NPR recently did an article about Rachel Star, a YoutTube star who is incredibly open about her mental illness status.

Star has schizophrenia and in her videos, she discusses her hallucinations, feelings, etc. at length. The NPR article is pretty interesting, so you should give it a read, but also make certain to watch the video below to hear about Star’s most unsettling hallucinations and how she’s learned how to deal.

Related on EcoSalon

Dealing With Depression as a Celebrity: #NowWhat

Sapiosexual: The Most Obnoxious Online Dating Buzzword in History

Climate Change is Making You Depressed (But Not for Obvious Reasons)

The post Learning About Schizophrenia, One Video at a Time [Video] appeared first on EcoSalon.

My forward to this video is simple and to the point: People are jerks and never read Internet comments… Especially when those comments are about your face.

Three months ago, My Pale Skin, a YouTube beauty vlogger, started posting videos of herself without makeup. Internet bullies took note and began bombarding her with all sorts of very hurtful messages. Well, My Pale Skin responded to her hurtful trolls with the perfect response. Thanks to Cosmopolitan for posting the video.

Related on EcoSalon

Embrace Your Face: How to Love the Skin You Have

How to Get Rid of Zits and Keep Skin Clear This Summer

Spring Beauty Skincare Recipe: DIY Cucumber Face Mist

The post Beauty Vlogger Owns Internet Bullies [Video] appeared first on EcoSalon.

What are “fashion haul” videos saying about today’s teenager’s attitude toward consumerism, and what’s on the other side of the spectrum.

In case you haven’t heard the term, “fashion hauling” refers to an internet phenomenon that has young (mostly) girls showing off their latest shopping finds to thousands of viewers in “haul videos” on YouTube. To be able to afford a constant stream of new stuff, haulers usually shop at fast fashion chains like Forever 21, H&M, Charlotte Russe and Target, or discount retailers like Marshalls, JC Penney or TJ Maxx.

Though this may seem like an innocent way for young girls to express themselves and share shopping finds with online peers, it’s becoming a serious issue because it promotes rampant, mindless consumerism. Haulers love fast fashion retailers because everything is cheap and they can afford a lot. They buy buy buy without putting any thought in how their clothing was made and where it comes from. If you consider the entire supply chain – from the raw materials and the labor required to the shipping and marketing – it is simply not possible to make a T-shirt that costs $7.

This video, a fashion haul by bodyrock.tv has over 3,6 million views on Youtube.

Fast fashion retailers, of course, do not want you to think about this stuff, they just want you to buy it. So naturally most of them have embraced the fashion hauling phenomenon with open arms, some of them even sponsoring popular haulers by offering gift cards, video contests and other incentives. Haulers seemingly live in a world where happiness can be bought, for a single-digit price tag at Forever 21, and everything is just “OMG, so cute!” To those of us far removed from it, these girls seem to be motivated by a desperate search for meaning.

The girls in this video, which has over 2 million views, just went on a serious shopping spree at Forever 21.

While it’s troubling to watch this trend develop and grow, there is also another side to the story. At the other end of the spectrum, many of today’s youth are distancing themselves entirely from the idea of ownership, looking for simplicity and alternative solutions to things they see not working in society. Instead of buying cars, they get Zipcar memberships, instead of buying CDs and DVDs they use Spotify, Hulu and other cloud-based streaming services, and instead of seeing the purchase of a home as the ultimate achievement they appreciate the freedom of renting. The less stuff you have, the more you stick it to the man.

This one has over 900,000 views and close to 12,000 comments.

Perhaps both of these extremes are reactions to coming of age in a time of economic uncertainty and political upheaval, but what does this polarization say about our society? And, more importantly, what effect will it have on the future of consumption? Does slow, considered fashion stand a chance against this escalating fashion hauling trend? Only time will tell, but perhaps it’s time to popularize “vintage hauling” or “stuff-I-already-have-in-my-closet hauling”?

Lead image, still from this video

The post Fashion Hauling and Today’s Teen Shopper appeared first on EcoSalon.