I m Sick of Seeing My Face Everyday in Virtual Calls
<p>I would like to spend a week without seeing my own face.</p>
<p>What a bold request to have in 2023. I don’t remember when was the last time I had even a day like that. And no, it’s not the mirror in my bathroom the problem.</p>
<p>It’s the laptop and the phone, the most used <em>mirrors</em> in my life.</p>
<p>I want to see how my mom is doing and give her a video call? There’s my own face staring back at me in the corner.</p>
<p>Team meeting to discuss work project? Check your face in the video preview before you even join the meeting.</p>
<blockquote>
<p><strong>My eyes look tired today.</strong></p>
<p><strong>I got a pimple here.</strong></p>
<p><strong>My shirt looks not that bad.</strong></p>
<p><strong>Ohhh, I’m getting late for the meeting, press join, join, join!</strong></p>
</blockquote>
<p>I know that we can hide self view in some video conferencing tools now, but that’s not the case for all or for phone apps like FaceTime and WhatsApp.</p>
<p>I never have this self dialogue for a real life meeting. I just show up, greet the people I have to meet and focus on the conversation.</p>
<p>But online, I get to have this <em>evil queen moment</em> with the mirror before and during every meeting.</p>
<blockquote>
<p><strong>Mirror mirror on the laptop, who is the fariest of them all in this call?</strong></p>
<p><strong>Who??? Really???</strong></p>
<p><strong>You got to be kidding me.</strong></p>
</blockquote>
<p>And I’m not particularly interested in my appearance. But having to see my own face every single day since the rise of personal devices, has shifted the relationship with my self-image.</p>
<p><a href="https://medium.com/modern-women/im-tired-of-seeing-my-face-everyday-in-virtual-calls-6bc4b0c6598c">Website</a></p>