When people say that you are beautiful on the inside.....?

Question

Many people will think that it is good to tell a person that it doesn't matter how you look but it's the beauty on the inside that counts. That is absolutely true no doubt about it.

But say if a girl is having low self-esteem issues maybe because her ears or are too large or she has a uni-brow. This girl feels that she's the ugliest thing in this world. So a person or friend may try to encourage her by saying " It doesn't matter how you look on the outside, it's what's in your heart that counts".

Okay, so one might think that the girl would be inspired by this and 99% of the time people's spirits are uplifted by these words but what about the other alternative? On the other hand, the girl might say, "Well, I'm beautiful on the inside but what about the outside?" As humans, it is only natural for us to be concerned about our outer appearances.

So in conclusion, my point is that where it may seem like it's right to inform a person of their true inner beauty(which is good in a sense) this can actually be saying " Well, even if you are ugly on the outside, you are still pretty inside". Therefore, this may still leave the person thinking that they are unattractive. Has anyone else thought this way?

Answer 1

Frequently, but it's okay hun.  You're beautiful on the inside!

I agree, if you say that to someone, you sound like you're agreeing that they're ugly, but it doesn't matter, since they're beautiful on the inside.  I"VE certainly never been comforted by that!  (Besides, it sounds like you're saying you like the way their arteries look or something!)

I've always thought saying something like "The whole person you are is beautiful, and beauty  has many different forms" would be better.  You can then wax their brow for them, get some style into them, and get them out the door!

Answer 2

You pretty much summed it up into one nice neat little package

Answer 3

hmm well now im thinking of it that way. Its great that you're bringing this to light, but I've seen some really good looking people who are very ugly on the inside. Yea they may get told " you're beautiful" but... do they think that they are beautiful on the inside, or do they not care?... well whatever beauty is to me is just confidence and love or devotion to God.  

Answer 4

Just reading this now has seriously made me think about it more. I understand how you think and I agree. It's not the best thing to say to someone going through some body image or self esteem issues as it may push them further into hating their body and appearance.

Instead people should encourage others that they ARE in fact beautiful on the outside and the inside, and people just judge beauty differently or are too shallow.

Mississippi150