Feeling Uglier Than Your Peers

What does this mean?

Have you ever been around friends and suddenly felt less than? Was it because of your outfit? Intellect? The truth is, many face a newfound wave of insecurity around friends. Your friends may seem more talented, prettier, and even smarter than you. Why is that? To put it plainly, insecurity. Don't feel too bad, it's not your fault. The media constantly pushes a narrative, especially for female friendships, that there is always an ugly one out. There are even movies and tv shows that cater to this narrative. A prime example is DUFF, the movie.

How does it affect us?

This mostly affects our friendships and self-esteem. Feeling like you can't be the ugly one in the friend group can cause unnecessary conflict. Most often than not, your friends see you as beautiful, even if you don't. What you need to do is to work on your confidence! Hype you and your friends up, you deserve it. The only reason you may feel like a 'duff' is because of the unrealistic standards society puts on people. Just do you.

How to communicate your feelings.

It is important to effectively communicate how you are feeling to your friends. Not doing so can bottle up all your feelings until you explode. It can cause unnecessary misunderstandings that could potentially end your friendship. However, if you feel as if your friends are actively trying to make you feel worse or lesser than, it is time to search for new friends. Nobody should be making you feel bad about yourself, even if they are a so-called 'friend.'