Comments for fatshionista.com

Comment on Your Playstation Made You Fat, and other reductive narratives: Our problem with public health by Lesley

Fri, 10 Sep 2010 12:42:57 +0000

@unscrambled — If ever you want to guest post on your experiences, I’d love to publish it here. Feel free to email me (lesley at fatshionista) if you’re interested. :)

Comment on Your Playstation Made You Fat, and other reductive narratives: Our problem with public health by unscrambled

Fri, 10 Sep 2010 11:12:05 +0000

@ Lesley: me too. I’m actually trying to plan a body acceptance part of the curriculum–I’ve framed it in terms of “talking about eating and feeding” and ED, but I am going to sneak in the HAES in the back door. There is NOTHING in our curriculum about it, which is wild (and unsurprising), and is the reason why there are so many horror stories–the culture of medicine is fatphobic, so no one challenges themselves to think any other way.

I will report….somewhere!

Comment on Your Playstation Made You Fat, and other reductive narratives: Our problem with public health by Veronica

Fri, 10 Sep 2010 06:59:24 +0000

Really good post! The distinction you make is such an important one, yet still subtle enough for people to ignore/forget/be blind to.

Comment on Your Playstation Made You Fat, and other reductive narratives: Our problem with public health by P G

Fri, 10 Sep 2010 03:17:16 +0000

That chart has done nothing but piss me off and inspire me to DDR as soon as I make this comment. I hate video game hate. It’s always so selective and uninformed — just like fat hate, now that I think on it.

Comment on Your Playstation Made You Fat, and other reductive narratives: Our problem with public health by mmm

Fri, 10 Sep 2010 00:30:50 +0000

I have been becoming more active lately and practicing HAES, and I have been astounded at the body hate talk that goes on by the women in the locker room at the Y. Today after an aquakickboxing class (which was so much fun, I can’t even tell you), I complimented this woman (who happened to be thin) on how hard she worked in the class, and she responded with a grunt, saying, “I need to work hard.” Ugh. Then there are the women who feel as though it is their PRIMARY MISSION IN LIFE to help you GET THIN. Last Saturday, I was sitting in the hot tub after a class, and a woman came in who had been swimming laps. She and I got to talking, and soon she started preaching to me how she had gotten on some Metabowhasis liquid fast diet and how she had lost 60 pounds and that I COULD TOO because it was so easy. I seriously changed the subject four times, and she kept going back to the Metabocrap. I then excused myself from the hot tub and she FOLLOWED ME and kept talking about it. I seriously had to WALK AWAY from her and she KEPT TALKING about how it could help me. She was almost SHOUTING after me. I couldn’t believe it.

One thing that you, Lesley, and others in the fat-o-sphere have addressed is how our bodies become part of the public discourse (and public scorn) because we are fat. As if somehow our fatness will rub off on others and people will “catch” it. I feel so sad for these fat children because of the screwed-up grown-ups who will make them obsess about food and calories instead of enjoying it.

Comment on Outfitblog. by Lesley

Fri, 10 Sep 2010 00:24:09 +0000

@KX — Yes. They’re not mine, but my husband’s, though.

Comment on Outfitblog. by KX

Fri, 10 Sep 2010 00:06:51 +0000

Are those Karmans from AT-43 on your shelf???

Comment on Your Playstation Made You Fat, and other reductive narratives: Our problem with public health by Lesley

Thu, 09 Sep 2010 23:41:31 +0000

@Tschussle — Thanks for this, it’s totally fascinating. You’re not in the Boston area, are you? I would seriously buy you a coffee and ask you a million questions on this subject.

@unscrambled — I have heard these med school tales before. They make me really sad. Actually they make me want to go teach basic body respect seminars in medical schools nationwide.

Sorry about the Pogo Ball jingle. Well, no, I’m not sorry. If I have to suffer I’m bringing as many of y’all with me as possible. ;)

Comment on Your Playstation Made You Fat, and other reductive narratives: Our problem with public health by Sefi

Thu, 09 Sep 2010 23:09:52 +0000

My Playstation made me fat? I was so caught up in games I forgot to eat and sleep. I would sit and play rpgs for hours at a time, it was great. :)

Being poor, weight shame, and dieting made me fat. If you live in a situation where you almost never have food, you tend to eat as much as you can when you do have it. It creates fear that the food may not be there later.

Comment on Your Playstation Made You Fat, and other reductive narratives: Our problem with public health by unscrambled

Thu, 09 Sep 2010 22:52:27 +0000

1. Thanks for getting the “pogo ball” jingle in my head. Blech. Why do I know it? Hard to say.

2. As a poster mentioned above, there is MEGA money at work here. Robert Wood Johnson most notably, but many other funders that used to fund progressive causes have thrown their hats in the end-fat-kids campaign. It is a matter of well intentioned, poorly aimed + you know, fat hate, which is deeply intertwined with hatred/condescension of/about poor people.

3. I’m in med school, and the overwhelming disgust at fat folks by my fellow students is amazing–it is mostly about their own hatred of their own bodies. As an example: I was sitting in the lecture hall a few days ago trying to shut my ears like an otter while a very thin student was talking to my very thin friend that she “shouldn’t” eat cake because “the fat will go right to my face.” My friend did her best within her limited vocabulary of body acceptance and her unwillingness to rock the boat while I just growled. Something like this happens around me about once a day. Fat hate is so deep in the culture of medicine and public health that I feel overwhelmed with how to face it. Slowly, I guess.

In conclusion: thank you!