“’I know why you didn’t get in. They told us.’ My heart sank. ‘They didn’t think you’d be able to do physical activity.’ I was the only one who didn’t. It opened my eyes.”
‘Unfortunately, you weren’t accepted.’ Everyone made jokes about me. ‘It’s because she’s FAT.’ My heart dropped.’: Young woman shares self-love journey, ‘I am worthy’
‘You need to go to the ER immediately.’ I felt like my body was failing me. I continued to hide my condition until I almost DIED.’: Ballerina with diabetes shares acceptance journey, ‘Keep fighting’
“I was training hard and eating healthy, but still gaining weight. My instructor told my mom I was ‘fat.’ Something in my body was wrong. A few months later, I’d be in the ICU fighting for my life.”
‘All I have to do is lose weight, and I’ll be happy forever.’ I had no idea what I was getting into. I wasn’t strong enough to live this way.’: Woman recovers from eating disorder, ‘It’s a battle’
“I knew I had a purpose. I knew it extended far beyond eating salads and running on the treadmill, and I just had to find it. It was the small bites of chocolate, the rest days, the drinking a fruity drink and not thinking about what was in it, and the freedom of knowing my eating disorder did not have me wrapped around its finger anymore.”
‘Just enough fat.’ He grabbed my stomach. ‘No one else will want you.’ He wanted to keep me in a box.’: Woman promotes body positivity, ‘Take control over how you see yourself’
“I tried to pull the pants up, and they wouldn’t go over my calves. She mocked me, saying I couldn’t fit in anything in the store.”
‘What are you wearing? You look like a clown!’ I wanted the ground to swallow me up. I vowed to never be ‘too much’ again.’: Woman shares self-love journey, ‘I finally feel like ME’
“I started dieting and skipping meals. ‘I’ll be happy when I’m skinny.’ I wore a pair of those sucking-in underwear to make sure I felt thin. I felt squished. I realized I looked absolutely no different without them, but I felt a million times better. I’ve never worn a pair since.”
‘Please give me something to eat. I can’t do it anymore.’ My stomach was swollen. I felt weak and powerful at the same time.’: Model overcomes eating disorder, ‘I’m MORE than a label’
“I lost 26 pounds in 2 months. My legs weren’t strong enough to hold me. I refused to eat, and if I’d eat too much, I just threw it up when I was alone. Nothing seemed real.”
‘Curvy women welcome, but ONLY if the curves are in the bust or butt.’ I would wear t-shirts over bathing suits out of fear someone would see my stomach and die of disgust on the spot.’: Mother advocates for body positivity, ‘You are perfectly imperfect’
“I didn’t even let my now-husband look at my stomach for a YEAR. I closed my eyes and waited to hear his groan in disgust. I felt his big hand rub across my stomach.”
‘I was SO proud of my body before kids. Even when I would drop a dress size, I never felt it.’: Mom finds self-worth after struggling with body image, eating disorders, ‘every stretch mark tells a story’
“I was more ‘attractive’ to men. Found it easier to shop for clothes. Being thin actually made me more acceptable in society, it made me seem like I had my life together. I used to feel so validated by being skinny.”
‘I took comfort in the fact my ugly, clunky ‘frankenboobs’ wouldn’t be with me forever. But, y’all, I am SCARED.’: Cancer fighter prepares for reconstruction surgery, ‘I am MORE than this body’
“I have to face the reality this is the end of the journey. Whatever I wake up to, or whatever I wake up with—that will be my new body. There is no next phase, there is no going back.”
‘This is what the brink of 35 looks like. A D*MN imperfect woman, who likes this whole ‘aging’ thing.’: Mom shares thoughts on ‘life-changing experience’ of aging
“It looks like looking into a dirty mirror, taking a silent selfie I’ll surely put a filter on later, flashing a goofy-*ss grin, feeling proud I ran two miles, mowed the lawn, and got a shower in while the kids are at grandma’s. Then we remember, alas, it’s only Tuesday, and though the kiddies have a day off of school tomorrow, it’s back to work, the grind, and the monotony a typical Monday through Friday delivers.”
