I have probably never been skinny in my life; even as a young child, I was kind of chubby. Growing up, even if I was only a size or two more than my peers, they would bully me. I was made to feel worthless about how I look because I was chubby. There was no body positivity movement around me, clothes were not made for girls of my size, and kids would mock me when I sat down because my leg fat spread a little.
As I got older, food became my safe place. If I was sad, I'd eat away the pain. If I was happy, I'd munch on something as a reward. While I played sports during this time period, I never actually lost weight. People would still judge every aspect of my life from what I ate-- a salad meant I was on a diet and a burger meant that I did not care about myself-- to the clothes that I wore, which were never really that cute.
Fast forward to the present where I am still overweight, yet eating mostly healthy and exercising more often. I happen to stumble across an article that states that giving plus size girls a body positivity movement is promoting bad health.
Let me stop there basically. The plus size body movement is not glorifying being overweight and staying overweight and unhealthy. It is about learning to love yourself after being told for years, or a life time, and finding self-worth. When a plus size model tells you that she is not there to tell you to go on a diet or how to lose weight, it is because she does not want you to begin to think less of yourself. Do you know how hard it is to exercise when you hate how you look or have negative thoughts about your body instead of thinking about how kickass you are? It is very difficult!
I have met so many girls who are the right weight for their bodies, yet they shovel junk food into their mouths like there is no tomorrow. They become unhealthy with medical issues that begin to arise, yet barely gain a pound. But we have no issue with their health concerns because they are thin.
Being overweight sucks. Really. There can be a lot of health issues that arise with it, and anyone overweight knows that. We diet and exercise, but it takes a long time to lose weight and it is a difficult journey. Sometimes, we have really good days where we eat healthy and hit the gym hard and feel good about our progress. Other times, we binge out on junk food and cry over how the world judges us and hates us--telling us how we are worthless.
So excuse me if I do not think that the body positivity movement should be about health. It should be teaching people of all ages, genders, and sizes to love themselves. My health is not your business, it is mine and my doctor's to know and be concerned of. My size is not for you to judge. The only thing you should do is offer kind and caring words to make the world a more positive place for those living in it.
Eating disorders are not a joke. If you or someone you know may be suffering from an eating disorder, you can reach help here:
https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/help-suppo...
