Body-ody-ody

 

"Boy, looka you looking like (insert family member here.)"

Then to go on and say "When I saw (insert family member here) they were waddling around and you got out the truck looking just like her."

Mind you, we look NOTHING alike.
Mind you, the last time this family member saw me I was still a teenager and not an almost 40 year old woman.
Mind you, I hadn't had a child nor a chronic illness that causes my weight to balloon up and down at will.
Mind you, it took everything in me not to go off on them.

So, for them to continue to reference how I look so much like this person has to be because I'm slightly thicker than I was when they saw me last.

When it comes to my weight, I don't like the jokes, the comparisons, the teasing or anything of the sort.

Especially when I'm working my behind off to get to where I wanna be!

I've struggled with eating disorders and body image issues pretty much my entire life.

I battled bulimia for years.
I would eat everything in sight only to throw it up a few minutes later for fear I'd gain weight. Then I'd get hungry a short time later and end up doing it all over again.

I battled body dysmorphia.
Seeing a huge fat blob of a person everytime I looked in the mirror while everyone said I was fine was an almost every day occurrence.
I would exercise for hours on end and still feel like that wasn't enough.

I hated (and most times still do) eating around people because I felt like I'm being silently criticized and judged.

I made it up in my mind this year I was going to make a conscious effort to focus on getting back to me.

Mind. Body. And soul.

And I've been taking the steps to do that.

I know with fibromyalgia it affects my metabolism and weight and I'm in pain most of the time, but I was determined to push through allathat and still be active.

And I've been doing that.
And I've been seeing slight progress.

So when people hit me with THAT kind of negativity, I get triggered.

The last thing I need is to be sent back to that dark place when I'm doing well.

You don't know what kind of battles people are facing when it comes to their body so if it isn't something encouraging or uplifting, just keep it to yourself.

If you don't know what to say, just shut up.
It's not that hard.

Then again for some... I suppose it is.