obese girl confessions

Obesity and Its Challenges

Obesity is a problem that I’ve been dealing with for a long time. Because of my self-perception, I have perceived myself as a human stuck in a body that is not average in size over the years. Obesity carries with it a range of challenges, which I have firsthand experience with. Obesity is associated with a slew of difficulties that make life difficult.

The Influence of Lifestyle on Obesity

I became obese as a result of the lifestyle I was used to as a child. The lifestyle was based on the types of food that is used to eat on a frequent basis. As a child, I used to eat a lot of fast foods, and that is fries and burgers. I had no idea regarding the effects that they were having on my body as I was not concerned about the changes that were happening to my body such as the increase in size. I always thought that it was normal and that the increase in body size was a biological process because I was growing up. I used to think superficially when it comes to the concept of growing up. Now I have known that fast foods have a connection with the increase in body fat which leads to obesity which has also been noted by Poti, Duffey, and Popkin (2014) who have indicated that most people are not aware of the link between fast food and obesity.

Shopping Challenges for Obese Individuals

As an obese girl, I have struggled when it comes to shopping for clothes. Having a big body is disadvantageous because there is a limitation to the types of clothes that one has to wear (Hutch et al., 2015). I often take a long time while shopping just to find clothes that can fit me well and also will not give me a hard time when walking. Such clothes are not easier to find bearing in mind that in the United States most of the girls do not have big bodies and thus there is a limited supply of clothes that favor obese girls in the supermarkets and within the cloth stores. Also, in some cases, I often want to dress in a fashionable manner which is hard because most of the available clothes for obese girls are not always fashionable as no one seems to be taking into consideration fashion needs of girls who are obese.

The Impact on Participating in Activities

In school, it is hard for me to join most of the activities that are girl friendly such as being part of the cheerleading team. I have always wished to be a part of the cheerleading team because of the fun that they have and how they have to represent the school at various events which I consider as being a noble act that can be offered by students. Being obese is associated with a big body that makes it hard to move fast as noted by Laurson, Lee, Gentile, Walsh, and Eisenmann (2014) which I have also experienced first hand as I find it hard to be involved in most of the physical activities such as running. Being a part of the cheerleading team requires one to be in a position to undertake various activities that are physical in nature such as running and jumping. Thus, obesity has deprived me of the opportunity to be part of the cheerleading team which often makes me sad whenever I think about the amount of fun that I could be having.

Social Stigma and Its Impact

Having a good social life is difficult when it comes to people who are obese due to how they are viewed by people regarding how ’fat’ they are because within the social dimension, people are often judged based on how they look (McCrindle, 2015). Being obese has made it hard for me to go out with friends due to the looks that people often give me. There is this one time that I went out for ice-cream with my friends, people who were there looked at me strangely, and I figured out that they were wondering how an obese girl still has the guts to have ice-cream instead of eating foods that reduce body fat. That day I felt hurt, and this is because I could not go out and have fun with my friends without people giving me looks that disapprove my actions despite the fact that the same actions make me feel good as they are part of my leisure activities.

Conclusion

This confession has covered the daily struggles that I face in life as an obese girl. The struggles have denied me most opportunities in life that have the potential of making me happier as compared to how I feel currently. The struggles affect both my personal life and the life that I share with others such as with my friends. Therefore, in conclusion, being obese is linked to various struggles in life that make life hard.

References

Hutch, A., He, M., Costello, C., Reilly, A. M., Lean, M. E. J., Leslie, W. S., & Hankey, C. R. (2015). The stigmata of obesity: thoughts and attitudes of adolescent school children. Proceedings of the Nutrition Society, 74(OCE1), E17.
Laurson, K. R., Lee, J. A., Gentile, D. A., Walsh, D. A., & Eisenmann, J. C. (2014). Concurrent associations between physical activity, screen time, and sleep duration with childhood obesity. ISRN obesity, 2014.
McCrindle, B. W. (2015). Cardiovascular consequences of childhood obesity. Canadian Journal of Cardiology, 31(2), 124-130.
Poti, J. M., Duffey, K. J., & Popkin, B. M. (2014). The association of fast food consumption with poor dietary outcomes and obesity among children: is it the fast food or the remainder of the diet?. The American journal of clinical nutrition, 99(1), 162-171.

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