By Kate Grey
WHETHER you are tall, short, thin, curvy, muscular, black, brown, or white, you are blessed with one body that God personally moulded to make a unique and beautiful you. I have decided to focus on a topic that is a bit close to home for me and that is body shaming.

Being a full figured young woman myself, it is not that easy but when compared to the last 10-15 years there has been a lot of improvements. There has also been some improvement in the fashion industry to include clothing sizes for bodies that are thin to full-figured. But with people becoming more aware of their bodies and the movement of body positivity, there is also an upsurge of body shaming. Social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or Snapchat have become the perfect breeding ground for persons to give their unsolicited opinions on your body.

It is not just directed at full-figured women or men but persons who are very naturally thin are termed as anorexic among other names. The effects this disgusting habit has on an individual is almost irreversible (depending on the person). Some persons use the disguise of telling it like it is or helpful criticisms, but at the end of the day a spade is a spade and body shaming is body shaming.

Now sometimes these thoughtless comments might be coming from a good place and are not meant to intentionally hurt, but still you can’t help but feel the sting when you hear someone say, “you’re eating out everyone’s’ food” or “a strong gush of wind would knock you down any minute”. There is no such thing as a perfect body; women and men come in all shapes and size, it’s called diversity and the world would be boring without it.

Unfortunately, I have noticed that a lot of body shaming comments are directed at women, but an even more disturbing thought is these comments are coming from women more than men. I feel that as women we have a lot of odds already against us and we should be building each other up and, it just sickens me to see women tear each other down.
Whatever the intention for the habit of mentioning or mocking someone because of their body shape or size, and especially doing so on a public platform is not healthy for that person. In fact, it is downright destructive. This is not tough love or helpful advice as some would like to call it.

Instead, much harm can come from telling people these things. People can act out and end up suffering from self-mutilation, eating disorders, suicidal ideation, self-hate, and depression. It shatters a person’s self-confidence and self-worth; these individuals no longer feel like they have a reason to walk with their heads held high. This is especially dangerous for younger age groups. Going through adolescent years is already difficult with the constant change your body is undergoing, but to add society’s unrealistic view of the perfect body is just wrong.

Guyana may not be on the same level as some countries when it comes to this issue, and most of the plus-sized women and men are a bit more comfortable in their skin than some people in the more developed countries but the trend of body shaming is starting to pick up here.
I have an aunt that I keep at a distance due to some of the comments she would make. The first thing she would mention when I enter her gate is “Kate you have gained weight?” or “You need to cut down on the sweet” among other things, and this is something she says while sitting or standing on her steps. Because my parents always told me to respect my elders, I would just plaster a smile on my face, however, should she develop the ability to read my mind or if I decide to go against my parents’ teaching and respond to these comments, I would happily tell her that I own both a mirror and a scale and am aware of how my weight fluctuates so her opinions are not needed since I am active and try to eat healthily.

Over the years, I have developed a habit of loving my body, after years of being the object of body shaming from fellow students and from teachers. Little children can be tough on each other, but try picturing a teacher, someone who is supposed to mould minds and nurture children, completely destroy a female teenage student’s self-confidence by calling her names and pointing out her faults in front of her peers. This unprovoked attack was something I had to endure from a teacher at the tender age of 13 years old.
Some may argue that we are getting to a stage where people are getting soft and everyone should develop a tough skin to deal with the real world, but as the saying goes: it’s not what you say but how you say it.

Promote body positivity; be aware that someone’s body size or goals may not necessarily be yours. If you have an issue with how someone looks, keep quiet or simply look away. If you’re on someone’s social media page and you have an issue with the way they dress or look then find another page. Please do not use your right to free speech to humiliate, alienate or embarrasses someone.

The important thing that I hope people take away from reading this article is to love your body, since it is the only one you have, take care of yourself. Try to keep as much distance as possible from people who belittle you or constantly put you down. Know that what that person says is not the standard to live by. Surround yourself with positive and like-minded individuals and start living for yourself.