Miley Cyrus And the Beauty Standards of Hannah Montana

So 2 days ago I saw an article on MTV…
http://www.mtv.com/news/2239958/miley-cyrus-hannah-montana-beauty/
This was about Miley Cyrus as Hannah Montana.
In case you don’t want to read the article, here’s the gist. Playing Hannah Montana gave Miley Cyrus a sense of Body Dysmorphia because she was meant to portray this perfect pop princess. She put on tons of make up, a wig, etc. Meanwhile the girl she portrayed, that looked like her, was the dork. Not only is she being transformed into beauty but she became a symbol of what beauty is.
Okay cool? Cool.
We all know Miley (may I call you Miley?) has had tons of criticism over recent years because she is no longer the “Perfect pop princess Hannah Montana”. Here’s the thing we need to remember people: she never was. She played one. That’s it. Everyone goes through a rough patch in their lives. Some people do drugs and try to discover their sexuality, others become depressed, etc. Demi Lovato tackled her issues and people were so supportive. Miley tries to tackle hers and everyone hates her. Um… last I checked, tons of people have tried drugs and experimented with their sexuality. The difference is, they didn’t have the whole world watching them. That doesn’t make her actions wrong. That makes her brave and a huge example of what a lot of people do that we just never talk about.
If I were the parent of a child who loved Hannah Montana and started seeing the Miley Cyrus side of things… I wouldn’t hide it from them. I’d talk to them. Be fucking honest with my kid. Yeah it’s hard let your kid be exposed to something that they aren’t ready for (and you aren’t ready for) but if it’s there why try to hide it? I would want my kid to understand what’s going on and what other options there are. I would tell them that Miley has been working for a long time and has had tons of pressure on her and everyone cracks at some point. Some kids dye their hair, others overcompensate and become “preppy”. Whatever. There are tons of different ways of dealing with things and that’s one of them and while I hope they don’t repeat her actions, I’d want to know. I’d want them to know that there’s an outlet, as opposed to making my kid feel like they’ll be disowned if they Fuck up (which they might). It’s really an opportunity to open bridge of conversation about growing up and the pressures that are put on you.
We see this in kids during middle school (cliques form-emos, preppy, etc). And some people experience this “What is happening to my life” feeling then. Other’s don’t get that until high school. And still, others till college or even after college. I know a handful of people who just graduated college and are in that awkward phase because it’s jarring. That’s okay. It happens. Some people start smoking weed or drinking or cutting or skipping class, etc. We need to stop pretending that doesn’t exist because that won’t help anything. I think what Miley has done here is open the doors to parents talking to their kids about what can happen and the kind of pressure society (and maybe them?) can feel like and how to deal with it.
Miley, you do you. Because you are fucking awesome.