Fat-tastic topic . . . !

Hi Jennifer and Clare! I had to join in on the "fat" conversation because it's a great topic with thoughtful insight. (By the way, this is the "fattest" picture I could find of Kate Winslet and she is hardly fat!)

My own body image is important to me but Jennifer is right, I'm not obsessed (anymore) with my fluctuating weight. I must say, in all honesty, that I used to be and would be upset if I went into double digit weight gain, again! At one point in my life I gained almost 30 pounds. I'm only 5'5"! Do the math!

During my "fat time" I was very upset with myself. I felt terrible and lost my self confidence and felt that people were talking behind my back about how much weight I had gained. I thought that I was weak because I was successful in so many areas except for my weight. What was wrong with me? I didn't think anyone took me seriously anymore because I was fat and I made excuses not to go to out or to special events because I didn't want to be seen. In retrospect, I put on some weight for God's sake, I didn't have leprosy. I gained the weight after college and it increased into my 20's and it stayed with me for years. I never thought it was a social issue because I never defended my weight gain. I hated it and Hollywood had nothing to do with it.

This topic has really hit home for me and when I was reading it I thought about all the issues I had when I gained the weight. I woke up in the middle of the night and was thinking about what I was going to write about today. Here's what's interesting, I am no longer overweight but I constantly worry about it and need reassurance that I have control over it. I don't want to be fat because I want to wear the clothes I want and I want to be accepted as a healthy person who takes care of herself. These may not be the best reasons not to be fat but they work for me.

I started exercising, changed my diet, got married and worked hard at my job. I became happy!I lost all the weight I had gained and actually wanted to loose ten more pounds to go beyond my goal so that I had a "little room to play with." I actually said this to myself. If I gained a few pounds back I'm still thinner than I was when I hit my goal. Still victorious! Although I lost the weight and feel fantastic, mentally I still had weight issues. I was obsessed with body issues and it was all I talked about. Yes, I was one of those people! Yuck! I don't do that anymore.

With all this said I now think that if a person has never gained any weight they have a different perspective about what fat is. It's easy to be critical. "Just stop eating so much. . . " I don't think I've ever heard a fat person be critical of another fat person. I have heard thin women say "I look better than her. . . " blah, blah, blah. . . . !

Clare is right, Kate Winslet is not fat! She shouldn't worry about what other people say about her. She's a great actress and I really love her movies. I think maybe she needs a better publicist.

Sarah
Dallas, TX