A woman asked her hairdresser to tweak her hair colour to look better online than it does in real life. Meanwhile, an 18-year-old asked her beautician to inject fillers under her eyes so she could look the way she sees herself on her mobile phone when using filters.

These are just a few examples of how online chats - which shot up during the pandemic - are fuelling insecurities as more people spend hours looking at themselves on screen during virtual meetings.

Psychiatrist Anton Grech has noticed this shift.

“I have seen a lot of people who had controlled insecurities about their appearance. But now they have lost control. This is because online working means they are now focusing directly on their appearance coupled with the overall increase of anxiety levels seen in the general population,” he says.

Psychiatrist Anton Grech

Grech adds that, while working online has its clear advantages, psychologically it is not healthy if there is no physical interaction.

“From a psychological point of view, a hybrid approach of online and face-to-face work is healthier,” he says.

As the world was forced to interact online when the pandemic struck in March 2020, psychiatrists around the world have noticed the rise of a new range of issues that manifest themselves as insecurities. 

COVID-19 has shifted people’s perspective onto themselves. In normal circumstances we go through life with an outward-facing perspective, looking at other people not ourselves. The transition to remote working forced many people to spend hours a day looking at themselves on screens. 

For some, the experience has led to skewed perceptions of their appearance. On the far end of the spectrum is a condition known as zoom dysmorphia, an altered or skewed negative perception of one’s body image that results from spending extended amounts of time on video calls.

People want haircuts that make them look good online

People who work in the beauty industry - hairdressers, beauticians and dermatologists - have been on the front line when it comes to hearing about these issues. 

Without the filter they think they look ugly: my nose is too big, my eyes are sunken in, my lips are just not big enough.

Beauty therapist Diane Nikolic feels the problem precedes COVID-19, but the pandemic made the situation worse.

“My personal opinion is that filters are not helping, we seem to be forgetting the natural picture where you smile and, whatever the outcome, it’s just a picture. We are after perfection,” she says. 

Nikolic fears that filters can cause psychological harm, especially to the younger generation, who want to look like the filter image from the moment they wake up.

“Without the filter they think they look ugly: my nose is too big, my eyes are sunken in, my lips are just not big enough. A beautiful young lady came to me not long ago asking what I thought about her doing some fillers under her eyes to remove the darkness. I could not believe my ears. This perfect, beautiful lady wanted to play around with her perfect face. After trying hard to convince her she is just perfect the way she is, I tried to understand why. My conclusion, was again filters,” she says. 

Hairdresser Ramon Vella said that over the past year many of his clients asked for advice on how to change their hair style or colour to look better online.

“Some people, who have had the same hair colour for years, have complained that the colour looks ashy on screen and asked to change it. I’ve heard so many clients talk to me about how, when they are on an online call and they see their face amongst the boxes of faces, they think to themselves that their hair looks too dark or look like they've woke up from the dead."

On the other hand, Monique Cachia, a doctor who specialises in dermatology, said that in her line of work she did not see such a shift.

“If it’s a matter of a small skin problem like a spot, it does not show clearly on the small screen. What we have seen is people coming to address issues of spots brought about by wearing face masks for long hours,” she says.