“Recently, I had to ask someone to stop commenting about my body...
Thank goodness they were very lovely and understanding when I explained my history of disordered eating because I am so used to hostile responses.
“Why can’t you just take a compliment?”
“Why do you make everything about your eating disorder?”
Personally, talking about my body and it’s shape makes me feel uncomfortable. Don’t get me wrong, I love my body and have gained so much self confidence in recovery, but what makes me more uncomfortable is when someone asks, “Sara, how did you get your body the way it is?” Sometimes I just want to say, “Well, first you have to develop an eating disorder, and then recover, and then relapse, and then blah blah blah...” but instead I just internally scream. I promise, I’m working on my patience and trying to remember that most people are fooled by diet culture and society’s desire for smaller bodies.
One thing that has helped me greatly during recovery is learning to not make assumptions about others bodies. I don’t like it when assumptions are made about my body, so why would I want to make them about someone else. For those who are in recovery and even those who are not, it’s so easy to compare yourself to others like, “why can’t I have abs like that?”, “I wish I could be naturally thin,” “they must be able to eat whatever they want.” Remember, you do not know someone’s health, diet, fitness routine, stress, personality, hygiene, or anything else based on their body.
Hold yourself accountable and note when you’re comparing yourself to others or making harsh judgements on someone you don’t even know. Don’t be blinded by the “perfect” posts you see on social media, you have no idea what someone is actually going through. “
Sara Fallini
@saracatfallini on instagram