I think the reason the ozempic of it all is fucking with me is because I am fat and I don’t want to take any meds. I also saw a bad experience with it from my college roommate’s husband-lost 20 pounds, plateaued, spent hours a day in the bathroom with GI issues and decided it wasn’t worth it, gained back half the weight. I hate that I still have the thought of Oh they DO look so great but I remind myself that thinking thin people are beautiful is very ingrained in my nearly 37 years on this earth. I try to follow more fat content creators to cleanse my brain of images of only thin, beautiful people but now the fat influencers are losing weight too.
I keep coming back to- I wasn’t happy when I was thin at the height of my ED so why would I be happy on meds for the rest of my life- just to maintain a body size that is perceived as beautiful by people I don’t even know? But there is a projecting issue too of ok if every fat person is taking these now, should I too? It’s all a mindfuck.
This hits so much of what I want to talk about and also don't want to talk about, but this part in particular: it's not the weight fluctuation itself (which is human, and normal, and will happen to most people throughout their lives for any number of reasons -- with or without intentionality or medication), but *how* people talk about and frame it. i'm still processing a lot of this -- especially after these past couple of weeks.
I’m trained up enough in body neutrality that if I talk to someone who’s starting to or has lost a lot of weight, I don’t acknowledge it. If the person also knows body neutrality, they usually don’t say anything either. It feels weird, like the elephant in the room is standing over us, casting a shadow on the convo. This seems to be even more so for people using semaglutides bc there’s shame wrapped up in the “easy way out.” I’m 52yo and will never NOT be on a journey where I try to quell the diet culture thoughts, and with that my brain whispers — wouldn’t someone want to shout from the rooftops if they took the “easy way out” and it was working as intended? It’s such a trip! So imagine my surprise and, yes, horror when I saw an old friend recently who has lost a lot of weight on Ozempic and was raring to dish about it. She took it originally to legit manage her diabetes then lost so much weight that she is fitting into sizes she wore in high school. I was committed to saying nothing during our catchup convo and then all of a sudden she pops out with, “oh, and if you’re wondering,” *gestures to length of body* “this is because of taking Ozempic!” I wanted so badly to snark, “I actually wasn’t wondering but thanks for telling me?” But the truth is I WAS wondering and I was glad she was so plain about it so I didn’t have to continue wondering. Whether I was happy for her and/or jealous of her is a wholllllle other topic. This easy way out is a mind bender for everyone involved, and I truly never saw that coming.
The inclusive influencer turned weight watcher exec also really threw me this week. So so appreciate your sane writing through all the gesturing and noise!!!
I really appreciate this…and hearing your processing out loud helps me also process! Also laughed hard at “but I’m also so thirsty for gossip that I find myself lying flat in bed with the shades drawn watching a 10 minute abstract takedown while muttering “say it with your fucking chest.”” - your smart humor always a delight here! I’m an illustrator by profession and right now there’s an interesting parallel weirdness going on–which I haven’t wrapped my brain around–between the current AI & Semaglutides frenzy. Maybe it’s the “now we can profit off you and ERASE you all in one” feeling of it all. For both, my mantra has been…just wait 5 years. In 5 years (likely less), 95% of this will fail on many levels that we can’t see in this moment if it follows the path of its past iterations…which is also why it’s feeling like an absolute feeding frenzy right now. “But, maybe this time will be different…”-the words of every new weight loss craze in history chimes in. It’s going to be a rough 5 years. I’ll be standing behind the fat folx and the artists pushing back, cheering on; “Say it with your fucking chest”
So far, I think for me, the possible side effects of ozempic and weight loss drugs don't outweigh my desire to be smaller. Part of my brain struggles with this, as I've been indoctrinated to believe my life will be better and easier if I'm not fat. Some things would be better and easier, potentially. Id definitely be treated better by society at large! I also don't want to take it forever and gain back any weight lost. You know it can potentially paralyse your stomach, right. That does not sound fun! 🤣🫠
My law school friend had gastric sleeve surgery and though she is still kid free for now, the talk of potential nutritional deficiencies for future pregnancies also scared her. I know she started to feel she had no choice because she was having health issues at a relatively young age that led to hospitalization(35). But following along with her weight loss journey and seeing how much she still focuses on “will power” and the morality of food is tough to see. I firmly believe every person has bodily autonomy and choosing to be smaller makes acceptance by society easier but it doesn’t repair any of the trauma of the years of being fat and causing more health complications is of course bad too!
Semaglutides are tricky to get in Australia so I haven't seen much of it in real life but it's still around. I suspect someone quite close to me is on it and I haven't said anything and they haven't said anything but I can tell they want me to. I just have a blanket rule not to talk about anyones bodies and TBH my girlfriends and I almost never do compared to 20 years ago when that's all we did. It's all in the comments. If stop saying people look good thin, the obsession goes away. I stopped weighing myself 5 years ago, my body is the same (clothes fit the same) and I'm 1000% freer than I've been in my life. Recommend.
And I'm just pissed because I lost 20% of my body weight (cue John Houseman) the old fashioned way: I used the Noom app on my damn phone and I EARNED IT. And it wasn't fast, and it wasn't effortless, and nobody thinks I bought it with meds.
I think the reason the ozempic of it all is fucking with me is because I am fat and I don’t want to take any meds. I also saw a bad experience with it from my college roommate’s husband-lost 20 pounds, plateaued, spent hours a day in the bathroom with GI issues and decided it wasn’t worth it, gained back half the weight. I hate that I still have the thought of Oh they DO look so great but I remind myself that thinking thin people are beautiful is very ingrained in my nearly 37 years on this earth. I try to follow more fat content creators to cleanse my brain of images of only thin, beautiful people but now the fat influencers are losing weight too.
I keep coming back to- I wasn’t happy when I was thin at the height of my ED so why would I be happy on meds for the rest of my life- just to maintain a body size that is perceived as beautiful by people I don’t even know? But there is a projecting issue too of ok if every fat person is taking these now, should I too? It’s all a mindfuck.
This hits so much of what I want to talk about and also don't want to talk about, but this part in particular: it's not the weight fluctuation itself (which is human, and normal, and will happen to most people throughout their lives for any number of reasons -- with or without intentionality or medication), but *how* people talk about and frame it. i'm still processing a lot of this -- especially after these past couple of weeks.
It’s the how! And the “why” of the message vs wondering why someone lost weight. It’s a lotttt
I think I just want the noise to end. Ironic I know since ozem is supposed to "quiet" all that noise.
I’m trained up enough in body neutrality that if I talk to someone who’s starting to or has lost a lot of weight, I don’t acknowledge it. If the person also knows body neutrality, they usually don’t say anything either. It feels weird, like the elephant in the room is standing over us, casting a shadow on the convo. This seems to be even more so for people using semaglutides bc there’s shame wrapped up in the “easy way out.” I’m 52yo and will never NOT be on a journey where I try to quell the diet culture thoughts, and with that my brain whispers — wouldn’t someone want to shout from the rooftops if they took the “easy way out” and it was working as intended? It’s such a trip! So imagine my surprise and, yes, horror when I saw an old friend recently who has lost a lot of weight on Ozempic and was raring to dish about it. She took it originally to legit manage her diabetes then lost so much weight that she is fitting into sizes she wore in high school. I was committed to saying nothing during our catchup convo and then all of a sudden she pops out with, “oh, and if you’re wondering,” *gestures to length of body* “this is because of taking Ozempic!” I wanted so badly to snark, “I actually wasn’t wondering but thanks for telling me?” But the truth is I WAS wondering and I was glad she was so plain about it so I didn’t have to continue wondering. Whether I was happy for her and/or jealous of her is a wholllllle other topic. This easy way out is a mind bender for everyone involved, and I truly never saw that coming.
The inclusive influencer turned weight watcher exec also really threw me this week. So so appreciate your sane writing through all the gesturing and noise!!!
I really appreciate this…and hearing your processing out loud helps me also process! Also laughed hard at “but I’m also so thirsty for gossip that I find myself lying flat in bed with the shades drawn watching a 10 minute abstract takedown while muttering “say it with your fucking chest.”” - your smart humor always a delight here! I’m an illustrator by profession and right now there’s an interesting parallel weirdness going on–which I haven’t wrapped my brain around–between the current AI & Semaglutides frenzy. Maybe it’s the “now we can profit off you and ERASE you all in one” feeling of it all. For both, my mantra has been…just wait 5 years. In 5 years (likely less), 95% of this will fail on many levels that we can’t see in this moment if it follows the path of its past iterations…which is also why it’s feeling like an absolute feeding frenzy right now. “But, maybe this time will be different…”-the words of every new weight loss craze in history chimes in. It’s going to be a rough 5 years. I’ll be standing behind the fat folx and the artists pushing back, cheering on; “Say it with your fucking chest”
So far, I think for me, the possible side effects of ozempic and weight loss drugs don't outweigh my desire to be smaller. Part of my brain struggles with this, as I've been indoctrinated to believe my life will be better and easier if I'm not fat. Some things would be better and easier, potentially. Id definitely be treated better by society at large! I also don't want to take it forever and gain back any weight lost. You know it can potentially paralyse your stomach, right. That does not sound fun! 🤣🫠
My law school friend had gastric sleeve surgery and though she is still kid free for now, the talk of potential nutritional deficiencies for future pregnancies also scared her. I know she started to feel she had no choice because she was having health issues at a relatively young age that led to hospitalization(35). But following along with her weight loss journey and seeing how much she still focuses on “will power” and the morality of food is tough to see. I firmly believe every person has bodily autonomy and choosing to be smaller makes acceptance by society easier but it doesn’t repair any of the trauma of the years of being fat and causing more health complications is of course bad too!
Semaglutides are tricky to get in Australia so I haven't seen much of it in real life but it's still around. I suspect someone quite close to me is on it and I haven't said anything and they haven't said anything but I can tell they want me to. I just have a blanket rule not to talk about anyones bodies and TBH my girlfriends and I almost never do compared to 20 years ago when that's all we did. It's all in the comments. If stop saying people look good thin, the obsession goes away. I stopped weighing myself 5 years ago, my body is the same (clothes fit the same) and I'm 1000% freer than I've been in my life. Recommend.
And I'm just pissed because I lost 20% of my body weight (cue John Houseman) the old fashioned way: I used the Noom app on my damn phone and I EARNED IT. And it wasn't fast, and it wasn't effortless, and nobody thinks I bought it with meds.
Relatable diva