Woman Who Lost A Lot Of Weight Can’t Believe How Differently Everyone Treats Her Now, Calls Out Relatives
Weight loss is always a struggle. Venturing into this arduous endeavor requires tremendous willpower, discipline, strength, and a genuine dedication to your health. It’s frustrating and exhausting. But you try to commit to yourself every single day, come rain or shine. Because whether you like it or not, the unfortunate truth is that looks have an influence on your life, particularly how the rest of society, your friends, and your loved ones perceive and treat you.
But it seems that the challenge becomes even more magnified once you achieve your desired target. Something that Redditor euisalk knows from personal experience. As she detailed in her recent AITA confession, the world started treating her differently as soon as she slimmed down.
“People are nicer to me,” she wrote. “I’m the same person I’ve always been, but the way I move in the world has improved because my body is smaller.” While this change may seem heartening from the outside, it is also startling. While the woman felt disgusted by such behavior, she tried to keep her cool. Until she snapped. Read on to find out how her story escalated, and be sure to weigh in on the discussion in the comments!
After losing a significant amount of weight, this woman experienced how the world suddenly started treating her differently
Image credits: Huha Inc. (not the actual photo)
Feeling appalled by such behavior, she finally snapped at a family gathering and found herself in a heated drama
Image credits: Towfiqu barbhuiya (not the actual photo)
Image credits: cottonbro (not the actual photo)
Later on, the user added an update and shared her opinions on the matter
Image credits: euisalk
After reading the story, Redditors offered overwhelming support for the woman and shared some insightful thoughts on the whole situation. After all, body image and weight loss are huge issues for millions of people around the world, so the post resonated with many readers. As much as we believe that beauty comes from the inside out, the harsh reality is that the size and shape of your body matters for the majority of society.
In this age when unrealistic beauty standards and diet culture are still a thing, navigating the twists and turns of your own health can be overwhelming. But once you achieve your desired target after weeks, months, or even years of grueling effort and immense courage, all is well, right? Well, as this story proves, not entirely.
Losing a drastic amount of weight is an incredibly demanding process that can take a toll on your physical and psychological health. According to Rachel Goldman, a psychologist in New York City and a clinical assistant professor in the Department of Psychiatry at NYU School of Medicine, navigating the social shifts that come with this change can be difficult.
Her patients often reveal getting more attention, being approached by strangers, and feeling seen in a way they had never before — all because they lost weight. “There is this weight bias and negative attitudes towards individuals in a larger body,” Goldman said. “And after people lose a significant amount of weight, they really do start experiencing this. People are kinder and nicer. And it’s like they’re no longer invisible.”
While the compliments may seem genuine at first, they can ignite a series of doubts and make people lose their self-esteem. “It really affects their mental health, their self-image, and self-confidence, trying to understand, ‘How did somebody see them so differently before?'” Goldman added.
“It’s very disappointing and very frustrating, you know, for me as well, being in the mental health field and hearing about these experiences. It’s very sad. And this is really why we want to educate the public as much as we can in terms of how harmful weight bias can be.”
Thankfully, the body positivity movement has been growing stronger. It has made tremendous strides in increasing acceptance of different body types that would otherwise fall outside unrealistic beauty standards. It has inspired people to make their bodies seen and their voices heard. But while we celebrate these accomplishments, it’s important to remember that fatphobia is still alive and well. Standing up to it takes strength and courage, something the author of the story demonstrated so well.
While there’s a long way to go in dismantling fatphobia, the woman’s story brings attention to the issue, and we hope that she will find a way to open her family members’ minds and help them unlearn harmful beauty expectations. We’d love to hear your thoughts about the matter in the comments below. What do you think about the story? Was the woman right to call out her relatives? Feel free to share your opinions, personal experiences, and any tips for people experiencing similar situations in the comments below.
Redditors jumped to the comments to express their support and chime in with their personal experiences
!["Karen Complains To HR About My Body, I Uno-Reverse Her Complaint, [And Now] Everyone Hates Her"](https://www.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/coworker-complains-to-hr-about-womans-body-revenge-latest.jpg "\"Karen Complains To HR About My Body, I Uno-Reverse Her Complaint, [And Now] Everyone Hates Her\"")
Once i heard about someone congratulating another one about their weight loss, and asking about their secret, and the other one answering 'cancer', so damn i'm not going to say nothing about your weight before you talk about your miracle diet.
Exactly right. You don't know what people go through.
I think that’s key - if someone worked hard and wants those kind of compliments, let them lead you into it. I just lost a lot of weight due to Chron’s disease. My.friends noticed I basically stopped eating due to my symptoms and knew my weight loss wasn’t a happy thing. People could tell by my general demeanor I wasn’t losing weight healthfully.
People would ask me how I was so thin after I had my daughter. The truth was that the week I was induced I had finally hit my pre-pregnancy weight and my daughter had stopped growing properly. I lost all the weight immediately because the only weight I had gained was my daughter. I had HG the entire pregnancy and have only started being able to eat some meals without nausea in the last month or two; my daughter is almost 4 yo. I finally hit 150 lb and am so excited because I'm above my target weight which means now I can focus on actually maintaining my weight instead of trying to gain more like I have the last few years.
this comment. I was diagnosed with a thyroid disease which basically ramped up my metabolism to a high level, constantly. I did not have energy because my reserves were burned up and my body churned through whatever I would eat. Weight loss is not always a good thing, rapid weight loss is often unhealthy. It didn't really bother me too much, but maybe we should refrain from commenting on people's weights and trying to police their eating when they don't fit our perception of what is "good" or "healthy"
This article is right on. All my life my weight has fluctuated and the difference in how I was treated is horrific. No, that is not too strong a word. HORRIFIC.
It truly is utterly terrifying how badly others treat you because you weigh more than them. It’s dehumanising. Reduces you down to ‘a lazy thing who’s too stupid to lose weight’. And it’s socially acceptable to do so.
Dehumanizing is a very good word for it and the weirdest part is that the reverse is also true. When I got extremely skinny due to genetic disease that was in a flare up, people started policing what I ate and how much, what I wore, and even making nasty comments and spreading rumors that I was bulimic. It’s crazy how society treats people who don’t fit into their standard of beauty or ‘normality.’
Rightly or wrongly, being outside of social norms for appearance will result in different treatment. Depending on the way that someone differs, their appearance can convey (not necessarily accurately) lack of self care, self respect and/or discipline, mental health issues, physical health issues, social attitudes and so on. In the same way that someone with unkempt clothes and hair would be treated differently from someone in a suit, and a goth would be treated differently from a uniformed officer, society is programmed to treat people according to appearances, and most regard that people have at least some control over their appearance. If they (sometimes erroneously) regard that an individual is not taking steps to present themselves well, they will be prone to different treatment. It is rubbish but factual
I recently gained a lot of weight and changed jobs and I'm blown away by how differently I get treated. The unsolicited dieting advice is humiliating.
I’m with you mate. I’m fat and visibly disabled so I’ve got tired of the ‘just try X diet it’ll fix you!’ Stuff. I just fix them with a cold glare and a ‘my weight or disability is absolutely none of your business’
Me too. I have Fibromyalgia and ME/CFS, loads of food intolerances and aversions; my weight has increased due to my mobility getting steadily worse.
Unsolicited food advice is just annoying. My mom has a severe chronic illness and has been underweight most of my life. Everyone would keep telling her to try a variety of duets that will "heal" her or "help her feel better." No, she has a chronic illness that will eventually take her life because there is no cure. I'm just happy if she eats at all. Stop giving unsolicited advice to people.
Once i heard about someone congratulating another one about their weight loss, and asking about their secret, and the other one answering 'cancer', so damn i'm not going to say nothing about your weight before you talk about your miracle diet.
Exactly right. You don't know what people go through.
I think that’s key - if someone worked hard and wants those kind of compliments, let them lead you into it. I just lost a lot of weight due to Chron’s disease. My.friends noticed I basically stopped eating due to my symptoms and knew my weight loss wasn’t a happy thing. People could tell by my general demeanor I wasn’t losing weight healthfully.
People would ask me how I was so thin after I had my daughter. The truth was that the week I was induced I had finally hit my pre-pregnancy weight and my daughter had stopped growing properly. I lost all the weight immediately because the only weight I had gained was my daughter. I had HG the entire pregnancy and have only started being able to eat some meals without nausea in the last month or two; my daughter is almost 4 yo. I finally hit 150 lb and am so excited because I'm above my target weight which means now I can focus on actually maintaining my weight instead of trying to gain more like I have the last few years.
this comment. I was diagnosed with a thyroid disease which basically ramped up my metabolism to a high level, constantly. I did not have energy because my reserves were burned up and my body churned through whatever I would eat. Weight loss is not always a good thing, rapid weight loss is often unhealthy. It didn't really bother me too much, but maybe we should refrain from commenting on people's weights and trying to police their eating when they don't fit our perception of what is "good" or "healthy"
This article is right on. All my life my weight has fluctuated and the difference in how I was treated is horrific. No, that is not too strong a word. HORRIFIC.
It truly is utterly terrifying how badly others treat you because you weigh more than them. It’s dehumanising. Reduces you down to ‘a lazy thing who’s too stupid to lose weight’. And it’s socially acceptable to do so.
Dehumanizing is a very good word for it and the weirdest part is that the reverse is also true. When I got extremely skinny due to genetic disease that was in a flare up, people started policing what I ate and how much, what I wore, and even making nasty comments and spreading rumors that I was bulimic. It’s crazy how society treats people who don’t fit into their standard of beauty or ‘normality.’
Rightly or wrongly, being outside of social norms for appearance will result in different treatment. Depending on the way that someone differs, their appearance can convey (not necessarily accurately) lack of self care, self respect and/or discipline, mental health issues, physical health issues, social attitudes and so on. In the same way that someone with unkempt clothes and hair would be treated differently from someone in a suit, and a goth would be treated differently from a uniformed officer, society is programmed to treat people according to appearances, and most regard that people have at least some control over their appearance. If they (sometimes erroneously) regard that an individual is not taking steps to present themselves well, they will be prone to different treatment. It is rubbish but factual
I recently gained a lot of weight and changed jobs and I'm blown away by how differently I get treated. The unsolicited dieting advice is humiliating.
I’m with you mate. I’m fat and visibly disabled so I’ve got tired of the ‘just try X diet it’ll fix you!’ Stuff. I just fix them with a cold glare and a ‘my weight or disability is absolutely none of your business’
Me too. I have Fibromyalgia and ME/CFS, loads of food intolerances and aversions; my weight has increased due to my mobility getting steadily worse.
Unsolicited food advice is just annoying. My mom has a severe chronic illness and has been underweight most of my life. Everyone would keep telling her to try a variety of duets that will "heal" her or "help her feel better." No, she has a chronic illness that will eventually take her life because there is no cure. I'm just happy if she eats at all. Stop giving unsolicited advice to people.