Hey Ladies – Don’t Worry; We Men Have Insecurities, Too [PHOTO]

Ladies, if you feel like you are the only gender who deals with body-image issues, guess again. 

It all started sweet enough, with AJ tapping furiously away on her phone, across the table from where my son and I were doing his homework.

After we completed the final problem with our ceremonious high-five, AJ said, "Go look at the Pat & AJ Facebook page." As our son trotted back to his room, I opened my phone and saw a plethora of words, followed by a picture that had obviously just been taken during homework time.

I say "plethora of words" because I never actually read what was in the Facebook post that AJ was so very proud of. All I saw was a super unflattering picture of myself. 

This may catch you by surprise, since I tend to exude an "I don't care" vibe, when it comes to how other people see me. But, just like most people, I probably have a less-than-stellar view of myself.

All I could see in this picture was my big chrome dome. I've been playing a decent game of "hide the bald spot" for the past 10 years, and unlike most people, I suffer from REVERSE body dysmorphia - I tend to think I look better than I actually do.

But, every now and then, I'm faced with the reality that I am a 5'10", 286-lb, balding man. And last night was one of those times.

I won't lie to you, I deleted the post almost immediately, before reading the caption. It sparked a nice little evening argument between myself and AJ. She pleaded with me that the picture looked fine, and nobody was looking at it anyways - they were reading the status that was attached to it.

When she was saying this, all it did was further aggravate me in my head. I thought to myself, "Why can't she just let this go, and move on?" It was then that I realized I had switched spots with her, and countless other women. We had literally had this same conversation/argument before, except it was AJ protesting a picture of HER. 

The same way she couldn't understand me last night, I couldn't understand her in the past. So I suppose we need understanding in the end. Understanding that everyone and anyone can deal with body issues, regardless of gender.

The Facebook post was doing nothing but praising me as a father who does homework with his son every night, but much more eloquently than that. And for those who are curious, here's the post - picture and all.