If your girlfriend is Instagram or Facebook obsessed, her self image—and your chances for intimacy—could suffer. Today, 54% of women (up from 41% 30 years ago) say they dislike their bodies—and for 30%, the issue is so severe they even refuse to have sex, a Glamour magazine poll found.
Social media is likely a villain: 64% of women said that looking at pics on sites like Facebook and Instagram made them feel bad about their own bodies, according to Ohio State University’s Jesse Fox, Ph.D., a project researcher.
Worse, most of the images women compare themselves with these days have been altered—a love handle erased here, a Kardashian-esque ass tightened there—which wreaks even more havoc on women’s psyches, says relationship expert Natasha Burton, author of 101 Quizzes for Couples.
“The onslaught of Photoshopped images gives us a false standard to aspire to,” she says. “We know logically we’ll never look like those women—but those images are powerful in shaping our expectations of ourselves.”
One solution: Snag your girl’s password and shut down her social media—then go into witness protection. Or, barring that: “Be sincere and specific when you compliment her,” Burton says. “Those jeans make your legs look incredible” will boost her confidence more than just a general “You look nice.”
