Rambling thread alert!
Every now and then I think about the subliminal effect storytelling (Hollywood/books/advertising) has on mental health. The most obvious being airbrushing actors and as a result making everyone hugely self conscious and makeup dependent..

Why can't actors have spots, blemishes and hairs growing out of weird places? What kind of insane world are we living in where basic human features are shunned and covered up? Is it just to maintain the grip the cosmetic industry has on us?

There's also the depictions of love at first sight and perfect relationships without petty arguments, which lead some people to think that a rough patch or the horror of sharing a bathroom is a reason for divorce..

If more Hollywood rom coms featured more kitchen sink drama our ability to deal with everyday, understandable conflict in the home would probably improve enormously. Paint more love interests with flaws both physical and emotional.

But the thing that I was pondering on just now is illness. No one's ill in films or books without it being key to the story. Which I wonder if that leads to an increase in anxiety and hypochondria in society?

If more characters had weird headaches, aches, sprains, sudden palpitations, dizziness or other sudden unexplained symptoms would we worry so much when they hit us out of the blue?

Instead the characters that do have that are mocked or depicted as weaklings to be got rid of. Everyone needs headache tablets, billions of us get hayfever in our life, stop making characters in stories in to invulnerable superhumans.

And why not throw in a pointless illness/injury? Have a cold for no reason. A bad spot. Break something! Are there any films where someone slips over and breaks their arm without it being character building or a story arc as the hero gets the girl of his dreams to sign his cast?