Heather Binyon, a personal trainer at Shreveport, recently shared her experiences with cyberbullying and the pressure that women put on themselves. This pressure is often a result of trivial and self-imposed expectations.
As Binyon put it, “Everyone has insecurities. Everyone is comparing themselves to something or someone, or even to their past.” Binyon’s reasons for pushing her body to achieve physical fitness include competing in the National Physique Committee bikini competitions.
After posting a picture of herself on Facebook, Binyon was met with both positive and negative responses. A women commented, “If this is what young women are striving to look like… sad.” Several others commented “nasty,” “not appealing at all,” “disgusting,” “likely very unhealthy…with an eating disorder.”
Binyon also shared her own thoughts on this matter. “Women are already so ridiculed, and I just feel like, why aren’t we uplifting each other and helping each other instead of putting each other down?”
Binyon raises a point that the constant criticism on the internet has no beneficial purpose. These comments only serve to make victims emotionally uncomfortable or more self-conscious. Britni Russell, a Licensed Professional Counselor, explains that “It can cause a person to feel isolated, it can cause them to withdraw, feel depressed.”
