40+ year old women posting selfies on social media - is this a new trend?

[bogeywoman]

Quite a few of my friends/acquaintances have recently started posting very posed selfies (without much in the way of a description) on FB and instagram. Women who are well into their 40s, married with children. Is this some sort of lockdown related insecurity? I find it so strange.

It's disgusting. Women who are over 40 should hide themselves away and only come out after dark, with a bag over their head.

I’m 28 with 2 children & I wouldn’t do selfies anymore. Maybe when I was 21 and childless. It’s just a bit cringe init.

I'm 40 and I take occasional selfies. Sometimes I post them on facebook. If I didn't take them there would be hardly any photos of me and that would be a great shame!

I had no idea that taking selfies was age restricted.
I'm not into them myself, good job because apparently I'm too old in my 50's.

None of my FB friends do that.

Regardless of age and sex I think endless selfies are odd. I know what you mean

Over 40 and daring to post photos of themselves. Ewwww gross, who wants to see that??!

Or the real world answer is...get a grip and mind your own bloody business!

I'm not a fan of selfies, but your concern that they're over 40 means YAVVVVVVVVVVVVU.

A few of my friends do the same and I'm sure they're just seeking validation or some form of contact with their friends. I just click like. If it makes them happy, why not?

I don't agree with the OP, I think it's really not something to get worked up about, however the following point doesn't really make much sense to me -

if they were your real friends you wouldn’t take to Mumsnet to slate them, a bit bitchy.

Does that argument only apply to friends? What about husbands/wives? Surely if you love your partner then you wouldn't slate them on Mumsnet? Mumsnet will become quiet if we all held this viewpoint.

@SurreyHillsGirl

It's disgusting. Women who are over 40 should hide themselves away and only come out after dark, with a bag over their head.

No...I'm pretty sure there comes a point (maybe around 70) where posting selfies becomes cool and acceptable again, even daring and inspirational. In middle age you should hide away lest you be moralised upon for "attention seeking" or "being insecure", but then you should suddenly come back after about 30 years as if nothing happened, more gorgeous and fierce than ever before.

Or maybe you are supposed to wear a burka and command absolutely no presence from the age of 40 until death. That's probably ok too.

Well I think you. Have that spot on Lwegi they are reaching out for contact a facey hello 😄

Ah Lewji soz

It's not another one of these 'post a picture of yourself with no makeup/post workout/with lockdown hair, just post a picture, no explanation and then tag 3 of your friends' type 'challenges is it?

I keep getting tagged on these things. I always 'forget'.

There's nothing 'wrong' with posting selfies at any age but equally nothing 'wrong' if you do that but other people think that you're embarassing yourself or look a state.

No-ones talking about selfies on a day out or with a great view in the background or whatever, it's the multiple selfies of the face with heavy filters, or the multiple full length selfies in a mirror when squeezed into a mini-dress or the teen daughters clothes.

Or worse (vom) the teen or 20s DC taking pictures of Mum 'dolled up' for her to post on SM.

The ones that I see (friends of friends) look they've escaped from prisoner cell block H and i'm 100% sure i'm not just being a bitch thinking they don't look 'beautiful hun'

Jesus
No, no you don't sound like a bitch at all. not
WTF - Prisoner Cell Block H escapees? You sound absolutely delightful
You're right, if you're over 40 and not deemed pretty enough or a bit of a prison convict lookalike (curious, by this do you mean no makeup, bit of a fat face and dull eyes, or what?) we should all just hide away.
There isn't enough biscuits in the world for your comment

Occasionally we do do a group selfie but mostly we're too busy having fun to bother/remember
Group selfies are great when you are ' busy having fun'
Its lovely to see them a year or so later in time hop.
One appeared in mine early this year from a group night out 4 years ago where we are all laughing and being daft. None of us , including the person I'm referring to knew she had cancer and would be dead within 16 months.
It's nice to look at how happy she was with us.
I'd rather have that picture than be ' too busy having fun' to take one.

Are only beautiful people, looking beautiful, allowed selfies?

I don't understand selfies, whatever age someone is.

I find it strange that people have such rigid ideas of the behaviours that "women over 40, married with children" should ascribe to. Then when they don't, when they behave like actual independent people with minds of their own, these same people start threads on the internet to seek out pats on the back from other strangers.

@LemonadeAndDaisyChains

If you're not one of those middle aged rough women posting multiple poses of yourself in a bodycon mini dress with rolls of flab and 6 inch heels, or dresses with the sides cut out so the flab hangs out etc then you don't need to fret and you can save your biscuits.

Are only beautiful people, looking beautiful, allowed selfies?

No, beautiful looking people over 40 looking beautiful would come under self absorbed, narcissist saddo looking for likes and attention.

Prisoner convict lookalikes and "unpretty" women shouldn't inflict their face on social media otherwise they're saddos looking for likes and validation.

Or something.
I don't really do selfies but as an over 40 yr old who'd probably fall into the 2nd category, I feel the urge to start posting pics of my gawjus mush to FB to see if I piss any of my friends off

oh and pretty much everything LemonadeAndDaisyChains said.

@RiftGibbon

I don't understand selfies, whatever age someone is.

Allow me to help you.

I don't understand selfies, whatever age someone is
A selfie is when someone takes a photo of themselves.
HTH

@HappyMealWithLegs

I find it strange that people have such rigid ideas of the behaviours that "women over 40, married with children" should ascribe to. Then when they don't, when they behave like actual independent people with minds of their own, these same people start threads on the internet to seek out pats on the back from other strangers.

Abso-fucking-lutely.

After the age of 40 its only acceptable for women to post:

a) fundraising posts for local charities
b) pictures of inoffensive British seascapes with buckets and spades visible (absolutely no pictures of kids, god no)
c) Inspirational quotes with vaguely Eastern sensibilities
d) (only very occasionally) a group shot of some women drinking wine in a suburban high street bistro

No selfies, no sex, no money, no politics.

Anything else is a shameful breach of etiquette and, quite frankly, leaves you open to any abuse that comes your way on the school whatsapp group