Body Image
If you are an American woman, I'm not telling you anything that you don't know when I say that our culture has fostered a host of body image issues on us. I touched on my thoughts on the problem when I wrote about Lifetime series How to Look Good Naked. At that time, I spoke about my feelings in relation to society, but not in a personal way.
By the numbers, I am 4 feet 10 inches tall. I weigh around 240 pounds. I wear between a size twenty-two and twenty-four in clothing. And a 42DDD bra. Need a picture? How about a less flattering one?
My height makes me abnormal in a way that is impossible to change or cover up. It is especially noticeable when I'm standing with Chris.
I am unusual in regards to body image in several other respects. While I realize that some weight loss would be an positive for health reasons, my idea image of myself is still considered way to big by our cultural standards.
When I was in high school, I was a size sixteen/eighteen. I have no idea what I weighed. Scales aren't important to me. I was vastly more active. I walked every day. I was perfectly fine with my size. That's the physical ideal I would choose for my body. It wouldn't get me the cover of Cosmo, or Playboy for that matter.
The only problem I ever had being a plus sized woman is the fashion scene being geared toward the size eight and under woman. Yes, I know thin women have clothing issues, too, but at least the industry as a whole approves of thin women.
How many catalogs featuring plus size clothing picture "normal" models who are insultingly thin compared with the smallest size offered for sale? Worse still, the styles are often best described as matronly. For the record, I do not foresee myself wearing matronly styles even when I am, for example, a mother of the bride.
My style runs more toward the colorful and slightly eccentric. I am not adverse to a little sexy. Showing some cleavage works for me, while mini shirts are not an option.
In other words, I believe in dressing to play up what you like about your figure. Any woman can look nice and feel better about her body by wearing clothes that fit and flatter.
Wear what you love. No compromises.
Don't allow anyone else to make you feel that something is wrong with your body. Embrace yourself, body and soul.
I really do wish more women loved the body they came with. The truth is MOST women arent 8 or less, its not even fisable yet they try. Eatting disorders are horriably high in the USA, its really sad that in my PE for school teachers class we where told that they can no longer "weight" kids, Eatting disorders start as early as 3rd grade and little girls hear there weight and freak .... As a elementary "future" teacher, there is a great likely hood of having at least 1 or 2 girls in the k-4 grade range with an eatting disorder ... sad um?
I really wish our society promoted "health" figured women ...
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Tragic. With kids that young, I feel the media isn't the biggest issue. It's the parents. If Mommy hates her own body and talks about nothing but diets, what can you expect?
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im new to the site.
i would like to comment about your photo and the desire to be slim.
i think you are extremely beautiful and very pretty. you look like you have a character and would be a great person to be around.
i use to think being skinny was the most important thing in life, nothing else mattered, but i realised that in most cases being skinny means not living your life to the fullest(i know this is generalisation)and that my skinny friends are actual not that fun to be around and were quite boring which made them unattractive in my eyes.
anyway you are a very pretty girl and have dress sense to be envious of.
i wonder if you could give your views on if you think plus size people have a certain personality trait. i was thinking maybe they like to live life for the moment, they like to enjoy life and are the ones with the 'worry about it tommorrow' attitude. would love to hear your thoughts.
great site.xx
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Thank you for visiting and for your kind words.
I do not know if your ideas as true for everyone who is on the heavy side. Still, when it comes to devoting one's life to something, fighting one's own body seems to be a losing battle to choose.
I believe that if I person sees weight loss as a cure all to their problems, they will be disappointed. On the other hand, if being healthy is the goal and developing better habits without buying into guilt is the method, there is nothing wrong with trying to shed a few pounds.
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Size shouldn't matter! Health is what should be important, and in my opinion that's a really great picture!
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I agree that health is the word. I simply know that I tend to eat more calories than is healthy and my sweet teeth can get the better of me
I love that picture of us, too. It was taken July 2005 at my brother's wedding.
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Great post, and point made well. Body image worship in America has gone faaaar over. We women might as well bind our feet or wear corsets or hoop skirts again!
Funny thing is, in other countries, it's just the opposite! Skinny women are ugly in Africa and Middle East. Men love the big gals over there, because it means they will be good wives, good cooks, and come from wealthier homes. Isn't the whole thing ridiculous, though? Women are always targeted according to their appearances. :-p
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If you go by actual couples in every day life, I think American men are perfectly happy with plus sized women. Go to the mall sometime and look around at the couples walking around holding hands. Dollars to donuts, you'll see some generously built women walking around with their adoring husbands.
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