefit others and doesn’t have to look a certain way. You can experience fulfillment and happiness no matter how you look, and you can improve your self-esteem.
If you notice unhelpful thoughts and feelings about your appearance affect your day-to-day life consider speaking with a mental health professional.
