“society has become a blindfold to the weight loss journey people embark on”
Society has formed a construct — thin waist, wide hips, big breasts, six-packs. Your weight is monitored; you must have a certain type of body. Society has become a blindfold to the weight loss journey people embark on. Bodies are constantly threatened by this construct — particularly the female body.
Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder characterized by self-starvation due to an irrational fear of gaining weight. People become lost and frail about their body image and most times end up killing themselves.
The images I have created depict the blindness of women to losing excessive weight. I’ve read and heard stories of women who are told they are not fit to do certain things because of their weight; “you’re too fat”. I’ve read about people who died from anorexia, silly diets, and weight loss pills.
People should do better. It is because you body-shame that women learn to hate themselves. It is because you body shame, playfully or in a serious manner, that girls begin to look for easy ways to shed the excess calories. When you say you can’t stand plus sized women, you indirectly kill their spirits.
I do not condemn weight loss, lose weight because you want to, and not because a person hates your body. Lose weight because you feel it’s right and not because society tells you to have a certain weight size. Lose weight via healthy means — no pills, no silly diets, and most importantly, starvation is not an option.
The photos give people an idea of how standards cause this illness. How the need for one to be “slim” causes one to act drastically, especially on women. I must admit that these photos reflect how I feel anytime someone (my parents, friends, and even random strangers) comment harshly on my weight. It feels degrading, awful. With these images, I want people, especially women and girls, to know that they can lose weight at their own pace and in a healthy way. Not because society requires them to do so, but because they want to.
I hope people realize that when they tell a fat person that they are fat, they aren’t helping.
Disclaimer
All rights reserved. The images herein are private properties of the owner, Funmilayo Obasa. They may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, or redistributed.
