Aunty Sprout: Hate The Weight
Hi Aunty Sprout,
This may seem shallow but it's affecting me deeply. I know most girls say they hate their bodies or the way they look, but me? I really do. I wake up in the morning and think 'Oh God, I have to haul this around again for yet another day' or I look in the mirror and feel physically sick.
I'm fat. Yes, I seriously am and am not just saying it like the other skinny girls out in the world. I'm nearly 15 stone and I am pretty short - which makes me look fat. I hate my body and the way I look. Every time I try to do something it fails.
What I'm saying is, how can I overcome this hatred for myself and my life? It's making everything just so difficult.
Well Sprouters it’s over to you� if you have any advice to offer, please leave your comments below.
Or if you have a problem/question that you would like some advice on, why not share it with theSprout community? TheSprout has teamed up with Meic (the national helpline for young people), so they'll be offering their advice too.
So if you have a question that you'd like to ask, just submit it like you would an article via the submit news section with my name (Aunty Sprout) in the title or simply leave a comment on my homepage. Your entry will be anonymous, as I’ll change the name on it. Also remember to have a look at the info section.
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Organisations � Meic
Info � Health � Nutrition and Physical Activity � Nutrition
3 Comments – Post a comment
JazzHands
Commented 53 months ago - 28th December 2011 - 11:23am
From what I can see, there are two options...
1. Do something about your self-esteem
2. Do something about your physique
I'm not sure how to help with #1 except to say stop beating yourself up but I think I can help with #2. You say that every time you try to do something it fails. I think this is because you're doing stuff you don't enjoy. What you need to do is do what you love doing but work some extra physical activity into it.
I mean I love playing squash but can't always find a partner but I also love watching DVD box sets. So now when I can't play squash, I do step aerobics while watching my favourite shows and I can't watch more than one episode without doing more exercise.
Maybe if you enjoy reading, read a chapter at a time while on an exercise bike?
I dunno but get those endorphins flowing and mix in things you enjoy doing with your exercise.
Hope this helps!
Meic
Commented 53 months ago - 29th December 2011 - 13:41pm
Hi, thanks for sharing what’s going on for you at the moment. It sounds like the way you feel about your body is really getting you down, and really having an impact on the way you see yourself and your whole life. It’s good that you’ve got in touch with Aunty Sprout to look at getting some support with this as I can hear how much this is affecting you.
You say that you feel fat and it sounds like you have tried different things in the past but you feel like they’ve failed. It might help to remember that there are healthy people of all different shapes and sizes and being healthy matters more than what your scales say. If you are worried, you might want to go have a chat with your GP if you haven’t already. They can give you advice on the changes you could make to help you to lose weight in a healthy way, including diet and exercise.
As JazzHands has said, sometimes it can be about finding out what works for you, and what you enjoy doing. However, it can be really difficult to make positive changes if you’re not feeling positive about yourself. It sounds like your self-esteem is really low at the moment and this is making it difficult for you to feel positive about yourself, your body and your life.
You might want to have a look at 'Give yourself a chance' which is a website put together by Girlguiding UK about ways to improve your body image (you don't have to be a Guide to access it).
http://www.girlguiding.org.uk/gyac/gyac.html
It's got tips from other girls in similar situations and from celebrities on how you can learn to love your body and feel more positive about it.
Other things you might want to think about could be:
*Taking time to do nice things for your body - this could be treating yourself to a nice long bath with a face mask, painting your nails, having a girly pampering session with a friend, or whatever takes your fancy.
*Trying something new - get a fab new haircut, join a new club and make some new friends, try a new sport or hobby. Perhaps something like dancing or yoga will help you to feel more comfortable in your body and show you all the amazing things that it can do.
*Keeping focused on the positive - make a list of all the things you like about yourself and put it next to your mirror or keep a journal of all the compliments you receive.
The Give Yourself a Chance website has a lot more tips.
It might also help to talk about your feelings, either to friends, family or us here at Meic. You can contact Meic by phone (08088 023456), text (84001), or instant message (www.meiccymru.org). This is confidential (unless you or someone else is at risk of harm) and completely free. We are open 24 hours a day 7 days a week. I hope you feel better about things soon.
All the best from the Meic team.
dirty
Commented 53 months ago - 1st January 2012 - 17:40pm
Posted by: dirty from Cardiff on 01/01/12 at 17:40 pm
First of all, f*** the haters. Can I say f*** the haters? I'm not sure, but they might edit it, but my point still stands. Forget the people who hate on you. As long as you're happy, that's all that matters.
But you aren't happy, and that's not good. First of all, I was fat. I used to be really overweight when I was a kid, and my nickname was 'Mutto', which means 'fatty' in Punjabi. And I lost the weight.
It came as soon as I hit puberty, but I got rid of it. Do you like music? Charge up an mp3 player and go on the running machine. Set an aim of a mile a day, and move it up. Eat less, and change your diet. I did it, and now I'm so much happier. If you don't like running, I'd really recommend the rowing machine. Swimming is really good for you too, it burns so many calories.
Replace mince in food with quorn. Change the crisps for apples; apples can be cool. So can carrots; think crisps are cool? Dip a carrot in some hummus, it's absolutely delicious.
You can change it. You are powerful enough to do this. You are in control of your life, and if you want to, you can change it. Do it. Remember that we are all beautiful and that you will never be as young as you are right now; so now is the perfect time for change. Put a time scale on it, and get a calendar. Have a goal; maybe a school dance to lose x amount of weight to get into x dress.
As a kid, all the women in the family were beautiful. Stunningly beautiful, and i was always the fat one. I changed it. I lost two stone when I was 15 to get down to nine stone, but I was short, so it looked so much more. I went from a size 12 to a size 8.
And you are not shallow. Society tells us we have to be a certain way, and f*** society. Society voted for Hitler and society watched Kim Kardashian's 72 day wedding. But, if we're not happy, then we must be happy.
We are here for 80 years at the most. I have to stress that you are young, so the earlier you decide to lose the weight, then the easier it will be. Our bodies . . .we were once hunter gathers. We respond well to exercise. The colour green even lifts our mood, possibly a result of endorphins after hunting, or just being in the open air.
You can do it. And we are all behind you.