Brush Your Teeth in the Morning

By Sarah Rodgers

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I don’t like the saying, “you are perfect just the way you are.”

People’s views on this are polarized. People either claim you are perfect just the way you are or that you are not perfect.

I argue that you, like I, are not perfect, and that is ok.

I usually use the argument that if someone is addicted to drugs, you wouldn’t say they are perfect just the way they are. So why don’t we keep the same as others? Humans should be in a constant state of self-improvement. We have become a society that is declining mentally. Mental health has been on a downward trajectory, and once the lockdowns happened, it spiraled.

On Tik Tok and Instagram, I’ve come across two very different communities the “my life is a mess” and “my life is perfect.” They can’t be any different from one another. The “my life is perfect” shows me girls and guys dressed in designer clothes, eating healthy food, doing yoga, going to work, etc. Everything is perfect, and these people look happy with a luxurious lifestyle; now, whether or not that is true behind the scenes is another conversation, but I rather have that life to work towards because honestly, who wouldn’t want a life like that. That is the goal. I rather watch those videos and say, ‘Wow, I’m not there yet, but I’m going to work towards getting there,” than watch these other videos of people talking about how much their life sucks.

I’ve seen countless videos of people who brag about being “depressed AF.” Why would you want to live like that, and more importantly, why would you want to broadcast that to the world? I’ve seen tons of videos of girls and guys alike saying how they don’t have the energy or the care to brush their teeth, come to their hair, shower, etc. but have enough time to make these videos, edit them, and post them on social media.

Brushing your teeth and showering are the most basic things humans do to take care of ourselves. Why would you set yourself up to fail right from the get-go of the day?

You are not perfect when you wake up! Go brush your damn teeth! Dress like you have some respect for yourself and those around you. I’m not saying to wear a three-piece suit every day to work, but don’t show up in a frumpy outfit. Have some respect for yourself and the people around you, and the profession you have. Even if you are a teenager working a summer job that you hate, have respect for yourself. You are out there doing something.

I don’t like the “you are perfect the way you are” and the “it’s ok not to be ok,” because it’s not true.

You are not perfect the way you are, and it’s not ok to not be ok. That is why it’s called not ok!

I am far from being a so-called “it girl.” I don’t claim to be one, but I also would be lying if I said I wasn’t working hard to have a similar lifestyle where I can work a job I love and live a life where I am satisfied and happy.

Why don’t we strive to live a life like that?

I keep asking questions because I want people to really reflect on this. Don’t wake up in the morning and already give yourself a false start by saying that life sucks and is messy. Yeah, life is, but don’t go in with that attitude. Don’t go around claiming you don’t have enough time or care to brush your teeth.

Brush your teeth, get dressed, and care about what you do. We don’t have a long life, and yeah, sometimes it’s not ideal but make the best of it.

So brush your teeth. It is the first step in making yourself ok because it is not ok not to be ok.

That is why we call it not ok.