For those who are insecure about themselves or their body, why do you feel that way and what makes you feel that way?

[MCheetah]

Obviously, those who know me on GAG, know I am insecure about my height/being short. I've been stuck at 180cm since age ten due to having a medical condition called
Precocious Puberty, which severely stunts your growth. I was somewhat tall as a kid, but now shorter than every male friend I have and most of the girls I've dated.

And what's worse is, many people don't get it. They think being something absolutely sh*tty, worthless, and without value shouldn't make someone upset just because hypothetically
"it could be worse" (although I don't think it really matters; you're already short as a male; being 5'1" or 5'8" doesn't mater; its all an "F" below six feet).

Women over the years *constantly* rejecting me for being inferior/worthless in their eyes due to height, only made me feel worse. So much so, I gave up trying to date entirely.

At times, I feel legit handicapped. Physically worthless. Inferior. Valueless. And yes, I know most men don't care about their physical strength, power, or size. But I do. I was once a student athlete and the strongest person I knew. Until my body betrayed me and my life essentially ended between 18 and 21 years old. I like to use the analogy,
"I went from being Superman as a teen, to Christopher Reeve as an adult." Very few people can understand what body dysmorphia can make you feel like.

User @WCM78 said this and it perfectly describes how I feel:
"To be judged on [being attractive] is one thing, but to be judged inferior, based on what you're born with, is DEVASTATING! And while seeking professional help is supposed to help cope, often times it doesn't. It's humiliating [to be judged as] undesirable & flawed. Taking medication for depression & anxiety might help, but there's no guarantee. In society, men aren't suppose to talk about this. But suffering in silence makes it much, much worse. It's also why I don't [criticize when anonymous men] complain about this."

So what makes you feel insecure and why?

[Daniela1982]

Did you know that a stack of 17 pennies equals 1 inch? That is insignificant when considering the total height of a person. So you are basically complaining over 17 cents? Every other question you ask here is about your height, just 1 inch shy of what you consider normal. I don't think anyone on G@G considers 5/11 as being short. That is probably above the normal height for men. I once was 190 pounds at 5/6.5 so I understand about feeling different from others. Yet if I had weighed 130 pounds I would still be finding fault with myself. I telling you, complaining about 1 inch is nothing. So don't you think you should give the self loathing questions a rest?

[MCheetah]

You clearly didn't read the top. Six feet would put me at the status of every other guy out there, but 6'5" is what I was *supposed* to be. I'm basically the same size as a woman and I already stated that I doubt most people would 'get' it.

[Daniela1982]

Oh come on. There are a lot of guys under 5/11. A girl's standard height is around 5/5 to 5/7. Many are 5/2 or 5/3. I doubt you will find very many at 5/11 or taller. But you don't hear them crying about their height, do you?

[dovendyret]

My body as a whole.

As a kid I started to binge eat with the goal of becoming undesirable - followed me into adulthood and I was 110kg (224ish lbs) at my heaviest. People that I've met within the last 2 years are unaware of that and do not understand the body dysphoria I have and will often become offended or judgmental when it comes out. Unless I'm looking in a mirror - I still think of myself as fat and think that's how the world sees me, while I'm terrified of being treated as a fat person again. This one has been a tricky insecurity to get rid of - little to deeply rooted within a trauma, working on it.

[Daniela1982]

I hear you. I was only 190 at my heaviest but even though I'm 130 now I still consider myself fat.:(

[ShadezMcgee]

I would say my biggest insecurities about my body would be my height and hairline. I can't change that and the reason why it bothered me a lot was because growing up I was shorter than my little sister until about 8th grade and then I got taller, but it was not a good combo to go with being quiet. Was easier target to bullies because of that reason.

My hairline is high and looks receding so I can control it to a degree when I get my haircut because it at least looks good then, otherwise I look like a fucking bum, lol.

[Physics-Man]

Over a decade ago, I used to be insecure of my height, being 5'2" and shorter than even the majority of girls I've come across. But after all the accomplishments I've accrued, my height has become something I find important and identify with. Nowadays, even if given the choice, I don't think I'd ever change my height even a bit. I find my height and who I've become, something special, and I believe that everything happens for a reason. Raising one's self-esteem and confidence sufficiently is the antidote to insecurity.

[MCheetah]

I didn't know you were that short. I always assumed you were 6'0", like most men I knew.
I feel like I'm not supposed to be as short as I am, so I don't think I'll be able to mimic your path of acceptance with height. The REAL true me, should be 6'5"!

[CrimsonAngel09]

So what makes you feel insecure and why?

Being bullied in both Middle and High school, especially by boys. I legit don't look good, I unfortunately wasn't blessed with perfect genes. I also have a scarred face due to acne scars as they were bad in school, and my pores aren't great.

Things I dealt with:

1) One boy unknowingly sat beside me. He turned around, saw me, went ugh, and quickly got up.

2) A boy held the door open for two popular girls. Sees me coming, gives me a disgusted look, and follows after them.

3) At P. E. as we were about to go the track, I heard two people talk about me behind me.

Girl: "What about Angelique? Would you date her?"

Guy: "Oh Hell no, she's ugly!"

Walked around the track with my head hung low and crying with no one knowing.

4) One time during lunch, our class had to sit in order. One boy skipped the seat next to me.

5) I CONSTANTLY heard; "Is that a boy or girl?"

6) One boy slammed the door into my lunch tray. Luckily I ate all my food, so just had to pick up the tray and empty chocolate milk carton.

I became depressed, anxious, suicidal, and self-harmed because I hated my body due to not looking like the pretty popular girls.

Then, media and having been on Quora added on to the already bad body dysmorphia. The women with the most attention like here on GAG look like models. Small perky boobs, perfectly skinny, tall, almond shaped eyes, lush lips. Unlike me who is short, a little bit chubby, acne scars on face that look like craters, small lips, weird ass shaped eyes, big saggy boobs.

It's like what Robbins says in Shallow Hal, the media tells you what's beautiful, and what isn't. If you're like me and don't meet up to society's standards on beauty, you are treated like shit and deal with the consequences. It's why I NEVER wear shorts or tanktops in public, because I have that constant thought that someone might talk bad about how I look, especially guys. I ONLY take pictures with my best friends, and only use filters on Snapchat for myself. One time I actually had the balls to post how I actually look on Quora, but commenting turned off in case of bullying.

I ain't no looker by a long shot, but at least I don't catfish like most do.

[Sun_Kim-Ai]

I used to feel insecure about my weight gain and swelling due to medicines and alcohol, then I simply stopped caring - I have a powerful political position, I have wealth, and I always reach my goals, and that's just perfect for me.
There's something ironic about having a personal gym and training room in my house that I never use, while one of my friends, very fit and into sports, has to go a gym and pay a membership because she lives in a one-room apartment.

[TacosRAwesome]

Over the last 3 years I went from in shape / slim (65kg) to obese (almost 100kg) and now I've been stuck at high overweight (80) for over a year despite trying to get back in shape. I gain weight all over but my stomach has an annoying constant bloat (even when skinny but obviously it's bigger when I'm fat).

[Daniela1982]

What happened, you get addicted to Mexican food?

[TacosRAwesome]

@Daniela1982 sadly no, I went from a relationship with someone who didn't even eat pasta and only ate healthy to a relationship with someone who only eats junk. I try to eat as healthy as I can but its not easy.

[Fuentes]

For the bloating you should get checked for SIBO if it's a bad bloat

[TacosRAwesome]

@Fuentes I check if it's bloating. Sadly it's just fat.

[Sarahslater3738]

For me it’s when friends or family point out my stomach and that they want me to suck it in for a picture or lose it etc

[Fuentes]

I hate my my digestive system but thats it lol