I would like to start this article by stating the obvious: I'm not one to fat shame anyone, or point out that someone is too skinny, unless they have a serious mental health issue, like anorexia or bulimia. Whatever you choose to eat is your business, and, unless you're putting yourself into harms way, I could really care less about what you decide or not to shovel into your mouth. The great thing about being a human being in a first world country is, well, choice. Being skinny is a choice. Being average is a choice. Being muscular is a choice. You see where I'm going with this, right?
This article goes on the defensive about what it's like to be a size 00 in today's society. And you know what? That's totally cool! If you want to live a healthy lifestyle and weigh less than 100 pounds, that's totally fine! However, as you point out i your article, you're against the Dove Real Beauty Campaign
Which is problematic to me, as a fellow woman. You also state in your article that women need to stick together and not tear each other's bodies down. Yet, you're upset with this real beauty campaign? This is a wonderful idea, and let me tell you why: I've had body issues all my life, and after depression hit my like a bullet train, I gained weight, which increased my body issues even more. I went from a 00, like you, to a 3/4 in jeans. I was so ashamed of my body, and still am, that I rarely wear jeans. But I feel better when I look at this photo. Why? It shows real women. I see curvy women, I see thin women, I see tall women, I see short women, I see white women, I see black women. Talk about representation!
I just see thin women in this picture. And you claim that the Dove Ad is attacking you? What about the girls who are suffering from anorexia, bulimia, BED, or EDNOS? What do you think they see when they look at this? As someone with body issues., I'll tell you what they think: We're not good enough. We're not pretty enough. We don't look like them. But I'm not shaming them for being skinny! See, there's a key difference between self-comparison, which is what you're experiencing, and skinny-shaming.
Yes, I do believe that skinny-shaming is a legitimate problem in our society. I see skinny women getting picked on all the time and asked "Did you eat today?" and then getting laughed at by the others around them. Is that cool to do? Absolutely 110% not. However, you have to see it from our perspective: you get positive attention, so we take that and internalize it, over analyze it, and think badly about ourselves. Fat-shaming has been around longer than skinny-shaming. And here's where it here's where it gets out of control.
So yes, we understand where you're coming from, but don't attack us: attack society.
