Improving Your Confidence!

[Sterling]

For being here for many years, I have greatly noticed that there are A LOT of people who are not satisfied with how they look, which ends up damaging their self-esteem. I am reaching out to ANYONE to help them feel better about their appearance and boost their confidence. I have a feeling that this thread is going to get bashed a lot, but I don't mean any harm. I just want people to feel better about themselves.

If you have any questions pertaining to hair, make-up, skin care, scars, etc or if you want advice upon anything of that matter please PM me and I'll try my best to help you. This isn't just for women, I can help guys as well. I'm a cosmetologist in 'real-life' so I'm not some random person giving advice lol.

 

[tusk]

Great idea! Thanks for wanting to help.
I'd probably take you up on your offer, but I think I've become pretty OK with how I look. Or at least, I've started to understand that looks aren't that important, but personality is. If I regress, I will come here.
Though I do wonder what I can do about the acne I have on my back... hm.

 

[Sterling]

I would look up reviews on acne washes. A lot of them contain benzyl peroxide, which is like an addictive drug to your skin. Once you stop using it, your skin goes into a withdraw and then becomes worse than it was to begin with. If you want to get an acne wash, I would avoid ANY that have this in them. I've had some advice from a dermatologist. He said just to use a bar of original dove soap. My acne on my face has cleared up. I told others about this and the same thing has happened for them as well.

 

[DiscoSpider]

I can understand why people may want to "bash" this thread but... honestly I agree and think it's a good idea. There's nothing wrong with wanting to look good and feel good about yourself.

I'm pretty happy about myself, so far... I like the way I look, I wear nice clothes (most of the time), I am very active, fit and healthy. I am a little insecure about my body though... I wish I was a little leaner - but I know I can do this, it'll just take more time, patience and hard work!

I do have two questions though Sterling and I was wondering if you could help me.

1 - I have horrible tan lines. My arms and shoulders are fine, but I have a very bad singlet/tank top tan. If I'm wearing a singlet/tank top then it looks okay, but if I take that off... it's so white! I hate it. As silly as it might sound, what do you suggest for tanning? I've been pondering the idea of "fake tanning", like the spray or lotion stuff... I hate getting sun burn, but I don't want to look totally bronze or anything. Do you have any suggestions?

2 - Stretch marks. I have stretch marks all over my body. I used to be very overweight, so I got stretch marks from weight gain. Then when I lost weight, I gained stretch marks from the weight loss. Then when I started to put on more muscle mass, I got even MORE stretch marks! Seriously - my shoulders look like I have been clawed by an animal. People actually ask me, "Where did you get those scars from?" if they see the stretch marks on my shoulders... they think they're actually scars! I heard there is no way to remove stretch marks but, is there any way to reduce them and make them less obvious?

Any input would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Callie]

I can understand why people may want to "bash" this thread but... honestly I agree and think it's a good idea. There's nothing wrong with wanting to look good and feel good about yourself.

I'm pretty happy about myself, so far... I like the way I look, I wear nice clothes (most of the time), I am very active, fit and healthy. I am a little insecure about my body though... I wish I was a little leaner - but I know I can do this, it'll just take more time, patience and hard work!

I do have two questions though Sterling and I was wondering if you could help me.

1 - I have horrible tan lines. My arms and shoulders are fine, but I have a very bad singlet/tank top tan. If I'm wearing a singlet/tank top then it looks okay, but if I take that off... it's so white! I hate it. As silly as it might sound, what do you suggest for tanning? I've been pondering the idea of "fake tanning", like the spray or lotion stuff... I hate getting sun burn, but I don't want to look totally bronze or anything. Do you have any suggestions?

2 - Stretch marks. I have stretch marks all over my body. I used to be very overweight, so I got stretch marks from weight gain. Then when I lost weight, I gained stretch marks from the weight loss. Then when I started to put on more muscle mass, I got even MORE stretch marks! Seriously - my shoulders look like I have been clawed by an animal. People actually ask me, "Where did you get those scars from?" if they see the stretch marks on my shoulders... they think they're actually scars! I heard there is no way to remove stretch marks but, is there any way to reduce them and make them less obvious?

Any input would be greatly appreciated.

Vitamin E. They have it in a topical liquid form, it's said to help stretch marks. You could also try those vanishing scar creams, but I dunno how well those work.

 

[Sterling]

I can understand why people may want to "bash" this thread but... honestly I agree and think it's a good idea. There's nothing wrong with wanting to look good and feel good about yourself.

I'm pretty happy about myself, so far... I like the way I look, I wear nice clothes (most of the time), I am very active, fit and healthy. I am a little insecure about my body though... I wish I was a little leaner - but I know I can do this, it'll just take more time, patience and hard work!

I do have two questions though Sterling and I was wondering if you could help me.

1 - I have horrible tan lines. My arms and shoulders are fine, but I have a very bad singlet/tank top tan. If I'm wearing a singlet/tank top then it looks okay, but if I take that off... it's so white! I hate it. As silly as it might sound, what do you suggest for tanning? I've been pondering the idea of "fake tanning", like the spray or lotion stuff... I hate getting sun burn, but I don't want to look totally bronze or anything. Do you have any suggestions?

2 - Stretch marks. I have stretch marks all over my body. I used to be very overweight, so I got stretch marks from weight gain. Then when I lost weight, I gained stretch marks from the weight loss. Then when I started to put on more muscle mass, I got even MORE stretch marks! Seriously - my shoulders look like I have been clawed by an animal. People actually ask me, "Where did you get those scars from?" if they see the stretch marks on my shoulders... they think they're actually scars! I heard there is no way to remove stretch marks but, is there any way to reduce them and make them less obvious?

Any input would be greatly appreciated.

1. Tanlines are tanlines. They're not really going to go away until all of your skin is faded back to the original color. You could use self tanners or spray tans (by machine or by a person). If you were to try a machine, I would suggest Mystic Tan. You do have a 'bronzed' look for the first day, but after you shower...you just look tan. I have never seen anyone come out orange from these booths either. Jergen's Natural Glow is rated one of the best drugstore self tanners. I have used this myself and I like it. Just make sure you rub it in well so there are no blotches, streaks, etc. In the future to avoid tan-lines..when you're not tanning sunscreen sunscreen sunscreen! You still might get a little color but your tan line won't stand out as much and it will be easier to get it to the same color. Sunscreen is just good for you anyways though

2. If they're still PINK you can go to the doctor. They can help you so they'll be less noticeable in the long run. This can be really expensive though. Naturally they fade anyways over the years to be almost not visible. If you're past this point. Like Callie said, vitamin-E oil is really good. They're not going to disappear overnight, but with some work they'll be less visible. One product that I have heard works wonders is 'Bio-oil'. You can find this in drug-stores like CVS, walgreens, walmart, etc or online if you prefer. Now to prevent further stretchmarks from happening, you should moisturize your body. It's always to put on your lotion when you get out of the bath-tub/shower. You skin absorbs it better. A lot of people use cocoa butter, but just about anything will work as long as it's moisturizing. Shea butter is really good for people with eczema as well.


Hope I helped

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Also, I just wanted to say that if you're too embarrassed or shy to post your question here, you can always PM me. Whatever you ask me will stay between me and you.

 

[DiscoSpider]

Cheers for that, Sterling! Will definetely have to give those a go...

 

[Poguesy]

Wouldn't it be easier just down a bottle of vodka/whisky?

Confidence be sky high then

 

[dannyr22]

Wouldn't it be easier just down a bottle of vodka/whisky?

Confidence be sky high then

poguesy you tit!

OP maybe I'll ask ya for some advice

 

[Poguesy]

Wouldn't it be easier just down a bottle of vodka/whisky?

Confidence be sky high then

poguesy you tit!

OP maybe I'll ask ya for some advice

Be a lot easier and less time consuming

 

[AFrozenSoul]

I would participate, but I know the answer would be Act of God... so there is no point.

I like the idea though. My hair stylist is really good at complimenting people and just focusing on hair.

 

[maybelazy]

great idea for a thread.

My go, I'm a guy with quite pale/fair skin, in winter/spring/autumn its not an issue but when the weather is nice then I just look worse and worse.

I've had work and exams to deal with over the past few years so I haven't had a chance to get some sun, and even when I do I tend to burn.

Any thoughts?

 

[Bob Arctor]

Wouldn't it be easier just down a bottle of vodka/whisky?

Confidence be sky high then

^I never found vomiting for hours on end did very much for my self esteem, and if downing an entire bottle of hard is easier for you than combing your hair, you've got bigger problems than your appearance.

So Sterling, how do you feel about mustaches? Are they in or out this year?

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On men, that is.

 

[Sterling]

There really isn't an 'in' or an 'out'. It really just depends how you look with a mustache in general. If you get terrified looks when you forget to shave for a couple of days...I would vote that you should not have a mustache

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great idea for a thread.

My go, I'm a guy with quite pale/fair skin, in winter/spring/autumn its not an issue but when the weather is nice then I just look worse and worse.

I've had work and exams to deal with over the past few years so I haven't had a chance to get some sun, and even when I do I tend to burn.

Any thoughts?

If you can't be tan, then rock the pale skin. The advantage of this, you get a 'mysterious' edge if done right...otherwise you might just look sickly, which is never good. Darker clothes (darker, not black) would go with the paler skin. You could wear bright colors, but it may just make you look blinding. Try going out in the sun for a at least a little bit, but not enough that you get sunburnt (sunscreen!) so you don't look deathly pale and still have SOME color. If all else fails....you could always get a spray tan

 

[Bob Arctor]

There really isn't an 'in' or an 'out'. It really just depends how you look with a mustache in general. If you get terrified looks when you forget to shave for a couple of days...I would vote that you should not have a mustache

What if you just get terrified looks anyway?

 

[Sterling]

Then let your freak flag fly and grow a mustache!

 

[Poguesy]

Wouldn't it be easier just down a bottle of vodka/whisky?

Confidence be sky high then

^I never found vomiting for hours on end did very much for my self esteem, and if downing an entire bottle of hard is easier for you than combing your hair, you've got bigger problems than your appearance.

Yeah man.

More problems then i care to deal with.

 

[Naleena]

Bump