Let’s talk about body shaming.
When we talk about body shaming we can be a little exclusive. Most of the time body shaming is targeted towards larger women, making them feel like they need to lose weight or that they have to be skinny to be pretty. And while this type of body shaming does need to be recognized, we need to recognize that literally every body shape gets shamed.
Yep. That’s right. In the world of body shaming, it's open season for everyone. It seems like whether you weigh 90 pounds or 900 pounds, someone will always have something to say about your body. That’s what we need to change.
Recently in the media, Amy Schumer has gained some attention for her response to tabloids trying to shame her. She was on a beach and rocking a cute one piece, and of course some jerk had to talk about her weight. She responded by posting a picture of herself and saying that she thinks she looks “strong and healthy.” Even more frustrating than the fact that she even had to go through this was the comments on her picture. It was filled with people calling her fat, then other people calling those people fat…it was a never ending cycle of hate. Shout out to the great people that were happy for her embracing her body.
Of course this isn’t the first time the media body shamed people. Kim K was body shamed during both her pregnancies. I mean really. Can you imagine someone actually gains weight while their carrying another human inside of them? What? No way. Tabloids were covered with rumors and random numbers depicting her weight gain, and for what? Why do we as a society care about how much weight someone puts on during her pregnancy? Same story with Kelly Clarkson and Jessica Simpson…and God forbid you don’t immediately lose the weight!
“Last summer I bought my first two-piece bikini. I hadn't worn a two-piece bathing suit that wasn't one of those horrible tankinis since like...fifth or sixth grade. But it was senior week and I was feeling adventurous. I ended up buying a high waisted bottom and a sort of bustier top. At first I felt embarrassed because it took me weeks to find a bathing suit to fit into because I have a rather large chest and pretty wide hips and big thighs, but once I showed my friends my bathing suit and posted pictures of it online, the compliments started pouring in and I didn't feel so bad, it made up for the struggle of it all. And it's funny, because I had people who used to put me down about my body type telling me how good I looked. I don't know if it's because everyone else was saying nice things and they felt bad, who knows.”
Shaun Carr
“When I was 6 years old my pediatrician deemed I was underweight. I weighed just 62 pounds. He recommended I put on a little weight to keep with 'normal' weight size. It backfired. I was about 100 pounds by age 7. The instances of body shaming were being teased and called 'fat,' rejection from peers at school and in the neighborhood. Years later I have a bitter feeling when I think of how I was told I couldn't participate in foot races or other 'boy stuff' because I was fat and couldn't keep up.”
Katie Freddino
Erica Cegelski
“At this point in my life when I get ready in the morning I can’t look at myself in the mirror. I put my head down until absolutely necessary. That is how much I, and others, have shamed me about my body, whether they knew it or not. I would not wish this on my worst enemy.”
Alajia Vaughn
"‘You can’t wear that, you’re too fat.’ ‘There’s a weight limit.’ ‘Big girls can’t wear heels.’ These are a few of the many things I have heard. All my life I’ve been bullied and picked on because of my weight. I’ve hit some pretty low points in my life, however I did not and will not ever let that define me. It has been a very long and continuing journey of self-love and support from family and friends, I have risen above. I am beautiful exactly the way I am and everybody is beautiful in the skin they’re in.”
Thank you to everyone who allowed me to share his or her story. We all are at different places in our journey of self-love. I hope that those of us who aren’t at that point yet can get to a point of self-acceptance. I also want to point out that these amazing people are all different shapes, sizes, colors, ages and genders and they have all been made to feel like their body isn’t good enough for some reason.
So here is what I want to say about body shaming: if you have ever been body shamed, know that you are not the problem. You are perfect just the way you are. It doesn’t matter what size you are, what shape you are, if you have curves, if you have muscles or anything else. There will always be a negative bully who will have something to say. You are not the problem. They are.
