We all avoid this word like the plague. We dance around saying it without actually speaking the infamous word. But here I go to boldly say the word none of us want to say. Are you ready for it? Here it is. FAT. Stop and think about it for a second. When was the last time you said or heard this word without condemning yourself or others? We will say words such as large, big and my personal least favorite, obese, just to tiptoe around this three-letter word. But why do we shy away from it? What is so wrong about this word? Personally, I think it should stop. You avoiding saying what we are all thinking is hurting me more than if you would just speak the word out loud. Those of us who constantly fight with this three-letter word have a few things we wish everyone understood.

Day to day activities are harder for me.

I walk slower than you because I have more to move than you do. Almost daily I think, "Can I fit through that?" It's more effort to get down and even more than that to get back up. Will the seat belt in the back of your car fit me? Am I going to be able to sit in that booth? The hardest for me is wondering if I can ride all the rides at the theme park.

I didn't choose to be this way.

Many of us, but not all, have medical conditions that have made us the way we are. I have PCOS, along with a long list of other medical conditions that have caused my body to become this way and, because it took so long to find out, have made it almost impossible to reverse the effects.

Beauty and weight are not related.

I'm going to share a little secret with you: you can be fat and pretty at the same time. Mind blown? I know. When I say I'm fat, I am not saying that I am ugly. I am simply stating a fact about my body. Please do not respond to my saying I'm fat with, "No, you are SO pretty." Honestly, nothing hurts more than that.

Just because I am fat does not mean I have self-esteem issues.

I can say quite the opposite about myself. I am fine with the way I am and have learned to accept and own it. Yes, there are those who are fat who have self-esteem issues, but those who are thin have the exact same problem. I love myself. Do I wish I could be more thin? Of course! Trust me, I'm working on it, but in the mean time I'm not going to stop loving myself.

Please don't treat me different than anyone else.

I am just like you, only a little bit thicker. I feel like you and I see just like you. This means I can see you tiptoeing around my weight. It's okay that you don't understand how I feel because I don't understand how you feel. All I ask is that you treat me just like you treat anyone else.

Let's stop shying away from the F word and starting loving ourselves and others, no matter what our size may be.