My ‘skinny girl’ complex // The double standard around body-shaming// Part 1…

Here we go…

a skinny girl talking about body-positvitity…

*rolls eyes*…

… and it goes on…and on…and on.

These are just some of the examples of body-shaming I have personally experienced…and YES… it is body-shaming…even if I am skinny! You do not have to be fat to be a victim of body-shaming. It is also experienced at the other end of the spectrum, although this aspect tends to fly under the radar a little more. Now I know body-image is about SO much more than just the fat-skinny side of things (and I will touch on these other aspects in future posts), but this aspect will be the main focus of today’s post. I think it’s safe to say that we all have insecurities and individual battles we are working to overcome…each and every one of us. When it comes to body-shaming, there seems to be this double standard that pervades society and is, sadly, tolerated and even exacerbated. Why have we developed such a complex around the word ‘fat’? Why do we find ourselves whispering that word but not so much the ‘skinny’ word? Quite frankly, these blatant double standards I have been subject to have given me a bit of, what I call, a ‘skinny girl complex’.

Well today I am speaking out about it. No longer will I hold off on openly talking about this issue in fear of the backlash or your potential judgments and criticism.

**Because of the amount of content that is going into this topic, I am splitting the post into 3 separate parts, with this being only part 1.

Now, I am not here to offend anyone or dismiss the other side of the issue. Both are valid and worthy of attention. I believe everybody should feel comfortable in the skin they’re in, regardless of weight or size. Everybody has the right to feel positive about their body, and should!

FOR ME, BODY-POSITIVITY IS ABOUT BEING AT ONE WITH MY BODY WITHOUT BEING DEFINED BY IT.

Today I put my foot down and talk about the skinny elephant in the room and expose the unacceptable double standard that has become an accepted and entrenched norm when it comes to body-shaming.

I have been slim most of my life, despite being able to eat enough food for an entire family…of 10! In the past, I have even been questioned about whether I am bulimic…

I know, some of you are probably thinking, ‘cry me a river’… and it’s because I’m skinny and look a certain way, right? Perhaps you’re thinking that this is all so easy for me to talk about because, as a skinny girl, I should feel confident? Or that, maybe, because I’m not fat and don’t struggle with the concept of being healthy that my input bears a little less weight on the matter of body-positivity? Perhaps you think that I would be a little more deserving of credit, and even worthy of praise, if I was overweight, embracing my curves and shouting it from the rooftops? But because I’m skinny, conscious about my health and post naked photos regularly, that somehow I am less deserving of your time or kindness? That my efforts scream vanity and attention-seeker?

Well maybe you, too, are an unconscious body-shamer…

The preconceived notion about body-positivity:

I think it is great that ‘plus size’ campaigns are rebelling against mainstream media’s pressure to be ‘slim’, but I believe that ‘ALL’ bodies should represent ALL body sizes and shapes.

When a lot of people think about body-positvitity, they picture on overweight or plus-size person celebrating their curves and being comfortable in the skin they’re in, basking in their rebellion against mainstream media’s version of ‘desirable’. I mean, an entire ‘plus-size’ industry has been created out of it…and this is great and all, but we cannot shut our eyes to this perverse double standard that has been created and exacerbated as a result.

So, why is it that we seem to have a little more compassion for an overweight person that is confident in the skin they’re in, but as soon as it’s a skinny person, we almost shrug it off as if it’s an insignificant feat that someone skinny feels comfortable in the skin they’re in? Why is it more tolerable to casually and openly comment on the size of a skinny person, but not so much a fat person? Have you ever stopped and wondered why this is the case? How often do you stop to put the shoe on the other foot? How often do you really stop to make a conscious decision to come from a place of understanding and compassion, rather than judgement or insecurity?

Well today I hope that this article, at least, gets you thinking about it…

What is body-shaming?

‘CRITICISM OF SOMEONE BASED ON THE SHAPE, SIZE, OR APPEARANCE OF THEIR BODY’ – CAMBRIDGE DICTIONARY

‘THE ACTION OR PRACTICE OF HUMILIATING SOMEONE BY MAKING MOCKING OR CRITICAL COMMENTS ABOUT THEIR BODY SHAPE OR SIZE’ – OXFORD DICTIONARY

They are just the same…body-shaming is body-shaming.

For me, body-shaming is, at its simplest, making someone feel ashamed about their body in some regard. So, whether you’re skinny, fat, confident or not, body-shaming is not bias. In fact, I’m sure many of us have been on the receiving end at one point or another, and I’m just as sure that just as many of us may even be guilty of, intentionally or unintentionally, body-shaming another at some point in time. Well, it’s never too late to become aware, informed and proactive.

I believe body-shaming happens at a conscious and unconscious level. I also believe that body-shaming is expressed in various forms. It may be outright criticism (the more conscious/intentional form), or a more subtle, and less conscious, form of guilt-tripping.

What does this double standard look like?

…to be continued in part 2…

Much love,

The Nude Blogger

xx