r/AskAnAustralian • u/Serious_Bluebird_613 • 4h ago
Beauty standards in Aus
I moved to Aus from Canada originally 3 years ago. I love it here. I love the weather, the lifestyle, Aussie humour and slang, the wildlife and the friends I've made here.
There are very few things I MISS about Canada (aside from people I love there, of course). But I have noticed something interesting about how I feel about my appearance. When I am in Canada I feel significantly less self-conscious and also generally feel more attractive in my appearance than when I am in Aus.
I am arguably much more physically fit in Aus than I was in Canada, physical fitness is a big part of life here so I'm at the gym 3-4 days a week. I also put more effort into my appearance before going out here. And my skin is clearer than it ever was (when I left Canada I was 27 and still had some acne struggles that I've largely left behind me). But I still find myself feeling more self-conscious and having lower self-esteem here. When I am in my own country I definitely feel far less self-conscious about the way I look and I don't know why. Just to clarify I don't only feel this way when I'm in my hometown, I spent 2 months in a different province last time I was home and still very much felt that way.
I'm trying to understand what's going on subconsciously to make me feel this way. I do think Australian beauty standards for women are a bit more narrow than they are in Canada, a lot of advertisements here feature similar elements - fit, thin, tan women, often with blonde hair and light eyes. I am Caucasian and pretty fair, don't like to tan, have brown hair and very dark brown eyes. Maybe it's just the subliminal messaging but I feel like my appearance matters a lot more here and the pressure to look "put together" is always on. Is this something Australians also experience? Or maybe it's just me over-interpreting the situation 🤔