Fat Shaming

I am intrigued with this battle going on right now amongst women.  Do you remember the "What's Your Excuse" mom who posted a picture of her awesome body and three small children?  This week, another mother posted a picture of herself on Instagram showing off her chiseled abs just a couple days after she gave birth and it's kind of sparked the same issues.  Personally, I am not going to bother hating this woman because I don't do that, and even if I could be so stupid, I am too busy thinking "how in the world does that happen?"  I would never have posted a picture of myself like that because I wouldn't want that kind of attention, nor would I want to be accused of trying to hurt others....but this doesn't mean that's what this woman was thinking and I am not going to judge her for it.  Even women I know who are in amazing shape don't look like that after giving birth, so I am curious about why this woman is different, as we all should be. It is definitely a phenomenon I have never seen before, but so are Mammatus clouds.  So what.  Just because you haven't seen something doesn't mean it doesn't t exist.  It is not the norm to look like this and a woman would have to be an idiot to expect these results after giving birth, so if you are comparing yourself to her, stop it.

How another girl looks doesn't have an effect my life and in my opinion, it shouldn't have an effect on any other woman's life.  People want to say that if you look good and post the evidence, it's "Fat Shaming".  I'm not buying it.  The only person who can shame yourself is you.  There are little girls who are being called fat by their mothers and because they are vulnerable and being abused mentally by someone that is supposed to love them; they wind up feeling shame about who they are.  This is entirely different than some random stranger posting a picture of their body on Instagram.  They are not shaming you, you're shaming yourself.  Should a woman in shape who takes care of herself start feeling shameful for the way she looks because she is afraid to be called a "shamer"?  I think that there are two parts to this whole weight thing.....

1.) Take care of yourself and love yourself.  This means exercise and eat well.  I'm sorry if that offends people, but these are the two things that regardless of what size you naturally are, you should be doing.  Just because you're a size 2 doesn't mean you're healthy and just because you are a size 12 doesn't mean you aren't.  We are all built differently and we should feel our best because that is what's best for us, not anyone else. 

2.) If you think you look good, inspire people but do not purposely try to hurt others. Period.