"This is NOT what I look like": TV star takes a stand against altered pictures
<p>Bethenny Frankel has taken a stand against "deceptive" photos on social media by posting what she really looks like. </p>
<p>The <em>Real Housewives of New York City</em> star, 51, shared two images to her Instagram account: both in a bikini on the beach, but one had been clearly photoshopped to make her look slimmer. </p>
<p>She shared the photos as a warning of how dangerous Photoshop can be when dealing with your self-image. </p>
<p>In the caption, she wrote, "This is NOT what I look like…and you know that because I’m not vain and show you the real me."</p>
<p>“But if I posted a version of this every day you might start to believe that it might be. This is just how distorted this has all gotten.”</p>
<p><img src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/2022/09/Frankel.jpg" alt="" width="1280" height="720" /></p>
<p><em>Bethenny post-Photoshop (left) vs. all natural (right). Image credits: Instagram</em></p>
<p>She pointed out that “filtering is lying” and “deceptive,” which causes women to “feel badly about themselves” and “young girls insecure and obsessed with an unattainable perfection”.</p>
<p>Frankel continued, “It makes middle aged women and mothers feel insecure about themselves. This creates a false ideal for men.”</p>
<p>She went on to call editing “destructive, irresponsible, insecure and inaccurate”, before concluding her inspirational post by reminding her followers that “there is a line between making an effort to look pretty and an outright falsehood”.</p>
<p>Frankel has often pointed out the importance of living filter free, as earlier this year she posted an unedited photo of herself lounging by the pool in a tiny bikini telling fans the key to body acceptance is “balance”.</p>
<p>She went on to encourage people to embrace their flaws and live for themselves, rather than their social media perception. </p>
<p><em>Image credits: Instagram</em></p>
<div class="media image" style="box-sizing: inherit; display: flex; flex-direction: column; align-items: center; width: 705.1837768554688px; margin-bottom: 32px;"> </div>
