Month: October 2025

Beauty used to be something we found in ourselves. Now, it’s something we look for through screens, filters and algorithms that convince us we are never enough.

One scroll on my TikTok For You Page sucks me into an endless cycle of “gymtok” or “healthytok.” I sit and compare myself to every individual person, wondering how long it would take me to look like that, or if I could achieve that body if I ate like her. 

Living with social media, especially Generation Z, faces new standards for what women’s bodies should look like. You’re not considered pretty unless the size of your waist fits a size 00. You have to have glowing skin all the time to be considered attractive. The message is clear — you’re only beautiful if you fit that mold.

It’s heartbreaking that we live in a society where women can’t even feel comfortable in their own skin because of the unrealistic image of perfection that is drawn out for us.

From someone who loves going to the gym, I’m not saying exercise and eating healthy is what’s promoting unhealthy beauty standards; it’s what these content creators are saying alongside these videos. 

When I see a video captioned “Want to look like this?” designed to get viewers to stay, read how they can get abs like Jenna Johnson from “Dancing with the Stars,” or say, “Eat like this and you can look like me,” that’s where the unhealthy standards are born; on a tiny screen constantly in front of our faces.

Even worse, its not only the creators. The comment sections can be just as harmful. These comments read, “I’m not eating today” or “I’m not hungry anymore,” and the people saying these things are already beautiful.

A few examples of comments and content creation seen on a daily basis.

Some creators don’t even care to remind people that they are beautiful for who they are — they just want the likes and shares.

What makes it worse is men in the comments who believe they have a right to decide what’s considered attractive. They’ll shame women for gaining weight, for losing it, for wearing makeup, or not enough makeup. No matter what a women does, someone always has something to say. 

Not only do influencers promote unhealthy ways of living, most of them are doing it for a check. In 2022, a study found that 97% of TikToks promoting weight loss products had no scientific evidence behind them. Most are just promoting false hope packaged as “health.” It’s easy to promote unhealthy living, especially when you have a mass following.

TikTok plays a key role in these unrealistic standards. With just one tap, you can turn on the beauty filter in your videos. After using the app for 11 years, I’ve caught myself thinking I don’t look good unless the filter is on.

Body dysmorphia has taken over many women’s minds, including my own. Body dysmorphia is a mental health condition where women and men become excessively concerned about flaws in their appearance. These so-called “flaws” that we see within ourselves typically go unnoticed by others. 

If you’re struggling with body dysmorphia, we have to keep reminding ourselves that we only get to live life once. Every day, I remind myself to be grateful for a healthy body that gets me out of bed and carries me through the day. Everyone has hard days, but surrounding yourself with positivity can make a real difference.

It is important to remember that many people deal with these thoughts, and you are not alone in a world full of unfair beauty standards.

Growing up in Utah, I felt like I was already set to a high beauty standard. My parents always reminded me that I’m beautiful and never to compare myself to others because everyone was born to be different. Some kids didn’t get to hear those reassuring words growing up, and those missed affirmations are feeding into the media.

People forget that if we lived in a society where everyone looked the same, it would be a really boring world to live in.

It’s a never ending cycle of comparison, but we can end it. Take breaks from apps that drain your mental health. Unfollow accounts that make you compare. Most importantly, remind yourself every day that true beauty comes from within.

The government should be as serious and respected as we allow them to be; if politicians can’t understand that, its people will be negatively affected.

Politicians behavior in the media

Last week, the press secretary for the White House, Karoline Leavitt, responded unprofessionally to a text message from a HuffPost reporter and posted it on X, which sparked debate on how seriously we take political figures today. The existence of the debate itself explains how much the respect of American politics has faded away.

Before a meeting between the President of the United States of America, Donald Trump, and the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, was canceled, they were going to have a discussion about the war in Ukraine in Budapest. This place has historical relevance related to Russia and the Soviet Union because it’s the same city where Russia and Ukraine negotiated Ukrainian independence in 1994.

The HuffPost reporter, S.V. Dáte, asked, “Who picked Budapest?” To which Leavitt responded, “Your mom did,” and called him a “left-wing hack” on social media.

This is a lack of professionalism in the higher administration of the government, which should concern people who voted for the people in this position if the press secretary isn’t capable of giving a mature answer.

It’s expected that the answers to questions from the press align with who is running the country, but it shouldn’t exclude anybody or undermine other groups of people.

People in high positions in the government, like press secretary, should be trying to represent the White House and American politics as a whole with professionalism and try to unite the country, not divide it.

It’s very sad to see this kind of behavior because, as an international student, I always saw American politics as very important, since they have always been one of the most politically relevant countries.

Seeing how it has lost its prestige over the years is worrying. Now, American politics are more volatile than I have ever seen them, and also less serious.

When a leader speaks for its people, it gives an image of who those people are. If we want politics to be taken more seriously, we should act that way as well.

You would expect the press secretary to respond according to the tone of the subject, but instead, she responded and acted very childishly, as if she were proud of talking to a journalist disrespectfully.

We have grown accustomed to seeing behaviors like Leavitt’s “your mom” comment or President Trump posting on social media an AI-generated video disrespecting the people who attended the “No Kings” protest. This shouldn’t be happening because Americans are the ones who elected these people, and now they are being mocked by them.

Social media’s impact on society and politics

Not everything is to blame on the politicians; some people also have the same attitude as Leavitt and Trump. It’s not a stretch to say people don’t take politics as seriously as before.

The main factor is social media shaping society to not take important matters with respect and introspectiveness. There is a fine line between humor and reality, and even though having fun should not be subtracted from our everyday life, we have to understand what should be made more humorous and what should not.

The first step toward changing this is understanding that no nation’s future was ever changed by laughing and joking through tough times.

This generation has used social media to mock and satirize important or professional events in the political climate. Cases like J.D. Vance’s face being a meme or Bernie Sanders sitting on a chair show that we try to make anything a laughing matter on social media.

The importance of treating politics responsibly

We have to understand the severity of certain topics, like war or the future of a country, and not trivialize them; because when we do so, we take a backseat and stop caring about what’s important in the world.

We turn anything into a joke and, in return, political figures feel more encouraged to say or act unprofessionally since it’s going to be made fun of anyway. Just like the phrase that says “any publicity is good publicity.”

That mindset can help people like influencers to gain more outreach, whether it comes with a good reputation or not; politicians should not rely on this method because it degrades the image of the country they are trying to represent.

Societal impact

We have to be more mindful of what we allow to be made humorous since it can impact the whole world, not just the United States. Out of everything, we should discuss topics of this nature with respect; which starts by not mocking important decisions and events of a political nature.

The United States is currently the most powerful country in the world, and its political decisions affect everyone, whether willingly or not.

This makes it even more paramount to treat political subjects with importance since the government represents the leaders chosen by the people.

Despite Jeremy Allen White’s UNSETTLING brown contacts, “Deliver Me from Nowhere” is my FAVORITE music biopic I’ve seen for its atypical pacing — slowing down long enough to let you feel emotions.

“Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere” is about rock ‘n’ roll singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen. You know him from his hit “Born in the U.S.A.,” but this film shows his deeper, broodier songwriting from his album “Nebraska.”

The film takes you through Springsteen’s journey making “Nebraska” in his bedroom in New Jersey, recording on a 4-track cassette recorder to capture acoustic, sometimes echoey songs. 

But this isn’t just about him making music — it’s about his journey with depression, where he felt guilty for transitioning into stardom. 

What I liked 

My high school History of Film teacher, the man partly responsible for my love of film, used to tell us that the best movies are the ones where nothing much happens, but you get to sit with the characters and feel their emotions.

Throughout the making of “Nebraska,” Springsteen is struggling with depression, but he can’t pinpoint what’s wrong or explain what he’s feeling. I ADORE how mental health is portrayed here, as if it’s a lingering feeling that never goes away. 

White’s performance SHOWS us Springsteen’s anguish instead of TELLING us. We can see his discomfort in his own skin and how he exists without knowing why he feels pain. Yet, a clue into why he feels the way he does is the black and white flashbacks to his childhood. 

First, the black and white was the perfect visual representation that we were being shown moments from his childhood. Secondly, the flashbacks show that Springsteen didn’t get to be a kid.

From a young age, he took on the role of the protector and grew to be the adult in situations. He didn’t have a carefree childhood that kids SHOULD have. 

This carries into adulthood, where Springsteen wrestles with self-worth, guilt and the belief that he doesn’t deserve the good that comes his way. Through this, we see how his childhood affects his everyday life and how it affects the way he isolates himself as an adult. 

It scared me how White could SO accurately show despair, show pain and inner suffering that can’t be explained UNTIL you get professional help. 

The end of the film shows Springsteen going to a therapist, and he breaks down and cries. He can’t voice his emotions, so he shows them. This scene wasn’t dramatized for the film, but did happen to Springsteen in real life. 

As someone who has had their own journey with therapy and actively struggles with depression and feelings of guilt, it’s trippy to see someone else on the screen FEEL what you have felt.

What makes this film work SO well is the first-hand experience from Springsteen himself, as he was actively involved in the making of the film. Unlike in other films, like “A Complete Unknown” about Bob Dylan, where the artist themself wasn’t involved, “Deliver Me from Nowhere” felt like a product of Springsteen’s heart and soul. 

The whole time I was geeking out with my inner music nerd sitting with the music, and feeling it from the perspective of KNOWING what Springsteen was experiencing at the time. Cameos of Sam and Jake Kiszka from Greta Van Fleet was the cherry on top. 

And shout out to THE ultimate short king, the man himself, Jeremy Allen White. White’s 5-foot-7 stature was MORE than made up for with his charismatic portrayal of Springsteen. There’s just something about him that you’re drawn to, and it’s how relatable he makes emotions feel.

Not only is he charismatic, but he can SING too. His vocals were not dubbed with Springsteen’s at all — that was White singing the songs COMPLETELY by himself. There were moments when I really couldn’t tell if it was White or Springsteen singing. 

What I didn’t like 

The only thing I didn’t like was those damn brown-eyed contacts because they were FREAKY. I understand Springsteen has brown eyes and not blue like White’s, but at that point, let the man have his blue eyes. Something about them almost felt creepy, perhaps a lighter brown instead of DARK brown would’ve felt more natural. 

Some reviewers are writing that they didn’t like Springsteen’s love interest, played by Odessa Young, but I didn’t mind because she added a romantic plot to the story. Also, she was based on a mix of women he dated — so I didn’t take her role too seriously BECAUSE she wasn’t one specific person.

The verdict 

I’m rating “Deliver Me from Nowhere” 4 ½ stars out of five for White’s OUTSTANDING and deeply convincing portrayal of Springsteen. Sure, those brown eye contacts were unsettling, but that’s a small price to pay for a performance that feels this raw and human. I couldn’t help but be amazed. 

What makes this film so powerful is how it doesn’t chase fame or glory. It takes its time, and sits in the silence and the weight of depression, guilt and self-doubt. This isn’t a flashy, fast-paced biopic about the rise of a rock star — it’s about a man trying to understand himself, and you FEEL every note, silence and ache. 

As a student, I went from drinking one energy drink a month to several a week, which improved my focus but risked serious health problems.

After a few months of drinking energy drinks from time to time, I started to notice changes in my body. I noticed the increased quantity of headaches that I started to experience.

Ironically, the constant consumption of energy drinks decreased my level of concentration because of the high level of sugar in the drink.

When my body got used to the energy drinks, I couldn’t focus as well as I used to. The symptoms I had after consuming energy drinks are connected with the ingredients that the energy drink is made of.

Danger for health 

With the little amount of refreshment the energy drink gives us, we also accept several health dangers, which can lead us to the worst scenario.

The outcomes of frequent consumption include:

• cardiac arrhythmias — irregular heartburn
• myocardial dysfunctions — muscles of the heart cannot work effectively
• palpitations — pounding heart
• depression — mood disorder
• nausea — urge to vomit
• gastrointestinal upset — indigestion

Personally, the long-term consumption of energy drinks caused a problem with my stomach. That was a big reason for me to reduce these types of drinks so frequently, as I noticed how many disadvantages they brought for me. My experience shows it is necessary to include these thoughts in your head while buying another energy drink for yourself.

Should teenagers have access to energy drinks?

Because of the popularization of energy drinks for the last few years and sweet taste, many teenagers tend to consume energy drinks without putting limitations on the quantity consumed and without knowing the consequences of consuming them. As a result, many young people have experience with serious health problems, such as heart disease, as a result of irresponsible consumption.

In my experience, some of my friends used to buy energy drinks when they studied in middle school because of the different sweet tastes of the drinks. At that time, they did not think about the consequences. That is the reason why the government should put a limitation on who energy drinks can be sold to, as it is not just soda that kids enjoy because of flavor.

The main ingredient of any energy drink is caffeine, and that is what gives us energy. Additional ingredients include taurine, amino acids and herbal ingredients. Separately, all the ingredients can be healthy for a person to consume.

However, when all of the ingredients are mixed together with a large amount of sugar, it becomes dangerous.

To avoid endangering the young generation, teenagers should not have open access to energy drinks in stores. For example, stores can implement a policy that will limit access to buying energy drinks for a person who is under 18 years old.

Alternatives for energy drinks

After noticing and experiencing the worst side of energy drinks, I switched my preferences and found alternatives that work even better for me. The first option I chose for myself is black tea because it helps me focus faster in the morning.

The next option that I prefer is matcha. This drink is not an option for everyone, as it has a specific taste, but it gives me energy that lasts all day. It also has L-theanine, an ingredient that has a calming effect.

After I switched to these alternatives, I noticed that not only my health returned to normal, but I am also able to concentrate better now.