TikTok is destroying women.’ Bold statement right? Let’s talk about it.

This is a reupload of a post from my previous blog but still believe it strongly resinates:

Recently I watched the YouTube video by Jordan Theresa titled ‘tiktok is bad for women, actually’ and it really got me thinking about how influential TikTok has become for young girls. Jordan’s video talks about how she has subconsciously become scared of aging, due to the number of videos about anti-aging she, and many other women have consumed. After being on TikTok for more than 15 minutes, whether you are aware or not, you have probably scrolled past skincare routines, product reviews for a new skincare product, and even a video or two about someone’s plastic surgery journey. ‘Wear sunscreen every day so you don’t get wrinkles’, ‘Train your muscles to prevent age lines’, and ‘My Botox aftermath’ are just some of many attention-grabbing video titles you may come across on TikTok. So as a TikTok user myself it is no shock that at the sight of a wrinkle, Jordan did freak. We have been taught that aging is terrible and should be stopped, Clear skin should be the aim no matter your age, and this will inevitably lead to you being happy in your life! Yes, I am a victim of these videos and do wear my sun cream, serums, and moisturizers every day. Still, aging is not something one can simply stop, and as a teenager constantly worrying about if you have enough product on and if your using the best-recommended cream is not going to make you happy, ever. We should not be taught to run at the sight of a face line but to embrace getting older. If we don’t, when young women start to realise that aging is actually inevitable they are going to become miserable and insecure. Influencers advertise that women should embrace their differences and be confident in our selves but why should this be any different when we become older? When I look at my mum and grandmother, I don’t see a woman who didn’t wear sunscreen in their 20s, I see beautiful hard-working women whom I am so proud of and aim to be like. So these TikTok’s you see are not helpful but only damaging to the already insecure young girls who, if I do say so myself, are easily influenced. Cliché I Know, but don’t believe everything you see online (especially TikTok)

This was the video I watched that inspired this discussion: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eubGagqx120&t=1307s