It is not as if the boys that don’t go to the gym become anxious about their looks.
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Some do, some don’t. The boys that don’t go to the gym, but are anxious about their looks, just lack the commitment to improve their health.
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My middle son was very overweight in high school. Yes, it bothered him a lot. But he wasn’t in a place mentally where he could do anything about it. When he found his passion, helping refugees, he blossomed and took all the extra weight off. Now he runs 5Ks with his girlfriend and works out in the gym regularly.
To say he didn’t care about his looks when he was heavy would not be correct.
When I sent his Syrian girlfriend a photo of us in a crowd of mostly young people, her reaction was, “Wow, everyone is so heavy!”
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It’s not just Bama, it’s all over. I saw it at my kids colleges and I see it at my school (boys and girls).
There is a genetic component, meaning that anxiety can be influenced by genetics. Of course there are other factors involved besides genetics.
I think there is more awareness now than years ago. It seems (observation) more college girls than boys are in therapy, but this does not mean that boys do not have anxiety.
It’s not just Bama.
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The girls in the documentary came to Alabama with their traumas and anxiety in hand. No doubt that the rush process was triggering.
My older daughter, who is now 28, remarked to me in her junior year of college that she was the only one of her friends not on anxiety meds.
I know several young men who also battle anxiety and mental health issues. I agree that they are less open about it, so everyone assumes they’re ok.
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Back to the documentary - for those who watched…I’m guessing the director got shut down when trying to find “moles” within the sororities who would dish on all skeletons. The girls inside that she did interview, were very positive about their sororities and worked hard to debunk all of the stereotypes (clearly they don’t want to risk being kicked out). Not sure why she didn’t dig up any recent alumni with grudges, or girls who had been dropped and were bitter about it.
Also odd that she inserted an unrelated battle of her own throughout the documentary.
It’s hard to believe that HBO viewed the final product and said “let’s run it”.
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No, they are not less prone, but parents of girls are more likely to seek therapy and external help in the teen years. Parents of boys don’t do this as often and boys’ similar struggles often go unnoticed unless they become so extreme that law enforcement gets involved or academic failure occurs. A lot of these boys struggle with substance abuse issues that they will carry into college.
I saw this pattern over and over when I taught high school a few years ago.
This is related to the doc because it depicts late teen/early 20s girls, many of whom are in therapy and on related meds.
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probably because they could.
@collegenerd67 I doubt they were ‘shut down’. It’s just that people in those situations might not want to talk to TV crews about it or dwell on it excessively. That’s healthy coping.
Did you manage to see it?
I similarly had the sense that there was a strong desire to toe the line amongst those sorority members being interviewed. This isn’t surprising when you read some of the articles that suggest there was a fair bit of suppression and some students were banned from rush having been accused of participating.
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Or are completely intimidated by the gym crowd. I see that in my son who is underweight.
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I watched the first half and thought her own bias about being judged on her appearance detracted from the issues and didn’t advance the documentary.
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Exactly. Rumors were swirling even before the documentary started filming about current members allegedly wearing microphones hidden in bracelets. Everyone was on high alert.
There’s was one girl who spoke very highly of her sorority but made several comments about the overall culture of Alabama being “weird” (I think that’s the adjective she used) and they didn’t engage in a follow up question, asking what she meant by that. Missed opportunity.
Also, they interviewed 2 “mixed race” girls (the phrase the girls themselves used) who touched a little bit on why they chose to rush the predominantly white sororities over the Divine 9 black sororities but didn’t interview any current girls (or PNM’s) from the black sororities to get their experience and views on segregation in Greek life. They did interview a Divine 9 alumna who gave some history on how the Divine 9 came to be.
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Yet males in every age category, every where in the world have a much higher suicide rate.
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Planet Fitness advertises itself as a “judgement free zone” and right now high school students can go for free.
Not all gyms have “gym crowds.”
https://www.planetfitness.com/
Alternatively, one can buy some weights for the home.
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As fascinating as the discussion on whether males care about their own appearance is, or the best gyms for those that want to improve, let’s return back to topic.
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I thought it was well done and quite moving in its depiction of Isabelle and Makayla. It’s really about young women and their growth. Bama Rush is just a lens.
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Or maybe they like being in the sorority?
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Perhaps the posters who want to discuss adolescent male mental health can start a separate thread?
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Boys spend a lot less time on the social media sites that create FOMO and insecurity. Girls are constantly measuring themselves against the unreal lives that are portrayed on these sites.
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Says the Dad of a Jersey Girl with a touch of irony😀
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