Quote From: doldfieI have seen so many instances of pretty versus ugly that my head is spinning.
When I was in my younger I considered myself to be average, was slim, and since the age of 13 had long beautiful hair. Someone was always commenting on how beautiful it was. Well, between the age of 16 and 25 I cut my hair, three times (to just above shoulder length). Here’s how people reacted to this:
- one of my bank customers, who would always come to my teller wicket (and would actually wait if there was a lineup): what have you done to your hair!! After that I wasn’t his favorite teller anymore.
- My mother (if you can believe it): you’re not my Debbie anymore (ouch, my self-esteem hit an all-time low)
- A co-worker: again, what have you done to your hair! He never treated me the same way again.
One of my girlfriends was so pretty that quite literally every man in the room would turn their heads to stare at her. Women were extremely jealous of her beauty. There was one huge pitfall to her beauty – she attracted all of the men who shallow womanizers, who wanted to have a beautiful woman on their arm for the sake of their own ego. Many of these men were abusive in nature.
I’ve also seen women get a job because they were beautiful or volumtuous – hired by a man (who bragged later on to other men why he hired her). Extremely frustrating to women who are not perceived as beautiful, volumtous, etc.
One final note on being perceived as beautiful – this person is often excluded from groups of other women because they are jealous of their beauty.
I have seen heavier women not wanting to be with slim women and vice versa. Slim women sometimes look at heavier women and wonder why they don't take care of themselves. Heavier women don't want to be around slim women because they feel they are discriminated against, and may become jealous. Jealousy can be painful to whomever it is directed at. So this discrimination goes both ways.
Unfortunately from all of the ads with pretty/handsome, slim models and actors, society has set a standard of what's beautiful and what isn't. This isn't fair (as many things in life are not), so all children must be taught and validated over and over and over again by their parents, teachers and friends that each one is unique and it’s what inside that counts.
Interestingly enough, teenagers who focus solely on being beautiful with very little or no focus on studies or developing strong family values eventually realize just being pretty doesn't work anymore; it's values and intelligence that are respected. They have to re-evaluate their beliefs and work to re-define themselves; a long difficult journey.
I think each and every child should be taught (both boys and girls) that beauty what's inside the person, not outside. And that someone isn’t better because they're perceived as pretty. And that someone is no lesser a person because they’re perceived as 'ugly'. And to reinforce this, the most important thing is that as a society we need to change our perception of what beauty is.
Pretty vs Ugly - we all need help! 
(Original Air Date: 09/16/05) How important do you think looks really are? And, do you think attractive people get treated better in society? Dr. Phil's son, Jay, goes out in disguise to see if people really do judge a book by its cover. You won't believe the results, nor the response that surprised him the most! Plus, Debi favors her older daughter because she’s "beautiful" and treats her youngest like "dirt" because she's "fat and unattractive." Can Dr. Phil help her love both girls equally? And, Michelle only lets her daughter play with pretty kids on the playground because she equates beauty with success in life. Will she learn to re-evaluate her standards? Tell us your thoughts on today's show.
