One night, while school shopping for new clothes, I pulled on a pair of size 16 skinny jeans and nearly fainted. It was a tight fit; I had gained weight and a lot of it. I looked at myself in the mirror and almost refused to go outside and show my mother how they looked on me. Unfortunately, she still believed I was a size 16 in pants. I opened the door and tried to ignore the other shoppers, especially the girl directly across from me who looked disgusted. My mom looked at the pants that were causing my stomach and behind to stick out terribly and just said, "Oh no, I'll go get a size up for you."
While my mother flip-flopped away from the changing rooms, I pried the too-tight pants off of my body and folded them up again. Then, while I waited patiently for my mother to bring me more pants I heard the girl across from me talk to her mother from inside her changing room say, "Fat girls shouldn't wear skinny jeans. I mean, unless they lose weight. They look terrible, like seriously? Eat less."
Not only did this ignorant statement hurt me, it angered me enough to remember it now, three weeks later. Society today needs to realize that being skinny or overweight is never a choice. Sometimes it is because of heredity, and other times it could just be from legitimate health issues. People classified under "Obesity" on the Body Mass Index might not have a choice on how they are. For instance, when I was born, I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism, meaning that all of my growth hormones were out of whack. This could of been because I was born without a thyroid or it was just not working. Because of this and the fact I grew up with an Italian background, I gain weight five times faster than people who have a working thyroid.
Society has been showing naivety towards the subject of obesity for years, decades even. Yes, I'm over weight, but look at all the overweight successful people that didn't let the cruelty of the modern world get to them: Rosie O'Donnell, Kathy Bates, and even more popular, Oprah Winfrey.
Who's to say that just because I'm fat I can't enjoy life? I try to succeed and that is all that matters to me. Why should it matter to people that I don't even know? Besides, being skinny isn't something you can just buy at a store or McDonalds. I'm not sorry to say that as a girl that has been classified as "obese", I like to eat and be who I am.
I agree with your statements about society and it's ignorance towards obesity. You are right; some people cannot control their weight, and when society looks at everyone who has a weight problem and thinks they just eat too much or are lazy, that is a massive problem.
ReplyDeleteMy feeling is that society should not think negatively of anyone based on their looks. What should matter, though, is how the individual feels about themselves. If a person knows they are eating excessive amounts of food and hurting their body because of it, then they should reconsider their lifestyle. It should be all about the individual and them feeling good about themselves and their health, regardless of what the outside world feels.
Overall, good points, and I like the personal story you used to back it up.