A Rant

Today there is a medical journal coming out where a writer suggests that children who are obese should be taken away from their parents and sent somewhere to help them loose weight. I saw this very brief news story about this last night. I am so saddened by this story. First off let me say if this were ever a law, I would fight it, as I think it would do more harm than good. Second let there be no doubt, I am a BIG girl and I ALWAYS have been. That means I would have been taken away from my mother who was "abusing" me by letting me get fat, even though I have three very skinny siblings. We all ate the same things, we all ran around outside for hours everyday. My body just handles food differently. I can assure you this would have done me a great deal of harm as I was a sensitive child who absolutely hated being away from my mother.

I just feel this is wrong on so many levels. Like I said it would be damaging to kids. Second, I think it would fuel more insecurity in our already, over sexed, be thin, be sexy culture. It is already really clear that we live in a culture where being fat makes you disgusting, no one will ever love you, Doctors will tell you all the ways you are killing yourself and eating an icecream on the board walk will get you dirty looks. People on popular reality TV shows will call you things like a grenade. I have spent a decent number of years trying to build up confidence in girls. Girls who hate their faces, their bodies and sometimes cross the line and hurt themselves. This is damaging to them as well.

What about the pressure on the parents? When I was young my mother was concerned about me and she asked our pediatrician what to do. He said nothing, because there was so much going on in my life he was concerned that if she tried to intervene I would end up with life long eating issues. I think he was very wise. I think it would cause some parents to starve their kids out of fear.

It's just bad all around and sometimes I wish someone would come off their I am skinny you are fat high horse like we are in third grade and talk to me. I am a human whose body does not process food well. I do not regularly over eat. I exercise every day. Yet here I sit still large.

Today I am grateful that this isn't a law and probably will not see the light of day.
May you be blessed by loving yourself exactly how you are.